We watched as Osimo left the Dunkirk dock and made her way out into the lake. we followed, along with the research vessel Argo. We'd been fascinated with this boat when we saw her at the dock. Once out on the lake, Bob asked us to pass because he can't see us when we follow. We cruised offshore but close enough to see land all day. The shore is lined with a series of cliffs that sweep south and upward into beautiful grasslands. The water is blue-green and smells fresh and sweet. The sun slipped behind the clouds making it a bit chilly. We had a five mph wind in our face as we passed the Dunkirk Light. Our next stop is in Erie where we will step our mast. This will be a huge milestone!
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| Passing the Dunkirk Light, Point Gratiot |
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| Research vessel Argo leaving Dunkirk behind Mystic |
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| Dunkirk Light view from the Lake |
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| Dunkirk Light, Point Gratiot |
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| Point Gratiot Coastline |
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| Argo passing Point Gratiot |
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| Moody Sky on Lake Erie |
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Osimo and Argo passing on the Lake
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(Information on R/V Argo)
We made it to the Erie breakwater entrance by 2:00. The Brigantine Lettie G Howard was sailing in the Bay. We passed the Perry Monument at Presque Isle. We've been here before, only last time it was by car in 2017 to visit our Looper friends Susan Beebes and David Taylor. We enjoyed that visit, driving around the peninsular and stopping at the many beaches to take photos. As we passed by, I took photos of the North Pier lighthouse that we stood at during our first visit. David and Susan will be coming to see us at Perry's Landing for a classic Looper Pot Luck!
Presque Isle is popular and incredibly beautiful! Returning here aboard Mystic is exciting and offers a dramatically different view of the area!
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| Lettie G Howard in Presque Isle Bay |
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| Perry Monument - Dedicated 1925 |
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| A busy Presque Isle Beach |
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Presque Isle North Pier Light
View from the Bay |
The entrance to Perry's Landing Marina is unlike any we've encountered. There are metal floating wedges that make up the breakwater. The channel is very narrow. It is not obvious which opening is the channel. We waited for a boat to exit just to make sure we were going the right way. We had a reservation for two nights. Dock Master, Heidi, had sent us information with a diagram on how to find our slip, so docking was easy and uneventful.
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Tricky breakwater entrance to Perry's Landing
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Sunrise over Mystic at Perry's Landing
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| Pinwheel on our Dock |
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| Osimo at Perry's Landing |
We have many fond memories from our first year on the Loop. We met Susan and David aboard s/v Veritas at the Cumberland Towhead anchorage on the Ohio River. We spent a lot of time with them along the inland waterway and during a five month stay in Mobile, Alabama. In 2018, we joined them on the last leg of their Loop. We were aboard their Island Packet when they crossed their wake in Hampton, Virginia. We were excited to see them again. They arrived with a picnic basket and local microbrew. Bob and Sue joined us as we sat outside the club house and shared our finger foods, stories and memories. It was a wonderful evening with a lot of laughter; the perfect way to reconnect.
Looper Pot Luck at Perry's Landing
Photos by Susan Beebes
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| Sue, Bob, David, Susan, Beth & Dave |
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| Looper reunion; Dave, Beth, Susan & David |
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| Mystic at Perry's Landing |
September 2017 Visit With Susan and David at Presque Isle
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Dave, Beth, Susan & David
Presque Isle Light - 2017 |
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Dave, Beth, Susan & David
Presque Isle - 2017 |
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Susan and David at their
2018 Wake Crossing
(Photo by Cassandra Landrum) |
Dave began to prep Mystic for mast stepping first thing in the morning. All the tether ratchet straps had to be removed and the stays had to be untangled and marked for rigging. We had an hour to step our mast and we wanted it to go well. Bob offered to assist us. Tony from the Pennsylvania Port Authority arrived right on time at 10:30 and instructed us to move over to the haul out chamber. He tied Mystic off in the center and prepared the crane for lifting our mast. Tony was professional and showed incredible attention to detail. He guided us along the way. There were a few small glitches with tangled lines but we completed the stepping well within the allotted hour. We thanked Bob and Tony, paid our bill, then headed back to our slip to complete the process of adding sails, hardware and lines. Dave disassembled our mast cradle and stored it below. Bob and Sue wanted to stay another night so we called Heidi to make sure there was room. It was a good thing because it took most of the day to get everything settled and Mystic completely ready to sail again.
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| Sue directing Bob at the forestay |
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| Tony from the Port Authority |
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| Mystic with her stick in place |
It was nice having a day off to relax after pushing so hard to get to Erie. The marina has a lovely salt water pool on the second floor of the club house overlooking the bay. We enjoyed a refreshing swim in the cool water. It rained on us but we hardly noticed. Romolo, a gourmet chocolate shop was two miles from the Marina. Sue joined us on a walk that took us through Lake Erie Arboretum at Frontier Park (LEAF). The path was very nice and heavily traveled by locals. Romolo sells the good chocolate! It took a while for us to narrow down our choices which included divine chocolates with caramel, mint and peanut butter. On our way back, we stopped at the quick stop for ice cream. It's become a thing for the crews of
Mystic and
Osimo; if there is ice cream nearby we make sure to get some. Since Bob stayed behind, he missed out on this opportunity. (Sorry Bob!)
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| Presque Isle Sunset |
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| Sunset Selfie - Dave and Beth |
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Sunset Sail
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| The tower at Perry's Landing |
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| Perry's Landing Observation Tower |
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The pool is above this building
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| Pool overlooking the Bay |
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| Sunset over the pool |
We heard that the weather has not been great in Erie this summer. Our third night at Perry's Landing was a Friday. The docks were busy all day with folks enjoying time on their boats. It appeared that our neighbors across the dock were working on boat repairs all day. Instead, they were preparing for the party of the summer. They must have had 30 people drinking and yelling until 3:00 am. We could hear their conversations as if they were aboard our boat. I started naming the guests; one guy was "spider guy" because he kept talking about spiders. A woman was "The Shrieker"; she only spoke loudly with a shrill pitch. Twenty years ago we'd have joined them. On this night we found it more than mildly annoying. We tolerated it though; the weather was perfect for a party and summer is slipping away. We'll get some sleep tomorrow!
We stayed at Perry's Landing in Erie for three days. It was a great stop for many reasons. We were able to rest after stepping our mast and we had a wonderful Looper reunion with old friends and new. Our experience with the Pennsylvania Port Authority was so comfortable and ended up being the cheapest option we found. We're ready to move on and tackle Lake Erie and Lake Huron. We have our wake crossing in our sights now! This is our year!
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| Goodnight Erie |
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