Still Floating

By the time I’m up, Jody was already out for a run into downtown Grand Haven, Rick was is in the SkipperBud’s ‘beater’ truck driving to the hardware store, and John (who had been up since 6 am) was working on fixing a few small issues that came up on our first night on the Latitude Adjustment.

By 12:30 we were ready to depart and set sail for Saugatuck, MI and were pleasantly surprised by the charm of little red light house and lovely beaches as we left the Grand Haven Harbor. In March of 2012 Grand Haven was named as one of Travel + Leisure Magazine's Best Secret Beaches on Earth along side exotic destinations like Turkey, Australia, France, and Thailand due to soft sand beaches, clear freshwater and towering dunes of the expansive Grand Haven State Park. Poet Carl Sandburg called this breathtaking coastal system a “signature of time,” ranking it among the greatest natural wonders in the United States.

We continued west along the coast viewing the sand dunes with picturesque stairs leading steeply from shore to lovely lake homes interspersed with dense green forest.

We slowed down to take a quick detour into “Holland” with more big beaches and intrepid sunbathers in bikinis (we were all wearing jackets), then continued our journey toward Saugatuck.

We cruised down the Kalamazoo River and into Saugatuck about 4:30 pm. John was pleased the boat was still floating and nothing ever touched the boat but the fenders. After a quick cleaning of the boat we were off for drinks and live music at the Butler Deck. Up until now, we have avoided the rain, but sprinkles started as we walked to dinner at the Wick’s Park Bar & Grille and foreshadowed a big wet evening storm.