SaltyDog
New Member
Destination Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin
We lived in Wisconsin for 4 years and kept our boat in Sturgeon Bay, Door County. We made a lot of friends there and like to go back to visit.
This year we left July 5th from Frankfort (our home port) for Sturgeon Bay. The crossing is one of the shortest across Lake Michigan and usually takes between 2 and three hours depending on weather. We left about 9:00 am, the weather was great and the lake was calm to a foot, made it to the Sturgeon Canal entrance in about 2.5 hours.
Entering from Lake Michigan you travel down the Sturgeon Ship Canal (lighthouse to starboard). This is a no-wake zone. In the mornings there is a good chance to see wildlife, a lot of birds and even deer. After the ship canal you get into some open water that is no longer no-wake. When you reach the first [draw] bridge, Bayview Bridge – 50 foot clearance, the no-wake starts once more. It is no-wake from here to just past the next (final) bridge – Michigan Street Bridge.
There are several options for slips depending on what you want. The big ones (in my opinion) are (in order of approach from Lake Michigan).
Quarterdeck – 920-743-8985. This marina is located east of the Michigan Street bridge and south side of channel, it is a bit farther from town but they have good facilities. They have fuel (gas/diesel) and pump-out services. They also have mechanical and haul out. When we were there diesel was $2.70/gallon and went up to $2.80/gallon. We really like this marina (was where we slipped for 4 years). Really nice seasonal boaters and great dock hands.
Centerpointe Marina – 920-746-1912. This marina is on the north side of channel and was new as of 2005. We were already gone by then but have heard good things about it. They are close (easy walking distance) from town and have heard they have a very nice boaters lounge.
Harbor Club– 920-743-6900. This marina is on the south side of the channel west side of the Michigan Street Bridge. The Michigan Street Bridge is a bascule bridge that opens on the hour, clearance is around 14-15 feet depending on the water. With the masthead light and antenna down we make it under. Harbor Club is a short walk to downtown. It can be a bit noisy with the bridge and the marina itself tends to have more action. As part of the marina building there is an Applebee’s Restaurant/bar. There are a lot of great little places to eat within easy walking distance.
Immediately under the bridge to starboard is Stone Harbor Marina run by the City and Bay Marine. Good place for a “shoppers dockâ€. Both Harbor Club and Stone Harbor have restaurants adjacent to them.
All the marinas mentioned have floating docks, cable TV and swimming pools.
The only other fuel available in Sturgeon Bay is at the Bay Marine dock just past the Sturgeon bay Yacht Club on the port side of channel just west of Quarterdeck.
Starting in 2005 there is a new No Wake zone, it runs from the big bridge closet to the lake (Bayview Bridge) all the way to the Harbor Club Marina, and they are enforcing it!
If you travel with bikes/kids/dogs, there is a great State Park not far away. Potawatomi State Park is west of the marinas on the shore of Green Bay and Sturgeon Bay. There is a lot to do in the park with some great hiking/bike trails.
http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/land/parks/specific/Potawatomi/index.html
There is a really nice Italian Restaurant in town that delivers to the marinas and that is kind of nice. Everything from pizza, pasta dishes and roasted chicken. It is Sonny’s Pizzeria and the number is 920-743-2300
Just across the street (east of bridge) from the Harbor Club marina is the Door County Maritime Museum, they have some really nice exhibits and great history on Sturgeon Bay and the ship building industry.
http://www.dcmm.org/
We lived in Wisconsin for 4 years and kept our boat in Sturgeon Bay, Door County. We made a lot of friends there and like to go back to visit.
This year we left July 5th from Frankfort (our home port) for Sturgeon Bay. The crossing is one of the shortest across Lake Michigan and usually takes between 2 and three hours depending on weather. We left about 9:00 am, the weather was great and the lake was calm to a foot, made it to the Sturgeon Canal entrance in about 2.5 hours.
Entering from Lake Michigan you travel down the Sturgeon Ship Canal (lighthouse to starboard). This is a no-wake zone. In the mornings there is a good chance to see wildlife, a lot of birds and even deer. After the ship canal you get into some open water that is no longer no-wake. When you reach the first [draw] bridge, Bayview Bridge – 50 foot clearance, the no-wake starts once more. It is no-wake from here to just past the next (final) bridge – Michigan Street Bridge.
There are several options for slips depending on what you want. The big ones (in my opinion) are (in order of approach from Lake Michigan).
Quarterdeck – 920-743-8985. This marina is located east of the Michigan Street bridge and south side of channel, it is a bit farther from town but they have good facilities. They have fuel (gas/diesel) and pump-out services. They also have mechanical and haul out. When we were there diesel was $2.70/gallon and went up to $2.80/gallon. We really like this marina (was where we slipped for 4 years). Really nice seasonal boaters and great dock hands.
Centerpointe Marina – 920-746-1912. This marina is on the north side of channel and was new as of 2005. We were already gone by then but have heard good things about it. They are close (easy walking distance) from town and have heard they have a very nice boaters lounge.
Harbor Club– 920-743-6900. This marina is on the south side of the channel west side of the Michigan Street Bridge. The Michigan Street Bridge is a bascule bridge that opens on the hour, clearance is around 14-15 feet depending on the water. With the masthead light and antenna down we make it under. Harbor Club is a short walk to downtown. It can be a bit noisy with the bridge and the marina itself tends to have more action. As part of the marina building there is an Applebee’s Restaurant/bar. There are a lot of great little places to eat within easy walking distance.
Immediately under the bridge to starboard is Stone Harbor Marina run by the City and Bay Marine. Good place for a “shoppers dockâ€. Both Harbor Club and Stone Harbor have restaurants adjacent to them.
All the marinas mentioned have floating docks, cable TV and swimming pools.
The only other fuel available in Sturgeon Bay is at the Bay Marine dock just past the Sturgeon bay Yacht Club on the port side of channel just west of Quarterdeck.
Starting in 2005 there is a new No Wake zone, it runs from the big bridge closet to the lake (Bayview Bridge) all the way to the Harbor Club Marina, and they are enforcing it!
If you travel with bikes/kids/dogs, there is a great State Park not far away. Potawatomi State Park is west of the marinas on the shore of Green Bay and Sturgeon Bay. There is a lot to do in the park with some great hiking/bike trails.
http://www.dnr.state.wi.us/org/land/parks/specific/Potawatomi/index.html
There is a really nice Italian Restaurant in town that delivers to the marinas and that is kind of nice. Everything from pizza, pasta dishes and roasted chicken. It is Sonny’s Pizzeria and the number is 920-743-2300
Just across the street (east of bridge) from the Harbor Club marina is the Door County Maritime Museum, they have some really nice exhibits and great history on Sturgeon Bay and the ship building industry.
http://www.dcmm.org/
