Where WhimSea Takes Us

Posted by Karen A. Brown

On this trip we would be joined by fellow sailing aficionado from Capella, where Karen works, Dwight and his wife Kate. We had planned a weekend sailing trip with no particular destination except to see where the wind would take us.

Dwight and Kate arrived early Saturday morning and we stowed their gear quickly and headed out the channel towards the lake. Though early morning, it was already getting warm, which did not portend well for our plans. We motored out the Superior entry past a number of big ships and the Wisconsin point before entering the big lake.

We had thought about sailing for the apostle's or Knife River depending on the wind direction, however, we quickly discovered that the wind did not exist, much less hold a direction at all. Though we tried to sail for a while, we found ourselves flogging the sails more then anything else. After some time, we finally gave up and returning to dock and a good bottle of wine.

We tried again on Sunday and found a little bit more wind, though it was still quite warm. At least we got an opportunity to do a little bit of sailing and Dwight got a chance to take some great pictures.

Posted by Karen A. Brown

On this cruise we would test the ability of Whim Sea to comfortably berth six adults. We were being joined by my whole family; Mom, Dad, Theresa and Steve. As this would be their first time on the Big Lake, we planned for a short cruise on the Duluth end of the Lake rather then a specific destination.

Everyone arrived on Friday evening so we could stow all gear and be off first thing on Saturday morning. We left via the Superior entry so as to see more of the big ships along the way. My Dad has worked for Cargill for a number of years and has an interest in their port in Duluth as well as the cargo ships that carry their goods.

We had a great wind for a downwind run and were able to go quite a ways into the lake with very little to no heel. It was a busy day in port so we were accompanied by a number of large ships on our way out and the family got to take many pictures of them.

With the wind that we had, we made it about halfway to Two Harbors before we were compelled to turn around. We wanted to be back at dock in time for dark and dinner.

After coming about, the wind did pick up, providing us with a slightly less comfortable return trip and significantly more heel. When we were probably 20 miles out, the coast guard broke into channel 16 with a weather warning for all mariners telling us a storm was coming and that we should find a safe harbor. We immediately dropped all sail and employed the diesel and headed into the harbor keeping a weather eye to our stern where the darkening clouds were piling up. Here's a picture of the building clouds by the bridge.

We made it into port in time to have dinner. As we were getting ready to watch the storm come on from the cockpit, it hit. The winds were blowing at around 40 mph causing us to heel over while tied to the dock. Water was being blow at us sideways. All electricity went out and the aft berth was soaked thru by rain that was pounded at the cockpit. Needless to say we were awfully glad we made it back in time. Seeing as how we are already planning the next trip with the family, I think it's safe to say that despite the storm, they definitely enjoyed themselves.

Whim Sea accommodated all guests and crew without a problem. Though we were sometimes a little tight in navigating around the cabin (especially when the rain hit and we were stuck inside with all ports closed - it got a bit hot!), everyone had a comfortable place to lay their head at night as well as a comfortable place to sit during the sail. Mom even felt comfortable enough to walk out on the deck while under sail and have a seat on the cabin trunk!

Posted by Karen A. Brown

It was a bright and sunny Fourth of July afternoon when we finally were fully provisioned, full of water, and gassed up for our trip to Isle Royale. Though it would be our first trip on Whim Sea, it was a returning trip that we were thoroughly looking forward to, having fallen deeply in love with the island during our visit on Bucephalus in 2002.

We headed out of on our trip around 1:30 in the afternoon. The sun was warm and the wind steady and sure. We contemplated dropping the anchor in the Duluth harbor and hanging out long enough to watch the fireworks that were planned for the evening. The Duluth/Superior area is reputed to have some of the best fireworks shows on the lake and you couldn't get a better seat then one in the harbor on your own boat.

Since the wind was so good, we couldn't resist such a delightful sailing opportunity. We set the sails and a course toward the Island that would take us straight through without much taking or changing of course.

By dusk we had reached Silver Bay. We were able to see the fireworks from Silver Bay all along the Minnesota shore to Duluth/Superior and then up the Wisconsin shore to Bayfield. It was amazing. You could hear the boom of the fireworks about fifteen minutes after you saw the flash of the fireworks. If you half closed your eyes and took yourself back in time it almost looked as if we were still fighting for our independence. The colors and booms were like cannon fire exploding all over the coast. Looking around the lake, we could see no other boats. I don't think I've ever seen anything like it. It's too bad no one else was there to see it with us.

Nightfall brought a near full moon and about a million stars. It was mesmerizing seeing the mast sway against the field of bright stars.

The next day's sail was almost as good. We only lost a bit of wind a little while. We arrived in Washington Harbor, on July 5 around 5:00 (6:00 Michigan time). Since the office closed at 6:00, we anchored in the harbor for the evening and planned to check in in the morning.

We slept in and woke up to a beautifully sunny day. We checked in and gave them a proposed trip itinerary and went about enjoying the day, just lazing around reading and watching the moose.Monday morning saw us trying to bring up the anchor with no success. While we were trying to lift the anchor, the wind picked up and a fog rolled in. As we were not having any luck, we decided we were destined to stay at the anchorage for another night.

Meanwhile another sailboat, the Katja, had joined us in Washington Harbor. The people aboard her had gone ashore during the day and were apparently planning to spend considerable time ashore. They were gone a number of hours when we noted the Katja had slipped her anchorage and gone further into the shoal part of the harbor. They had very little scope on their anchor and the shifting, variable winds had caused it to slip its hold on the bottom.

Not knowing when they would return and seeing by the way the boat was situated that they had gone aground, we called the ranger station and asked them to keep an eye out for the Katja's owners and let them know they'd run aground.

We watched Katja get beat up by the wind and rock in the mud bottom for probably a half an hour before the owners appeared on shore and realized her plight. They began to work on getting free. Unfortunately, the anchored appeared to have reset in the muck after they shifted and they had to free the anchor before they could do anything else.

They worked on it for hours, employing the windlass and the sails in an effort to break their keel and anchor free. What was kind of odd though they showed another anchor available, they didn't attempt to kedge off (use their anchor to pull themselves free). We could only surmise that they had only one anchor line.

After what seemed an eternity they were finally free. The woman at the helm slowly began to move them back to safe water. Unfortunately, her reluctance to move quickly re-set them into the muck. Their first efforts had to have taken a couple of hours, their second another hour before they were free again. I think she's pretty lucky that her partner didn't throw her overboard then and there. After they finally broke free, again, they heaved anchor and left the harbor. We never saw them again the whole trip.

The next morning we were determined to leave the harbor. We set the alarm and woke with the sun and were out and working on getting our anchor free. Taking a lesson from the Katja, Troy decided to run the anchor line aft to the winches to take advantage of the extra power.

Slowly and arduously he winches the line up. I watched from the bow to let him know when I could see the chain. To my surprise I didn't see the chain but instead called Troy to the bow to look at what he did pull up. The entire side of a ship! Yes, it was a somewhat small fishing vessel, estimated at about eight feet in length. We had managed to twist our anchor line around the Samson post (it's like a cleat) on the side of the boat.

Thanking Mom & Dad for the fortuitous gift, we broke out the camping axe and went about trying to chop the bulwark away without hitting our anchor line. Our second anchor didn't arrive before our vacation started so if we lost this anchor we were in trouble.

After some time chopping we finally got free and watched as the boat gracefully fell back to the depths of the harbor. It made us wonder at the story behind the boat's presence. She appeared to have been burnt out. And this area once held a fishing village.

It seems we learned two lessons in this harbor. One about the dangers of too little scope (and the possibility of running aground) and the other the dangers of too much scope (and picking up more then we can handle). We raised anchor, said goodbye to the faithful moose and headed out on the next leg of our journey.

We eventually made our way thru Rock Harbor to Snug Harbor where we paid for a night's dockage, refueled and got a pump out. They have cabins, gift shops and even a restaurant. After enjoying a shower, we indulged ourselves with a nice dinner and partook of the ranger's talk on the lighthouses of Isle Royale.

When leaving Snug Harbor we drove past a group of outbuildings that, at one time was a working fishing village. Though we didn't get a chance to set foot at the village, we plan to do so next visit.

After Snug Harbor, the next location to note is Chippewa Harbor. Nestled in among the boulders, it's a relatively well hidden inlet that opens into two bays large enough and deep enough for Whim Sea. I can't recall when I've seen a place as beautiful as this one. There were no other boats and, save the camper's at the first bay, no other people around. The only sounds were the calls of the loons as they sang to each other. Because of the high cliffs and surrounding trees those calls were amplified and echoed around us. It was hauntingly gorgeous. Unfortunately, due to the wind speed and direction, and our inability to get a radio weather report in, Chippewa Harbor was a tenuous anchorage and so we pressed on.

We ended up in Wright Island's Bay on the west side. There we discovered a long abandoned homestead, boats and outbuildings and all. It was marked with a warning that eagles were nesting nearby and that we shouldn't disturb them, so we returned to our ship, a nice dinner and a couple bottles of wine. We rocked in the boat, drank wine, and listened to the loons circle the boat. It's also the only place we were able to salvage some pictures.

The rest of the trip provided ample relaxation and rest. The wonder of Isle Royale is that you can always find solitude on the island. Frequently you'll see other boats or hikers but we could always find plenty of places with no one about. There's nothing like this island anywhere else that we've been to. We intend to come back frequently and we'll next be trying some real wilderness sailing by going to the Slate Islands in 2004.