WhimSea's Log

Posted by Karen A. Brown

We up anchored by 0700 hours and shaped a course for Windigo. The winds are light, but the sun is warming us. Last night they predicted low's in the 40's and I for one was loathe to leave the bunk.

We exited the islands between Rocky and South Twin before coming to a bearing of 50 degrees. So far we've seen two freighters, but both are to far away to either name or take photos of them.

We ended up motor sailing and motoring up to Windigo. The breeze they had predicted did not reach the middle of the lake. Outside of what was probably Grand Marais we saw two sailboats, sailing in company, probably headed for the islands. There was also a freighter heading up the coast, probably to Thunder Bay.

We arrived at the Washington Harbor entrance with no problems. The wind, was little to non-existent still, but had turned a mite cold. I think because of the rain it appeared to be bringing. We watched a storm as it made its way up the Minnesota coast. It competed with the sunbeams as sun and rain put a cross-hatched pattern in the sky. I tried to get pictures of it, we'll see how they turn out.

As we neared Beaver Island we overtook a group of loons. There were six of them fishing in company, which is something you just don't see. I don't think I've really ever seen more then two unless there's a baby included.

Another interesting sight was a MacGregor, at anchor (or beached, it's hard to tell) in an inlet before Beaver Island. Troy would strike up a conversation with them later at Windigo dock. He learned they were from Michigan and had driven to Grand Portage and came across from there. In previous years they had attempted the trip, setting off from Copper Harbor, only to turn back halfway across.

We would get lucky and find the dock had room to accommodate us for the evening. We tied up, stretched our legs on dry land and put on the sail cover. We were just about to head top side with a martini when the rain came. We'd been watching the lightening for a bit, but hoped we'd be able to enjoy the martinis with a light show. Oh well. I'm glad we made it into the harbor and at dock without getting wet.