The Sailing Club, Inc.

Lake Michigan July 18–25, 2009 Traverse Bay, MI Charlevoix, MI

Lake Michigan is milky green marble With veins of whitecaps foaming From shore to distant sky Northwest Michigan is a land of tall pines, beautiful summer sunsets, and excellent sailing on one of nature’s natural wonders – Lake Michigan. We will spend eight days sailing over 200 miles, exploring this wonderful area. Our journey starts on Friday afternoon, July 17 at Bay Breeze Yacht Charters in Traverse City, also known as the Cherry Capital of the World. Although the National Cherry Festival will have ended before we arrive, there is another regional festival that we will encounter along the way. We set sail on Saturday morning, after final boat checkouts and provisioning runs, for a 25 mile sail north to the tip of the Leelanau Peninsula. Our anchorage for the night, Northport, is a very historic town. The first white settlers arrived in 1849, and by 1859, with 400 inhabitants it was the largest community in northwest Michigan. Alas, it hasn’t grown much since. There will be plenty of time for a walking tour of the town. This far north, the sun doesn’t set until after 9 PM! Our next destination is South Manitou Island, about 40 miles away. We will exit Grand Traverse Bay and make a hard left turn into the open waters of Lake Michigan. From there we thread our way past Manitou Shoal and into Manitou Passage, anchoring off the southeast corner of the island. Mantiou is an Algonguin term referring to the interconnection and balance of nature and life. We will attempt our own Manitou at this unspoiled wilderness island park, with nothing but birdsongs to break the silence of our island explorations. The Valley of the Giants is accessible by a 6.9 mile trail hike where you will see white cedars that are over 100 feet tall. After a leisurely breakfast on Monday, and possibly more island explorations, a swim or a picnic lunch, we make a short 15 mile sail back through Manitou Passage, to Leyland. If wind and weather oblige, it may be possible to make a longer passage going around he north sides of North and South Manitou Islands. We will anchor out, and dinghy ashore for some fine dining. We depart Leyland early, as the next leg is a 30 mile sail to Charlevoix [pronounced Shar-le-voy] on Little Traverse Bay. Many consider this town the crown jewel of northern Michigan vacation destinations. While the main street there is only four blocks long, there are many galleries, boutiques, and gourmet restaurants. Kilwin’s for some excellent treats. We will spend two nights at reserved slips at the Charlevoix City Marina, which is located in the center of town, so practically everything is within walking distance. The 79th Annual Venetian Festival takes place all that week, so the town – which is an active summer vacation spot under normal circumstances – will be ablaze with color, pageantry, and a variety of events guaranteed to delight and entertain one and all. Departing Charlevoix early Thursday morning, we head back out into the lake and on to Beaver Island. After a brisk 30 mile sail, you may want to walk on one or more of the numerous nature trails, where you will probably see more animals than people. In the evening, enjoy dinner aboard, or, curiously enough, at one of the fine restaurants on this, the most remotely inhabited island in the Great Lakes. From our anchorage, you will probably be able to at least see the tops of the Mackinac Bridge towers, a mere thirty miles away. Friday, we head south for another wonderful 40 mile sail, back to Grand Traverse Bay. We will likely spend our last night aboard at Northport, or slightly further south in Suttons’ Bay. Either will provide for an easy sail Saturday back to Traverse City, as we must be off the boats by 4:00 PM. Three spacious boats, ranging from 40 to 43 feet, have been reserved from Bay Breeze Yacht Charters [www.bbyc.com]. Each boat has two heads, a dinghy and a barbeque. Re-provisioning and pump-outs should be available at all our ports of call except S. Manitou Island. GETTING THERE AND AWAY Traverse City is not as remote as you may think. It is easily accessible by plane to Cherry Capital Airport [TVC]. It is served by several major airlines. The most convenient approach is to fly there on Northwest, through Detroit. There are several flights throughout the day, and a convenient evening return flight that is timed well with our Saturday boat returns. Less preferred is to fly through Chicago, as O’Hare is more prone to long delays, and there may not be a late return flight, thus requiring an extra night’s stay. The Traverse City Airport is very close to downtown, and a short ride to the charter base, which Bay Breeze will assist with. Rental cars are also available. The cost of the trip is $1200.00 per person (Skippers - $635.00). This price covers charter fees, insurance and two nights’ slip fees in Charlevoix. Food, fuel, and other incidental expenses are additional and will be handled by each boat’s crew. A $200.00 deposit is required to hold your position. Please make your check payable to The Sailing Club, Inc. and mail it, along with your completed reservation form, to Steve Krakauer at the address below. Reservations will be processed beginning April 10, 2009 with a random draw of those received by that date. All reservations received after that date are on a first-come, first-served basis. Progress payments are as follows: May 1 $500.00            June 1 $500.00 A pre-trip meeting will be held at a time and place to be announced. All crewmembers should make every effort to attend in order to meet your crewmates, plan your meals, and make travel plans.

Trip Leader	Assistant Trip Leader
Steve Krakauer 11 Clark Ct. Basking Ridge, NJ 07920                 908-306-0898 stevek@att.net	Jim Hills 31 Spring Brook Road Morristown, NJ 973-998-0187 jhillsca@yahoo.com