Where WhimSea Takes Us

Posted by Karen A. Brown

Our next trip to the Big Lake took place at the end of September. We were lucky to have such nice weather this late in the season and were looking forward to seeing the wonderful colors along the way.

We packed up on Friday evening and set the alarm for an early morning wake up call. We were on the road way before first light Saturday morning. Because the temperature was starting to drop quite a bit at night, but the water in the area was still somewhat warm, there was a wonderful fog all the way to the lake. As we got closer to our destination and the sun became to come up, we would catch glimpses of bright yellows, reds and oranges through the fog. It was like a fairy tale.

We arrived at the launch site and started setting up the mast. (Boy doesn't the Jeep look funny next to the sailboat?) As you can see we had a couple of things left to load onto the boat, finished putting up the mast and away we could go.

We launched the boat and were off to sail for the day. It was a beautiful day and wonderful sailing weather. We had quite a breeze and spent a lot of time sailing around the islands.

As you can see, Troy is having a great time with this wonderful sailing weather. We spent the day on Saturday sailing around the islands and avoiding fishing nets (there were quite a few out!) Since it was so late in the season there weren't many other boats out on the water, including sailboats. (Most are taken out of the water by labor day).

After a wonderfully full of day sailing (and driving) we were pretty tired and decided to avoid having to do anchor watches by tying up to the dock at the launch site. We tied up and walked around the camping area, spent some time relaxing on the board walk and pier and watched the sunset.

After a restful, albeit cold, night at dock, we got up to an early breakfast and were off for more sailing. We headed out for open water to raise the sails. Once out in the water, we quickly discovered that the wind was variable and indecisive that day. We tried for quite some time to catch the wind, unfortunately she was bouncing off Sand Island and coming from all sorts of odd directions.

We decided instead to use up some of our gas and motor out to look at the lighthouse on Sand. This is a picture of the lighthouse from the water. You can just make out the waves crashing at the rocks at the base of the cliff. The water was coming right off the big water and hitting that side of the island. When we started to come out of the protection of the island we started feeling the effects of this wind. We had thought we would motor around the island, but after feeling that wind, turned around and started heading along the shore on the lee side instead.

Sand island is one of the most interesting islands (in my opinion -- but then again maybe it's because it is the one we've seen most often). Here is a good picture of the caves along the island. The water has really eaten into the side of the cliffs. The sound of the water against the rock is pretty amazing.

Around the corner from these caves are some old buildings from when the island was inhabited (there are still some private residences on this island, but not that many). These buildings look like they are about to fall right into the water. Just a couple more years and you might not know that they were even there.

Just past these houses are some docks put out by the National Parks Department for boats to tie up to. Since out boat needs only a few inches of water, we could motor right on up to the dock and tie up. This dock is right off a public campground on the island that includes a nice trail. Since the day was not amenable to sailing, we decided to tie up and go for a walk.

Here's a picture we took from the trail on Sand Island. The way the sunlight was filtering through the trees and hitting the lone tree showing off it's bright red color was a sight to behold!

At the end of the long trail, you're rewarded with the sight of an old lighthouse. This is the same lighthouse that we saw from the water (picture above) and really is amazing. Made from brick it has an outstanding view of the lake. Up until a little while ago it was an inhabited lighthouse. I just can't imagine being out on that island all by yourself with nothing but the sound of the wind and water to keep you company. You'd have an amazing view of all of the ships that pass by on their way to Duluth and back to Sault St. Marie.

That's me sitting at the door. Gives you an idea of the size of this building.

After our walk around Sand Island, we headed back to dock and pulled the boat out for what would end up being the last time this season. It was somewhat sad to think about, that we wouldn't be back for months.

On the way home we were treated to the sights and smells of the Lake Superior fall.

This last picture was snapped along the way home from the car window (believe it or not we were actually also moving at the time). I've never seen such a variety of colors as I saw that fall. The bright hues of orange, red, yellow and green were quite a contrast to the slate gray of Lake Superior. I would highly recommend going, even for a drive along the coast, if you get the opportunity.

I can hardly wait until this spring and the start of the season. The opportunity to get photos of the awakening of the trees, return of the birds and the flowers is something I heartily look forward to.