SailNet Community banner
  • SailNet is a forum community dedicated to Sailing enthusiasts. Come join the discussion about sailing, modifications, classifieds, troubleshooting, repairs, reviews, maintenance, and more!

Great Lakes (Grand Traverse Bay actually) sailing questions

8K views 24 replies 8 participants last post by  tommyt 
#1 ·
Hi everyone,

My wife and I are taking ASA101/103 in two weeks and then chartering the boat we're learning on for the three days after the class.

My question has to do with anchoring. Now, I'm going to ask this question when we're taking our class but I'm so freakin' excited about this that I need to know now!

Here's my question: Where can we anchor overnight? We're going to have the boat on Wed and Thurs nights and I'm just wondering where we can stay or if we even want to try. We could always grab a transient slip (is that the correct name?) at one of the marinas in the bay (or go back to the slip for the boat) so this may be a moot point.

Am I crazy for wondering if we can anchor out overnight? I know we'll have to find someplace protected (who knows what the weather is going to be like that week) and after reading Tom's story about the family that ground his keel down I'm kind of freaking out about hurting someone else's boat.

Thanks for your help!

Tom
 
See less See more
#2 ·
Made you nervous did I?? Just a little forethought should protect you. The 30's I assume you are taking after the class belong to Bay Breeze and not private owners.

It all really depends on the weather. Period. You can anchor in Bowers Harbor which is very protected from everthing but a SW wind, and even that if it is not a big wind.

Suttons Bay, outside the mooring fields is pretty protected. If the wind is not from the south, and you can get a anchor set, Omena Bay is protected. Other than that inside the Bay you don't have many choices if the wind comes up in the middle of the night.

If you go to the Bay Breeze Yacht Charters & Sales there are some cruising iteneraries and anchoring sites on there. Go to the Lake Michigan email list here on sailnet and pull up Jim Shroegers (SP) anchorages on the northern Lake Michigan emails that cover a lot of territory as well.

The instructors at BB are all very knowledgeable. They will give you their insights and warnings as well. In three days you will most likely not get out of the Bay. Sailing, unless the wind is perfect, you cannot get out of the bay in a day. Northport is about as far as you can go unless you motor to Charlevoix, and that can be a tough 3 days IF they will even allow you out of the Bay. Northport is not a good anchorage, but a great marina just as Suttons Bay is a great marina.Space could be tight in both those weeks, but they usually find a way to get you in, even if it is rafting off other boats.

HAVE FUN!!!!! No keel dragging please.
 
#3 ·
OH, and don't worry about big waves in the Bay. If they get to 4-6', which is rare, you will not even think about anchoring. Also, you will probably never need to worry about a boat again, as your wife will not want to go if that is her first experience. The instructors take care of you and the crew in those type of situations as well. Just know your limits.
 
#4 ·
I think you should anchor out. It will teach you a lot more about the boat than tieing up to a transient slip. It also prevents you from going to use the marina showers and other shore-side facilities, giving you a more complete picture of what cruising is really like. :D

A good cruising guide to the area or someone at one of the local yatch clubs could probably give you a few good ideas... so could the instructors of the course.
 
#5 ·
I agree with the Dog. (lordy, i hate it when that happens!) Anchoring out with the wife away from the rest of humanity tends to bring certain seamanship questions to the fore. After the hook is properly set, in a suitably beautiful locale (not hard to find on the Bays), you can turn your efforts to establishing just how many locations you can fit two human bodies into on that particular vessel. Given the romantic locale and exoticness of the boat you may well find that your bride has some interesting ideas on the interaction of naval architecture and human anatomy. Works for me anyway. (g)
 
#6 ·
Unfortunately, it will happen quite a bit, unless you decide to become as irrational as CCP is. ;) I hope that doesn't happen... I hate when we have to put humans down... foaming at the mouth and all. :eek:

sailaway21 said:
I agree with the Dog. (lordy, i hate it when that happens!)
 
#7 ·
"CCP" ? Isn't that what the Soviet hockey players used to have on their uniforms? I'm an American, my people come from the Netherlands, and I only foam at the mouth when my wife bends over, usually in front of the oven. (lol)
 
#8 ·
CCP is an oft ignored anti-semitic hatemonger that has a very self-centered thread about herself. CCCP is what the Iron Curtain boys used to have printed on their jerseys.:rolleyes:
sailaway21 said:
"CCP" ? Isn't that what the Soviet hockey players used to have on their uniforms? I'm an American, my people come from the Netherlands, and I only foam at the mouth when my wife bends over, usually in front of the oven. (lol)
 
#9 ·
Anchoring out is a ton of fun your going to have a good time.
However...... I tend to sleep a lot better nicely tied to a slip.
I sleep good at anchor, just better in a slip.
 
#10 ·
back to the original Q ...

Congrats on the trip. Traverse Bay is a beautiful area, have fun.

In Northport in a west wind (common in summer) you can anchor just south of the municipal marina off the beach by the park. Easy walk into town, and you can enjoy the free Friday nite concerts - at least you could, we were there a few years ago.

There's also a little uninhabited island about 5 (?) miles north of Traverse City where you can anchor for lunch, go ashore and hike the trails. I'm sure your charter co. will tell you about this one, it is (or was) very popular.
 
#11 ·
eryka said:
Congrats on the trip. Traverse Bay is a beautiful area, have fun.

In Northport in a west wind (common in summer) you can anchor just south of the municipal marina off the beach by the park. Easy walk into town, and you can enjoy the free Friday nite concerts - at least you could, we were there a few years ago.

There's also a little uninhabited island about 5 (?) miles north of Traverse City where you can anchor for lunch, go ashore and hike the trails. I'm sure your charter co. will tell you about this one, it is (or was) very popular.
IF the Charter boat comes with a dinghy.
 
#12 ·
Ah the things we liveaboards take for granted!! Good point - it would be 'inconvenient' to anchor if it didn't, tho in our younger and wilder days we'd just drop the hook and swim ashore (really!). Most charter co's I know will rent a dinghy with a boat, of course for an additional fee.
 
#13 ·
It is a full service charter company. For just a little bit more $ you can have your own dingy for the day.

Now, I know the infatuation with anchoring out. However, how many of you anchored out the first night you were EVER on YOUR boat for a day. In 101/103 you spend about 15 minutes per student on anchoring. Docks don't move much, anchors can.
 
#14 ·
eryka said:
Ah the things we liveaboards take for granted!! Good point - it would be 'inconvenient' to anchor if it didn't, tho in our younger and wilder days we'd just drop the hook and swim ashore (really!). Most charter co's I know will rent a dinghy with a boat, of course for an additional fee.
I usually just drop the hook and wade ashore... don't usually get wet past the knees... :D But then I have a much shallower draft than most boats... However, this year, in preparation for cruising a bit longer-term, I did pickup an inflatable dinghy and will be breaking out my portabote dinghy as well.
 
#15 ·
Ask the charter co if there are moorings available anywhere. In a sense you can have the best of both - sleep securely knowing you won't drag (and sometimes the tackle on charter boats can be skimpy) AND you get to swing to the wind, rock on the water and all that romantic stuff. You also don't have an audience as you try to dock an unfamiliar boat in an unfamiliar slip :)

S-dog, you multihullers are sooo wimpy! Wet only to the knees?
 
#16 ·
eryka said:
Ask the charter co if there are moorings available anywhere. In a sense you can have the best of both - sleep securely knowing you won't drag (and sometimes the tackle on charter boats can be skimpy) AND you get to swing to the wind, rock on the water and all that romantic stuff. You also don't have an audience as you try to dock an unfamiliar boat in an unfamiliar slip :)
But Eryka, dragging at anchor is part of the "cruising" experience... ;)

Yeah, you're right, some of the ground tackle I've seen on charter boats, I wouldn't trust to hold a big dinghy in a blow. I think that's rather short-sighted of the charter companies... since a badly laid large anchor is bound to hold much better than a badly laid light anchor... and if the boat is a capital investment, shouldn't they be doing as much as possible to ensure it stays safe??

S-dog, you multihullers are sooo wimpy! Wet only to the knees?
You say wimpy, I say smart... besides do you like the smell of wet dog??? I don't... :D
 
#18 ·
There are a few APPROVED mooring balls at the Grand Traverse Yacht Club. There are lots of balls in Traverse City and Suttons Bay that the Corp of Engineers would like to see go away. However, they are moorings for specific boats and laid by the owners. Not for transients. Unless you know someone with a ball that is vacant for a reason, and have their approval, there are no transient balls available in GTB that I am aware of.
 
#19 ·
OK, I cannot believe it. 13 hours ago,on one of the most active Sailnet days I have seen in a year, NOBODY has answered the question about the first trip on THEIR FIRST BOAT anchoring out the FIRST NIGHT!!!!!!!

Come on, their must be someone out there. Lost an engine and anchored till someone could come and get you? Wind died and no engine? Come on!
 
#20 ·
Exactly what the hell are you talking about... I do believe their question was answered fairly thoroughly. :rolleyes:
tommyt said:
OK, I cannot believe it. 13 hours ago,on one of the most active Sailnet days I have seen in a year, NOBODY has answered the question about the first trip on THEIR FIRST BOAT anchoring out the FIRST NIGHT!!!!!!!

Come on, their must be someone out there. Lost an engine and anchored till someone could come and get you? Wind died and no engine? Come on!
 
#21 ·
Well SD, either you got up on the wrong side this morning or your holding tank over flowed. I just looked back at this post ,and NO ,my queston was not answered. Everyone has stated that they love anchoring out...who doesn't at some times. However, my question was who had the confidence to anchor out their first time solo on their boat.

So, have a cup of coffee and re read the post if you like.
 
#22 ·
Ah..you're talking about your question... which you didn't make a question and buried in a previous post.. I thought you were talking about the OP's question... since

tommyt said:
....Now, I know the infatuation with anchoring out. However, how many of you anchored out the first night you were EVER on YOUR boat for a day. In 101/103 you spend about 15 minutes per student on anchoring. Docks don't move much, anchors can.
Is a statement... no "?"... :D

And, yes, the first night out on the first sailboat I ever overnighted with I anchored out... Granted, it was a Cape Cod Mercury... and not a 30' chartered sailboat... and I didn't own it... but had mooched it off of a friend for the weekend. The anchor was a 10 lb. or so mushroom and it was on a lake up in New Hampshire, Lake Sunapee or somewhere around there. It was also over 20 years ago... :)
 
#24 ·
Thanks for all the info! I guess we'll figure things out when the time comes. I love Northport (I've spent lots of time there over the last 8 or so years) and Suttons Bay isn't bad either! It all depends on the wind. :)

My boys are currently having a blast in their sailing classes. Nathan, my 10 year old, is sailing an Opti with one of his good friends (they didn't know they were both taking the class at the same time so it was quite a treat for him to see his friend there) and my almost 12 year old, Alex, is sailing a Sunfish. Every day I come home from work and they tell me how many times they capsized, the knots they can now tie behind their backs, and how difficult it is to sail with a Northwest wind because of the way their bouys are set up. I can't wait to take my class! :)

Tom
 
#25 ·
Tom,

If the kids are going with you on this cruise, and it sounds like 2 of them at least will be hard to say no to, you may want to anchor out somewhere close to a beach for them to camp on. At least if you like Sailaway21's fantasy. A 30' Catalina is like camping in a 22' trailer and the only door is on the head.

Have a great time. You are in for a treat.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top