Monroe Reservoir, Bloomington Indiana

September 12-14, 2012:  As the season is winding down we are finding fewer and fewer days to enjoy our home waters of Lake Michigan. This time of year the north winds are more prevalent making for cool weather and choppy water...what a great time to head south! We have often talked about visiting Monroe Reservoir in Bloomington, Indiana and it looks like this weekend will be a perfect opportunity to check out one of the largest inland lakes in our area.

Racing the sunset to Monroe Reservoir

Loading Seapickle II for a late launch

We got a much later start to our 3 1/2 hour drive than we originally planned, and wouldn't be arriving at the Paynetown Recreation Area launch ramp until dark. Normally, we wouldn't even consider boating on a lake for the first time in the dark. But since we knew what cove we wanted to anchor in, and since it was only a few miles from the launch, we figured we could take it slow and be fine.

Dana excited to try a new lake

The launch ramp at Paynetown was a really nice, wide concrete ramp that was well lit. Also, a nice feature was the courtesy docks just south of the ramp. Once in the water we took a 3 mile cruise at idle speed to a secluded cove our friends Joe and Miranda recommended to us based on their many years of experience boating on Monroe. We found the cove with no problems and slowly backed in and dropped our anchor in the middle of the small cove!

We sat in the back of the boat for a while just listening to the sounds of nature coming from the thick woods that surrounded us. There were two owls communicating with each other, and it sounded like one of them was at the back of our cove!  Tired from our drive, we decided to get to bed and planned on an early start to our exploration of the lake.

Just as we were shutting of the last light, we heard the hair raising sounds of something very large trying to claw it's way into the back of the boat!! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?? I grabbed a flashlight, flung the cockpit door open only to hear a giant splash, and I mean giant splash, behind the boat. I nervously shined my flashlight all around just trying to catch a glimpse of whatever was messing with us. Was it a Sasquach? An irritated local? I never saw a thing. After a while I gave up my search and hoped whatever it was wasn't going to bother us again.

Steam rising at dawn

A beaver swimming across the front of our boat

In the morning once it was light out, I quickly checked the swim platform for any giant foot prints or claw marks...none were found at that time.  Ready to get a start to the day we fired up the propane Coleman coffee maker and started to make our breakfast. We really liked this cove with the exception of the weird noises last night, but still planned to move on to see other parts of the lake.

Making coffee

The Back of the Cove

A Beaver Den

We pulled up anchor and headed out to see how different this 11,000 acre reservoir looked in the daylight. With the help of our map and gps, we found it very easy to navigate with very few hazards to avoid. Cruising around we kept a sharp lookout for a good cove to stay in for the night. The lake was now filling up with boats so we figured we would pick a cove facing the west for a sunset, and come back to it later once the day boaters started clearing out.

Party Cove

The Dam

Feeling too lazy to prepare lunch, we decided to try out the resturaunt at Four Winds Resort and Marina. We pulled into a courtesy dock and walked up to the hill to the Windjammer restaurant. We really enjoyed the food and atmosphere. They even had a good selection of micro brew beers!

Courtesy and Fuel dock

The Windjammer

Ben doing the Robot?? Nope, just an awkward photo

After we ate, we decided to see if any of the coves we picked had cleared out. We cruised back towards the dam since we saw a few in the Sugar Creek area. Our first choice still had a big houseboat in it, but the nice cove next to it had almost completely cleared out except for one ski boat. The cove was large enough though, so we pulled in towards the back and set our anchor.

Our cove for night 2

As we settled into the cove, we were disappointed to see that the sky had become mostly cloudy, since we were hoping for a good sunset tonight. As we relaxed with cocktails and played a few games of Phase 10, the clouds suddenly broke and gave us an incredible sunset!

Too cloudy for a Sunset?

We looked up from our game of Phase 10 and the sky was on fire!

The next morning brought clear blue skies and warmer weather. We made coffee and breakfast on the back of the boat, and then spent the the majority of the day swimming, floating on our rafts and walking the shore looking for fossils.

Looking out from our cove in the morning (we slept in past sunrise)

Seapickle hanging out in crinoid cove

Ben hanging out on his raft

Alligator? Dana?

Dana hunting for fossils

When we got to shore for the first time, we were AMAZED at the amount and size of the crinoids, geodes and other fossils embedded in rocks. While we have found many crinoid stem pieces on the shore of Lake Michigan, we had never seen any quite like these! We can't wait to go back and check them out again.

Giant Crinoids and other fossils

While swimming back to the boat, Ben decided to take a look under the swim platform to see if there were any traces of the (animal?) that was on our boat Friday night. Once he saw the pattern of the teeth marks and the peeled-up plastic on the outdrive, he knew that cute little beaver we saw in the first cove must have been the culprit!

Damage done by beaver

It was getting late in the day Sunday, and we had a 3 1/2 drive home ahead of us, so we finally gave in and left our cozy "crinoid cove" to begin the journey home. Unfortunately, many other boats had the same idea at the same time, so the docks and ramp were pretty busy with boats being put on trailers. We waited our turn and actually did a really good job of getting the boat on the trailer quickly and right the first time! (we're getting better at this)

One last look

We had a scenic and relaxing drive home, filled with conversation about the next trips we would take!

Driving Home

Chicago Trip - 31st Street Harbor

A beautiful Saturday for boating - and the congested burns waterway to go with it!

Saturday, Aug. 27: We woke up to a beautiful, calm morning and decided to take advantage of the great weather and lake forecast and take a cruise to Chicago for the day! Our previous harbor master, Gina, had moved to 31st Street Harbor in Chicago so we decided to pay her a visit and stay the night docked at 31st street.

Our route from Burns Waterway to 31st Street Harbor

31st Street Harbor is just South of downtown, so we took our bikes along so that we'd be able to have Ben's favorite Chicago pizza for dinner. It was wonderful to be out cruising on a perfect day, and we spent a lot of time marveling at the crystal-clear, caribbean-blue water.

Bikes strapped on the back of the boat

Flat seas and Chicago in the distance - perfect day for boating on Lake Michigan

Choppy nearing the city

It's a short 26 mile trip to Chicago, and with the smooth lake conditions we got there within an hour. When we arrived we called Gina at the harbor and secured a slip for the night on G Dock, a little away from most of the other boats (just like G Dock in our home marina!). 31st Street Harbor just opened this summer, so it was probably only at 50% of capacity. For our boat it was $80 for the night, which is a great deal for our hotel-on-the-water in the city.

Entering 31st Street Harbor

Tied up on G Dock!

After settling in and getting our personal access code for the facilities, we went off in search of the bike trail to get some exercise and then top it off with dinner downtown. Well we didn't have to go far for the bike trail. You would never know it from inside the harbor, but just outside the gate is a lively beach and the bike trail (filled with families in this stretch of trail) is just around the corner.

The bike trail along Lake Shore Drive - Soldier Field in sight

About 5 miles up the trail, I think that's Oak Street Beach

We ended up riding about 6 miles north on the trail to North Avenue Beach before giving in to the mid-day sun and heat and turning around back toward downtown & dinner! We took the trail in through Navy Pier, and then down a flight of stairs on the other side of the river.

Riding back toward downtown - bridge over the Chicago river

And finally we ended up at Giordano's in Prudential Plaza, right off Michigan Avenue. They had an outdoor patio, so we tied our bikes up right outside the patio and were able to keep an eye on them while we enjoyed our dinner.

Ben's favorite - Giordano's Pizza

Dana's favorite - bruschetta

After dinner, we detoured through Millennium Park and over the new bridge connecting Millennium Park & Lake Shore Drive. It had cooled down a bit, so the ride back was much nicer :-)

A boy, his boat, and the city

We spent the rest of the evening relaxing and enjoying the quiet marina atmosphere, and taking in the views from the 2nd story park built over the harbor house & parking garage.

The park & walkway on the 2nd level of harbor

Quiet night at the marina

The water was so clear in the harbor

We've been making it a point this year to wake up for sunrise to take photos (even though we usually go right back to sleep!) Some of our favorite photos have been taken during the time right before the sun rises - it seems everything is most beautiful during this time of day. Today though, despite the gorgeous sky at sunrise, a huge storm system was making it's way toward Chicago & Northwest Indiana so we only had a couple hours to enjoy the quiet of the morning. We cruised back in calm seas and noticed we still had awhile until the storm looked like it would hit, so we anchored outside Ogden Dunes for a nap on the sun pads before heading back to dock.

Just before sunrise on our dock

Sunrise at 31st street harbor, Chicago

Those Summer Nights

The weather has definitely been feeling like fall here lately, and the lake has seen shifting conditions as well with many small craft advisories and 4ft+ days. All this cold weather and lack of boating has made me wistful for those perfect summer nights on the lake. Hopefully we'll get a few more before this season is over, usually mid-October. Here's a few pictures to reminisce with me!

Anchored for sunset outside Ogden Dunes

Sunset over lake michigan, Chicago skyline in distance

Nothing better than friends + bonfire on the beach on a Monday night

Blue swim lights and sunset

Upgrading the Ground Tackle

After our night on the rocks in the North channel we knew without a doubt that our anchoring equipment needed some serious upgrading. For weeks after we got home I (Ben) would jump out of bed in the middle of the night and run to the bedroom window to "see if we were moving". In order to stop these nightmares I spend a ridiculous amount of time researching different anchors, chain/rode combinations, and anchoring techniques. We also found our Windlass had blown an oil seal on the gearbox and dumped it's gear oil all over the rope in the anchor locker. Time for a complete overhaul of our anchoring system.

The Manson Supreme

After much research we decided on a 25lb Manson Supreme for our new main anchor. The New Zealand built Manson Supreme received the Loyd's of London status of SHHP, or super high holding power. This anchor is also know to set within it's own length. The 25lb model is rated for up to a 34ft boat so it should have no problem holding our 26 footer!

Anchor dug in

The next step was to reseal the gearbox on our windlass. After removing the gear box I removed the gears, soaked them in solvent, and cleaned up any burs with emery cloth.

Gearbox ready for solvent

Pressing in new seals

The seals were easy to replace and for only the price of a 30.00 seal kit we have a like new windlass that isn't leaking and destroying our anchor rode. With the gearbox sealed it was time for the final piece of the puzzle, the anchor rode/chain. Our boat came with braided 8 plait nylon rode and 5 feet of chain. We decided to stick with the 8 plait rode but decided to add an additional 10 feet if 1/4inch high test chain to the new setup. The additional chain will help keep the rode on the bottom, prevent abrasion to the nylon rode, and maintain a better scope angle. We ordered from a company called Seco South in Florida and were very impressed not only with their great prices but top notch customer service! The anchor package we ordered even came with a very nice chrome swivel that helps the anchor spin around into the roller.

The final result! We couldn't believe how fast and how hard this new anchor set. As we backed down on the anchor for the first time, the boat abruptly came to a halt and we both flew forward....the anchor was set! It was nice to instantly feel the results of our upgrade!

Day 14: Going Home

After 2 nights at DeTour Harbor, we decided to end the trip a few days early to go home and relax at "our" beach!

We were very happy with the launch ramp in DeTour, and with the marina. Plus, Passage Boat Works was very accommodating in storing our truck & trailer for 2 weeks. They even met us at the launch ramp to help us launch! http://www.passageboatworks.com/

Once we had the boat on land, we surveyed the damage from our "rock incident" in Beardrop Harbour. All things considered, we really got lucky that all we ended up with were some scrapes and rough edges.

Heading home, Ben was feeling much more comfortable trailering the boat, even over the Mackinac Bridge

View of Lake Michigan from the Mackinac Bridge

Nearing our home port, we were greeted by some pretty scary storm clouds!

Our next post will be an overview of our trip in the North Channel, and now a month later, how we're feeling about our trip looking back! I will say we are planning on going back next year, hopefully with better luck this time. One thing for sure is we definitely gained a lot of experience and learned some things the hard way. But we wouldn't have traded that experience for any other vacation!