Sister Bay Door County Wisconsin

July 30, 2023

Mystic was docked in the reserved loading bay for the Rock Island ferry so we had to leave before the first arrival at 9:15. We motored out and around Washington Island into the calm of Schoolhouse Bay to prepare our boats for a day of sailing. As we set our sails, the fishing boat that we helped the night before passed us, honked and waved hello! We were able to sail from Schoolhouse Bay to the big bay but the wind was on our nose once we turned south, so we furled our jib and dropped our main then continued under engine power. 

Fishing Boat Friends in Schoolhouse Bay
Boyer Bluffs Door County

The big sailboat we met at Fayette had left Rock Island, caught us and passed us by at Gills Rock. We slipped into the Sister Bay harbor from the north, through a channel lined by shallows, with Shoo Fly following close behind. We entered the Sister Bay Marina breakwater and took a left down the first row of boats. We were directed to slip #37 between two massive power boats that dwarfed our Alberg 35. Shoo Fly was a few slips away in #34, also tucked between much larger power boats.

Shoo Fly at Sister Bay

Shoo Fly reflection in the hull of BIG boat

Mystic and Shoo Fly between big boats

Mystic at Sister Bay

After checking in at the marina office we walked to Stabbur Beer Garden. We shared a fabulous turkey and brie sandwich, washed down with a cold Door County brew. Dan and Nena's daughter, Christine, grandsons Elijah and Emmit, and granddaughter Kristin joined us. We met Elijah when he spent a week visiting Dan and Nena aboard Shoo Fly at Nestegg Marine. We enjoyed meeting more of the Mooney family. The Stabbur is part of Al Johnson's restaurant, a very popular Sister Bay eatery. The roof of Al Johnson's is covered with a grass lawn. In the summer months, goats keep the roof in check by eating the grass. At times, mowing and raking is required. 

Goats on Al Johnson's roof

Mowing and raking grass
on Al Johnson's roof

Sister Bay reminded us of Key West. At sunset, everyone gathered to participate in the setting of the sun, staying until it dropped below the horizon. It was a sacred experience with a beautiful, pink and orange sky. Once the sun disappeared, folks drifted away, we returned to our boats and the marina quieted down quickly. 

In the morning, we were up early and set off on a dock walk. There was a sailboat nearby with young children aboard. A little boy about five years old got in the bosun chair. His dad slowly hoisted him to the top of the mast while he giggled and begged to go higher. His brother raced up and down the pier on a bicycle. Each child was trying to capture their parent's attention. 

Tiny Sailor climbing mast

Checkout was at 11:00 and everyone on our dock was departing at the same time. We backed out of our slip, with Mystic pulling to the port side like she always does, which placed us pointing in the wrong direction. Dave swung Mystic around and made a tight 180, with just enough room to spare. As we passed by a group of men aboard a power boat, they cheered and yelled, "Nice work Captain!". Later, we learned that Dan had backed out of his slip only to find a power boat had snuck up behind him, blocking his route out. He waved the boat back and made a close cut to squeeze out of a cluster of docked boats. The guys that cheered for us also cheered for Dan. They must look forward to departure time to watch how each captain escapes the marina.

We left the harbor slowly so Shoo Fly could catch up. One of our dock neighbors in a big power boat came out behind us and blew past, throwing a huge wake. They waved a friendly goodbye, clueless that the wake would make us rock violently. This is an annoyance that happens often to sailboaters.

We planned to spend the night at Chamber's Island but the wind was not favorable for anchoring so we decided to return to our home port. We motored along, two boats, in tandem, past the Strawberry Islands, and the southeast shoal of Chambers Island. We pointed our bows toward the Marinette Lighthouse, making the run across Green Bay like two racehorses heading home for dinner.

Shoo Fly running alongside Mystic