Wednesday, 8/29/12, we went to Holland MI, not expecting much. We visited Holland to meet up with Diana and Ron because we had such a good time with them along with Sally and Bob in Charlevoix and Petosky. When you spend all your time together, both Kermit and I feel the need to spend time with other people just to have balance.
We were surprised at the contrast. Muskegan is old. The marina is nice (more about the marinas later) and the bike trail is good, and the beach is fantastic but the city itself is older. We saw almost no people. We rode our bikes all over and encountered few people, at least compared to the other cities in Northwest Michigan. Muskegan was as deserted as Rogers City MI or Harrisville MI. We saw very few people at those cities also and the municipal marinas in those cities were about as occupied/empty as Muskegan. Mmmmm... Odd.
Holland on the other hand is busy and seems more active. There are shops in the town, few in Muskegan. The marinas are bustling. There were kids in the pool and on the beach compared to the deserted albeit beautiful beaches in Muskegan.
I am not sure what is going on but I thought it was worth noting. Back to the action.
We were ready to leave Ludington on Monday morning 8/27 at 8:00am on the dot. It was an almost perfect departure. No arguing or bickering. I got up extra early to finish cleaning, always an issue but especially so when we are expecting guests. The charts needed to move from the front cabin to the spot above the dinette, the spare food needed to be stored in the basket instead of on the bed, new towels in the guest bath, and a general scrub up. So no need for Kermit to poke the bear to try to get me up in the morning. We opened the door to stretch and review the weather conditions but couldn't see beyond our hands! It was fogged up! So we waiting. The bad news about fog is you can't see. The good news about fog is the water is flat. Very flat. So we were excited about moving. We had an extra cup of coffee on the back deck, watching and waiting. By 9:30 we threw off the lines and left.
Tom Houser: Note for the record books. This was the first departure without argument or problem. Someone must have that in the pool!
The ride to Muskegan was perfect. Calm waters, bright sunshine, good camaraderie. You can't ask for more. We saw almost no other boats on the water. A few small fishing boats was about it. We arrived at 2:30pm after traveling about 50 miles at about 10mph. We used about .8 gallons per mile according to our flow meters.
Terri and Pete Bate joined us about 5:30pm on Monday. We rode our bikes to a dinner spot a few miles away, The Lake House Restaurant, with a great outdoor cafe. The food was ok but the companionship was outstanding! We had lots of laughs and caught up about kids and the latest action. There is only so much you can learn from Facebook. You really need a face to face now and again.
Terri and Pete said they slept well in the front cabin with the hatch open and the night sky overhead. One day Kermit and I will try sleeping up there. We always get great reviews but never tried it ourselves.
After a big breakfast onboard, we hopped on the bikes to visit the beaches. We walked in the water and called Marilyn Lipka to wish her a happy birthday! The beach at Pere Marquette Park is just spectacular. If you didn't know we were in Michigan you would think we were in some exotic Caribbean location!
On the way back from this beach, just above the beach actually, we saw a historical marker commemorating "Buster Keaton Avenue". This is a picture of the street sign. This neighborhood, called Bluffton is the site of the Keaton family Muskegon Actors' Colony. Evidently from about 1900 to the early 1930s the Keaton family and a bunch of other actors came every summer to Muskegon to hang out. The Actors' Colony died out when the Keatons went to Hollywood and Buster Keaton became famous. Fun facts you didn't know you needed to know.
After Terri and Pete left we hopped on the bikes again and headed for the Farmers Market. Good choice! Great fruit and vegetables.The farmers said the drought and early freezes mean few apples. The September crop of blueberries has already come in early. They think we are in for an early winter. We bought the only Honey Crisp apples, blueberries, peppers, and the cutest little red potatoes, probably no more than 1 inch in diameter, plus these exotic "strawberry tomatoes" that tasted, wait for it, just like berries!! We plan a feast on Labor Day weekend with the Lipkas!
So here is the thing with Muskegan. There is no one there. It started with our attempt to get a dock in the first marina, Great Lakes Marina. We chose that marina because it had a pool (we were having company) and it was across the street from "the great shopping district of Lakeside" with a grocery which we needed for some items we couldn't buy at the farmers market. We called for a dock. No one answered. After persistent calls, a woman answered and pointed us to F something. We entered the marina. Narrow fairways. No one around. The dock was completely inappropriate - too narrow, floating dock (too low) and too small. So we called in and asked about a more appropriate dock that appeared to be vacant on G dock. No answer. No answer repeatedly. I called on the phone. No answer. Well, this won't do. So we left with a warning over the radio that we will be sure to comment to the Great Loop folks about the hospitality. We got out the cruising books and selected the municipal marina closer to town. We were not disappointed. Another nice marina. Nice people (although we only saw 2 people working there and a couple of dockers. Nice bathrooms with the omnipresent book exchange (nothing I wanted).
Curiously the next day in the looper forum was a note reminding people of the wonderful facilities and 50% discount offered to loopers from the Great Lakes Marina! From a harbor host - that is a person who agrees to offer hospitality to loopers along the route. Many times a harbor host is a person who already completed the journey who can also offer advice. I am sure the notation in the looper forum had nothing to do with our parting but unanswered radio call when we left that marina that we would be sure to comment on the looper forum.
Back to Muskegan. We visited the Museum of Modern Art because it has a reputation as a wonderful collection of American modern artists. It was having a centennial exhibit comparing art from the early 2000 to early 1900s. I particularly enjoyed the unusual collection of African American art. We don't usually encounter such pieces in other museums. I looked closely at the descriptions and noticed many pieces courtesy of the Knoll Company so I looked it up.
The Knoll Company has locations in PA, Grand Rapids, and Muskegon and a plant in Italy. They made modern furniture like the Saarinin chairs (like the kind Bunny and Evan had in their dining room), and other cool chairs like these:
Evidently some of this furniture was made in Muskegan. Now they have a small workforce in a ramshackled building coincidentally across the street from the marina.
A few years ago the company donated a bunch of its art collection (art, not furniture just to be clear) to the Muskegan Museum of Art. The art collection is very impressive and makes more sense when you know about the relationship with such a cool modern furniture company.
On the bike ride home, we stopped at a bunch of historical sites noted in the brochures but there were no people. Evidently historical sites in Muskegen are like old houses in other towns. The sign on the building shown in the first picture says, Depression House. Interesting but most cities have houses like that. They call them "houses". I took this picture in the absolute middle of the street and had no worries about getting hit by a car.
That evening a sailboat pulled in the marina. A very famous sailboat to loopers belonging to the couple from Sweden. Now they are not just from Sweden, they SAILED from Sweden. They have been sailing for 5 years, first down through Europe then to Africa then across to Brazil, around the Amazon, then up to Central America and the Caribbean and now to do the Great Loop. He said he wanted to meet real Americans not just visit NYC or Boston. He was looking forward to going to Minnesota to meet Swedish Americans. I didn't mention the Norwegian-Americans found in Lake Woebegon. He said they stop at Ikea whenever they can to eat Swedish food!! Isn't that wonderful?? I gave him a list of Swedish restaurants in Chicago and told him to visit Andersonville. I bet he will.
This is their sailboat. Notice the windmill powering a generator. They did not plug in to marina electricity like we do.
On Wednesday we went to Holland MI. Another perfect boating day and a second flawless departure. We left at 8am and arrived at 12:30pm traveling 50 miles using 48 gallons of gas. Not bad. At Holland we just about broke the bank filling up with gas. Gas here is $4.99 per gallon!!
Holland has a lot of marinas but no municipal marina. We stayed at Yacht Basin Marina and called Ron and Diana for some fun. These are the folks we met in Petosky and Charlevoix. They picked us up and gave us a tour of the area. We had drinks in downtown Holland - very pretty and quite a bit of new construction. Then we went to dinner at Bil-Mar Restaurant in Grand Haven. This restaurant is right on the water. I mean right on the sand by the water. It was gorgeous. The food is not important when you have a view like that. The food was good too.
They have the weirdest thing called the dancing fountain. This picture doesn't do it justice. Across the river from Grand Haven is a big slope with a sign commemorating Coast Guard. At 9:30pm every night in the summer a little guy flips a switch and the fountain starts with lights, music and a speaker making introductions. It is so cool!! There are grandstands on the Grand Haven side filled with people who come out to see the fountain. And to think we would have missed this spectacle if Ron and Diana had not picked us up. This trip is amazing but it is mind boggling to think of the sites we are missing.
Kermit and I are having a wonderful time. We drop into bed exhausted but happy every evening. We made the right choice to take this trip now.
We miss you all and wish you were here. You can join us simply by dropping a note and saying you want to meet up.
I will leave you here in Grand Haven. We are off to South Haven next but the weather is bad due to Hurricane Isaac so we will see what happens.
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