Vacation

Ahhhhhh!

As the old salts say,  "red at night, sailor's delight."

If the "old salts" are accurate, there should be a nice lake to fish on in the morning with the Goecke clan.  The forecast calls for a SW breeze 5-15 knots.  Waves around 1 foot.  There is a little air this evening so I would guess we'll be looking at a foot plus on the wave height.  Seeing as though it's 90 degrees in the day, a little breeze won't be such a bad thing.

I've got all the weapons locked and loaded for a 5:30am tee time.

Vacation...ahhhhhhhh!

Back tomorrow to continue the story. 

7/14

So, Friday night was pleasant...since the wind was out of the east and the soot was blowing the other way for a change.

We took the dinghy out so I could drag a worm around the harbor for a bit.  We motored out the channel.

And ventured outside the breakwall on a glassy Lake Michigan.

We trolled along the length of the outer breakwall. 

On the way back into the harbor, the sun reflected off the glass panels of the north pier lighthouse, giving the illusion of a lamp from the lightouse.

We waited a bit inside the harbor to experience the evening sunset.

Then back to the mother ship for some shut-eye.

Sunday morning was filled with promise as we ventured off shore to the area we had fished yesterday.  We sat down to set lines eight miles out over 200' of water.

As sunrise appeared and line were set, we found almost instant action.

We (actually, I) lost the first fish on, but the second try resulted in an 11 pound steelhead for the cooler.

Then the fun ended.  The starboard motor just died.  Everything else on the boat was totally functional, but that one motor was completely out of commission.  So the boat was pointed toward shore, the lines picked up and we limped back to the harbor on the port motor.  It took us about an hour.  Ugh!

After doing a little trouble shooting at the dock,  this guy appears to be the culprit.

It's the ignition switch.  I worked on the switch and wiring a little and seem to have it working again.  I'm not real sure what caused it to malfunction but I have a new one to put in now so hopefully, we don't have to do that again.

So much for the weekend.

7/13

What a great weekend this is!  Sunshine and heat...just what summer is supposed to be like.

We arrived last night to a calm and serene marina.

The flag layed against the pole promising a good lake for fishing this morning.

Kathy struck her weekend pose on the back deck with a book.

5am Saturday arrived and we ventured out on a decent lake and set lines in 80' of water.

And trolled and trolled and trolled and trolled.  It wasn't looking good for any "catching" on this fishing expedition.  So I pulled lines and we pointed the boat west toward the offshore waters.  There we found some encouraging signs.

A mark on the sonar.  40' down over 245' of water.

...and a good temperature break.

Then it happened...and this has been rare the past few trips...Fish On!

After a struggle, a 20 lb. 14 oz. king is put in the cooler.  The first 20+ pound fish I've caught in several years.

We had a few more bites and landed four fish total including this nice lake trout.

It was a nice day out on the open lake with the sights to be enjoyed.

Dodging the SS Badger.

Like I said, it turned out to be a real nice day on the lake.  There hasn't been many like this all year.

Looks like it might be a real nice evening to tow a crawler around the harbor later.  Tomorrow promises more calm seas.  Another offshore run may be in order. 

Maybe for a 25 pounder???

I'm due.

.

It's day 4 of the weekend.

We ran about the same schedule yesterday that we did on Friday...and with about the same kind of results.  We slept in and ventured out to 100' of water and bobbed with the waves for a couple hours.

It was a nice day for a boat ride, which is a good thing because that's exactly all it was...a boat ride.

So after a couple hours, we found our way back to the dock and wandered over to the park to check out the art fair.

We noticed the turtles sunning on our stroll to the park.  It's probably the first warm AND sunny day they've experienced this year.

At the park, Kathy took interest in the knitted purses...or what she would call a "cruise" purse for the Caribbean trips in the winter.

I thought it was too hot and crowded.

But they had Kettle Korn so the trip wasn't a total loss.

After a hot dog on the grill, we traveled out in the dinghy and trolled our way around PM Lake.  Since we were still downwind, we were also escaping the "ferry dust".

Anyway, I pulled a crawler around the lake here and there and had just as much luck as I did on the big lake.  That being, the boat didn't sink.

Funny, how the horizon always seems to be a bit skewed in the marine environment.  I must be destined to be a sailboater.

Kathy rode along for the tour.  She's a great rod holder.

Later, there was a band that played in the marina clubhouse.  It's a bit small for that kind of activity and VOLUME.  I walked in and listened to a rendition of Tequila Sunrise, Fortunate Son and Smoke on the Water.  That was enough for my tender ear drums although the band was very good.

It's Sunday morning and there's a red glow to the east.  "red in the morning, sailor take warning".  That was a good enough excuse to sleep in a little and forego the trip out this morning.

Until the fishing improves a little, I'll probably stay close to the dock.  There are signs that the improvement is near.  A 22 pound salmon was brought in last night by a boat on our dock.  It was only one, but there was quality.

Back next week.

7/5

Day 2 of the holiday weekend.

The fog did burn off finally about noon yesterday.  So after viewing a bit of the Ludington 4th of July parade and a mid-day dinner, we launched the dinghy and trolled around the harbor a bit.  Kathy kept me company.

The warm water PM Lake fishery still isn't the best (since we're waiting for some warm water), but it was something to do while we watched the crowds begin to gather for the evening fireworks.

Sunset and the crowds increase in the park.

Finally, it's dark.  On with the show.

This morning we awoke to nice conditions so off to the deep blue sea we went.

Leaving the Badger and the soot in our wake.

This is what a coal burning ferry boat leaves on every surface that is downwind.  Those specks are coal soot.  It's something we have to deal with here in Ludington...unfortunately.

So on to the fishing.  Here's a typical "action" shot.

What action? Well that's about the gist of it the past couple weeks.  Fishing has been s-l-o-w.  But then miracles still happen. 

A kamikaze steelhead!

That was the extent of the catching.  So we headed back to the harbor.

I understand we need to go to the theater tonight.

Tomorrow's schedule includes a trip to the artisan fair in the park.  They'll have Kettle Korn so it won't be a total bust.

Independence Day

Independence Day!!!

Hot dogs...sunshine...the beach...

Wait a minute.  Where's the damn sunshine my weatherman promised?

The drips on the rail...

and on the spider web...

should be an indication of the conditions this morning.

Looking out the channel this morning...well, there's really not much to look at.

It's a tad foggy so the boat remained tied to the dock.

There are those that would be foolish enough to venture out in that stuff (like this guy that's barely visible in the channel), so it's better to stay ashore to avoid that risk.

No radar, no lights, no sense.

We're hoping for the fog to lift and a return of summer in time for the holiday festivities.  We've experienced fireworks in the fog before.  The "ooh and aah" factor is significantly muted.