Leland Michigan Historic Fishtown

September 24, 2016

We finally able to leave Beaver Island this morning. Our day of rest in the sun and the quiet anchorage  was just what we needed. Up at the crack of dawn, we felt refreshed and ready to head south for the long crossing from Beaver Island to the coast of Michigan. This is a big day for us. We started the morning with 15 mph winds out of the east, south east. It was choppy but the waves were smaller and tolerable compared to yesterday. No seasickness! We motored out and followed the shoreline of Beaver Island until we passed the southern tip. We were able to let out just a bit of the foresail to give us a boost of about one knot. Dave wanted to get us closer to the eastern shore for protection and it worked. Other than a few gusts the trip was not bad. We were able to use the autopilot.

The Beaver Island Ferry Emerald Isle
overtakes us crossing Lake Michigan

We are using Open CPN, a chart plotter/navigation system to chart our course. We also have a GPS receiver that interacts with Open CPN and shows exactly where our boat is located on the charts. It’s pretty cool because it places a little red boat showing our location at any given moment. It’s often hard to picture where you are in reference to the chart you are looking at, so this is invaluable.

Our little red boat on our way to Frankfort Michigan

It took almost 9 hours to get to Leland. We struggled to see the breakwater but it finally came into view. Dave called ahead to ask about the depths in the marina. We got a voice message warning us of shallow depths in the entry channel due to shoaling. Luckily, the path was well marked, although quite narrow. We made our way to the fuel dock and settled in.

Mystic docked at Leland Michigan

The Waterway Guide described Leland as a big tourist spot. We couldn't wait to take a walk through town to explore. Historic Fishtown is a really cool place with a feel of an old fishing village. It's similar to Mystic Seaport but much smaller with more shops than museums. The woman working at the Welcome Center told us that the salmon are at the beginning of their spawn. She said that if we were patient, we may get a photo of a salmon jumping out of the water at the dam along Carp River. We could see the salmon swimming around below the dam and waited for that epic shot but didn't get lucky. The fish were huge and probably just working up their nerve for the arduous task of jumping up a couple feet for the first level of the dam then another four feet to summit the top.

Historic Fishtown

Manitou Island Transit

Fishtown Welcome Center

Falling Waters Lodge

Carp River Dam

Carp River Dam

Folk Art

Canoe Rack

Canoe Rack

Shop Window

Yard Art

Boat House Along Carp River

Top Sider Planters

We stumbled upon Verterra Winery and decided to treat ourselves to a wine tasting. It was closing time but I think the gals working could see that we really needed this indulgence. They chatted freely and allowed us to take our time enjoying our selections. We settled on a white called Chaos White, which was said to go with anything from chicken to pizza. It was sweet but had an acidic tone to it; easy to drink. We will save it for celebrating our CHICAGO milestone!

Verterra ~ Fine Michigan Wine

We stopped at the local Mercantile for a few items to make a salad for dinner. One of the things we miss the most is fresh produce. It seems that every town has a Farmer’s Market but we just happen to be in town on the wrong day to take advantage of them. Every town has a local grocery but we are still in small town USA and produce has been very expensive with limited options.

The harbor at Leland is very popular and crowded with people. Some are obviously tourists but many must be locals. Everyone meanders along the docks. Several people stop to take pictures of Mystic. One couple stops to comment that we are a long way from home. “Yes, we reply...it feels like the farthest corner of amazing!”

Sailing into the sunset

Mystic under Leland Sunset