SaltyDog
New Member
Destination Mackinaw, Labor Day Weekend.
After all the years boating and living in Michigan we had never been to Mackinaw on the boat. Since we were pulling out of Frankfort for the season and moving north we figured it would be a good opportunity to make the trip.
We left Frankfort on Friday September 1 around 8:45 am. The skies were clear and it was a bit cool that morning with an east wind. I figured the lake should be calm up to Grays Reef and then it would be a head sea. North from Frankfort the lake was 1 to 2 footers, very nice ride. In Grays Reef it was like a mixing bowl, the water was coming from all sides, waves were about 2 to 3 footers, still not bad a t all. Heading east into the Straights of Mackinaw still about a 2-3 foot chop. Was the first time for us under the big bridge so this was a lot of fun. From Frankfort to Mackinaw it was about five and a half hours, another long trip for Waldo!
White Shoal Light - Grays Reef
We could not get a slip on Mackinaw Island so went to Mackinaw City instead. The city municipal marina shares the harbor with one of the larger ferry operators, this makes for a choppy harbor. The docks were very old, not floating and in need of repair. The bathhouse/office were very nice, the building seem to be fairly new. The employees were very helpful and courteous.
The Mackinaw City marina has cable tv, gas and pump-out but no diesel, that is available at the adjacent ferry dock. This was not the best of setups to get diesel, the fuel area is designed for large ferry boats – large metal break wall really not designed for smaller boats. While we did get fuel there I’m not sure I would do that again, I would go across the straights to St. Ignace. There is an excellent ships store right adjacent to the marina grounds, has just about everything you can need.
The marina sits adjacent to downtown which is nice. We did feel however that the marina itself was not very dog friendly. While there is a small, and I emphasize small, dog run, it is not keep clean at all. We were very surprised by people that used the dog run area, surprised in the fact they did not clean p after there pets, we always do.
From the marina there is a nice walk along the lakeshore that takes you to a park area right by the bridge. We did this walk several times, it was great for Waldo and a nice opportunity to watch all the traffic in the straights. My wife and I both like to watch the big boats (freighter) cruise through, so many varieties.
We brought our bikes with us and did find a nice ride out to the west of town along the shore. We rode out to Wilderness State Park, there were a lot of places to stop along the way and explore the beach/shore. There are some nice restaurants in town and all are easy walking distance from the marina. We never did get out to the island and that is okay, we have friends that visited, they live in nearby Cheboygan.
The retired ice breaker Mackinaw is in dock adjacent to the City marina, we did the tour one day and that was fun. That is one big boat for sure! We also went through the old fort situated at the base of the bridge, a lot of good history about the area.
Towards the end of out stay the wind shifted and started coming out of the northeast. This brought a surge into the harbor and created rough water, this coupled with the ferry boats in and out made the boat rocking and rolling so bad you could barley stand. My wife finally said we should leave and that it could not be any worse out on the lake. She was right for sure. We got fuel and headed back for the Traverse Bay area. All in all we had fun, we usually do, but not sure we would go back to the City marina. They are building a new marina in the adjacent basin so we will see how that develops.
After all the years boating and living in Michigan we had never been to Mackinaw on the boat. Since we were pulling out of Frankfort for the season and moving north we figured it would be a good opportunity to make the trip.
We left Frankfort on Friday September 1 around 8:45 am. The skies were clear and it was a bit cool that morning with an east wind. I figured the lake should be calm up to Grays Reef and then it would be a head sea. North from Frankfort the lake was 1 to 2 footers, very nice ride. In Grays Reef it was like a mixing bowl, the water was coming from all sides, waves were about 2 to 3 footers, still not bad a t all. Heading east into the Straights of Mackinaw still about a 2-3 foot chop. Was the first time for us under the big bridge so this was a lot of fun. From Frankfort to Mackinaw it was about five and a half hours, another long trip for Waldo!
White Shoal Light - Grays Reef
We could not get a slip on Mackinaw Island so went to Mackinaw City instead. The city municipal marina shares the harbor with one of the larger ferry operators, this makes for a choppy harbor. The docks were very old, not floating and in need of repair. The bathhouse/office were very nice, the building seem to be fairly new. The employees were very helpful and courteous.
The Mackinaw City marina has cable tv, gas and pump-out but no diesel, that is available at the adjacent ferry dock. This was not the best of setups to get diesel, the fuel area is designed for large ferry boats – large metal break wall really not designed for smaller boats. While we did get fuel there I’m not sure I would do that again, I would go across the straights to St. Ignace. There is an excellent ships store right adjacent to the marina grounds, has just about everything you can need.
The marina sits adjacent to downtown which is nice. We did feel however that the marina itself was not very dog friendly. While there is a small, and I emphasize small, dog run, it is not keep clean at all. We were very surprised by people that used the dog run area, surprised in the fact they did not clean p after there pets, we always do.
From the marina there is a nice walk along the lakeshore that takes you to a park area right by the bridge. We did this walk several times, it was great for Waldo and a nice opportunity to watch all the traffic in the straights. My wife and I both like to watch the big boats (freighter) cruise through, so many varieties.
We brought our bikes with us and did find a nice ride out to the west of town along the shore. We rode out to Wilderness State Park, there were a lot of places to stop along the way and explore the beach/shore. There are some nice restaurants in town and all are easy walking distance from the marina. We never did get out to the island and that is okay, we have friends that visited, they live in nearby Cheboygan.
The retired ice breaker Mackinaw is in dock adjacent to the City marina, we did the tour one day and that was fun. That is one big boat for sure! We also went through the old fort situated at the base of the bridge, a lot of good history about the area.
Towards the end of out stay the wind shifted and started coming out of the northeast. This brought a surge into the harbor and created rough water, this coupled with the ferry boats in and out made the boat rocking and rolling so bad you could barley stand. My wife finally said we should leave and that it could not be any worse out on the lake. She was right for sure. We got fuel and headed back for the Traverse Bay area. All in all we had fun, we usually do, but not sure we would go back to the City marina. They are building a new marina in the adjacent basin so we will see how that develops.
