Racin' to Racine

Day 101  |  Port Washington to Racine  |  6 Hours  |  42 Miles

It was time for us to leave Port Washington and we weren't going to let debris in the harbor, rain, or incoming fog deter us. Slightly before 7:00 we eased out of the slip using only forward, reverse, and rudder -- no bowthruster allowed, for risk of clogging it with debris. The Breakwater Lighthouse was visible as were the fishermen already stationed on the rocks. A half mile out of the harbor and into Lake Michigan, we finally began to see the end of the muddy sedimentation runoff. We celebrated when we finally entered clear water.

Heading south down the coast, we surfed along aided by two foot rolling waves on our stern. The heavy fog and rain, however, persisted for about an hour. Visibility was limited to 100 yards and we had our nav lights, radar and fog horn on. Added to that, the chilly temperatures and high humidity inside the pilothouse caused the inside of the windows to fog up as well. We pulled out a fan as an improvised defogger. Thankfully it cleared quickly and we were the only ones on the water. As we neared the Milwaukee skyline, the fog was lifting. Boat traffic increased and the sky became more blue than gray. The white tower of the Wind Point Lighthouse shone brightly from the shore indicating we had reached the northern limits of Racine. Moments later we were rounding the breakwater, passing the Breakwater Lighthouse, and entering into Reefpoint Marina.

We settled into our slip and then headed out to secure the rental car. Before returning to the marina, we revisited the Wind Point Lighthouse from the shore. The lighthouse and well-landscaped park grounds are maintained by the town. The tower is not open for climbing on weekdays, but we enjoyed the stroll around the park which included a walk on the Lake Michigan shoreline.

The high temperature today was in the mid-70s and the late afternoon was very pleasant. Perfect conditions for getting a bit more reading done.

We will be here in Racine for the holiday weekend and take days to explore this immediate area, as well as Milwaukee and Chicago.