We pulled the anchor up at 7:15 as the sun rose over Horseshoe Bay. We were treated to another day of light winds and calm seas. Shortly after exiting the anchorage we saw the fleet of ferries on AIS already nearing completion of their 8:00 pilgrimage to Mackinac Island. We kept our eyes open for these fast-moving, wake-throwing passenger shuttles, and had to pay close attention to two of them. We rounded the peninsula occupied by the town of St. Ignace and entered the Straits of Mackinac. The five-mile long suspension bridge came into view, its cream-colored towers glowing in the morning sunlight.
It took a while to reach the span so we got in a selfie from the bow. The bridge is very impressive in that it has a perfect paint job -- fully painted, no scaffolding, no tarps, no flaking, no rust. (Maybe the caretakers of the Norris Bridge over the Rappahannock River should call and learn Michigan's secret.) Once under the bridge, we officially entered Lake Michigan and spent most of this beautiful Saturday on the water all by ourselves. We passed by the St. Helena Island Lighthouse, happy to see a point of interest along the way.
I broke out the fisheye lens that I brought back from our trip home and played around with it on the bow, providing a slightly different view of Crossroads. Three more lighthouses proved to be highlights: Lansing Shoal, White Shoal, and Seul Choix.
After nine hours on the water, the Manistique East Breakwater Lighthouse was a most-welcomed sight. We ducked behind the concrete breakwater and dropped the hook in 15 feet of water. Signs of civilization were just beyond the sandy beach. We were more taken with the view of the lighthouse from our stern. We had purposely by-passed a stop in the tourist mecca of Mackinac Island in favor of spending time in more relaxing and restful places. With a view like this tonight, we have no regrets. (OK, a taste of Mackinac Island fudge might have been nice.)
We make our way into Green Bay, Wisconsin tomorrow (the body of water, not the city). We're looking forward to spending a few days exploring Door County.
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