Tallships Return to the Great Lakes

It started when I was little. My first memory of anything outside of our home is being on the dock at the marina. Mom and Dad took us to the zoo. It was just me and my sister so I had to have been about 3 years old. When we were done at the zoo we went down to the small little marina and looked at the boats. I was fascinated. For some reason, paper pirate hats had become a thing for Uncle Rich to give us when ever he came over. I guess he got them from Long John Silvers.

Then when I was about 12 a replica of Columbus' ships came to town. We got to climb all through the thing... as much as we could with all the "behave" admonishments. The Santa Maria was impressive, as was the Nina when it came nearly a decade later during an incarnation of the Tallship Festival. We saw HMS Bounty (O.B.M) when it came. And when any tallship came to dock we went. My sister was a galley hand on the Manitou, a ship formerly based in Northport which now does tours for the Traverse Tallship Company. 

And then mom went overboard. Everything became about the boats. She obsessed to the point where I didn't want to look at a ship for a long time, never mind get on one again. The Tallship festival went on without me. 

al

Last year, for whatever reason, I started thinking about tall ships again. DurinTs in the children's encyclopedia; a story of sea dragons, Indian Prince stuck on a raft, Old Man & the Sea, and a the story of privateer made mayor John Lafitte's cunning in defending New Orleans from pirates. The more swashbuckling the tale the more intrigued I became. Being a 10 year old girl and not a 10 year old boy, this was something of a shock to a lot of people. But Uncle Rich, as I said, indulged. And for a time so did my parents and grandparents. eventually my interests would swing to horses. Whenever we read anything for school pertaining to the sea my heart felt a special thrill. I loved the tallships in the security of the deepest part of my heart. 

Since this is the Summer of Sherry, and I am not saying no to the things that I love anymore, today was my Tallship Day. I've been so busy working for the last 10 Summers I didn't even noticed when we stopped having official tallship festivals. But it does explain the weird looks I'd get from front desk when I sighed my desires to go and not be stuck at work. Anyway... A couple of weeks ago news made it round facebook that there was a Great Lakes leg of the 2016 Tallships Challenge. It made a splash because Vikings. 

For the first time EVER a real Viking longboat has entered the Tallships Challenge. Draken Harald Harfagre, hailing from Norway, was schedule to sail the Great Lakes. You can well imagine the delight of the Norwegian-Americans in the region. Unfortunately, US Bureaucratic Red Tape nearly stopped it dead in the water at the St. Lawrence. Much complaining and some emergency fundraising let her underway. She has now rounded the tip of Michigan's mit at the Straits of Mackinac headed toward Beaver Island. None of the ships are scheduled to stop in Traverse City. Not officially anyway. The longboat isn't scheduled for any Michigan stops. Neither was the galeon Andalucia. But the minute that she was announced to stop, I got my but ready to go down and see her in. 

like a scene fresh outta Goonies

el Galeon Andalucia is a Spanish vessel out of Seville, Spain. The goal of the tallship festivals is to present history in a hands on setting. Spain, uses the Andalucia to teach topics from Old World sailing techniques to Spanish naval history. Galleons were shipping vessels that were pressed into exploratory service as circumnavigating the globe became a competition between European Kings. They represent  one of 10 types of vessels that comprised Phillip II doomed armada in 1588. Galleons are famous and most recognizable for being the ship of choice for self-respecting pirates in the Caribbean. Indeed, the little boy in front of me could barely contain his excitement at the thought of their being pirates aboard. That is until he remembered that his mom's phone could catch Pokemon. 

The official website does not list us as a stop. Apparently stops are being added along the way as cities issue invites and make docking a possibility. The announcement came on Wednesday. A storm system came through the region forcing the ships to stay on the Huron side. I didn't know that until I got downtown this morning and didn't see a ship. It was supposed to have been in Thursday night. It finally rolled in around 10:45. And the waiting and watching from Open Space was... entertaining?

I met a ship hunter down there and we chatted for a while. She told me that the Viking longboat was coming in to Frankfort Harbor for tours on Saturday and that today she was stalking the Galleon. She followed it in from Suttons Bay. We watched as several sailboats went out into the west arm of Grand Traverse Bay to meet it. It was just a tiny blip on the horizon, hard to make out between the haze and the the furled sails. As it came passed Power Island it made quite am impression. Following it into the harbor was both thrilling and terrifying as several boaters moored in the marina made some poor choices. One boater left his slip as the galleon rounded the break wall and was trying to enter the narrow passage to its mooring location. The Sheriff's department has to yell at him to go back to his slip as a chorus of "Moron" & "Lunatic" came from the elderly crowd of sideline captains around me. 

The docking process was amazing to watch as she turned and backed in to her spot. It was  truly one of the most majestic things that I have seen in a very long time. Andalucia will be here until Tuesday. I am employing all of my resources to make sure the Summer of Sherry includes a Viking longboat. And when she leaves Tuesday, my goal is to have video of her underway. 

I got some great shots while I was down there. 

this crewman was going about his business during the docking procedure. when he
noticed the camera he did stop and hold still. i didn't realize that is was quite on purpose
until i saw the photos enlarged & saw he made direct eye contact.
How cool is that? 

It was nearly high noon as she backed into
her slip. The haze of the day made this shot
possible.

Pulling up to the pier. Iconic Traverse City
landmark, theState Bank building
in the background

Pretty sure this was an unplanned stop. The parks department didn't
have a chance to cancel the sprinkles for the growing crowd. Though,
I must say, on this hot day it was a relief. 

Summer Fun: rock hunting

If you are new to northern lower Michigan and Lake Michigan's shoreline you could be forgiven for mistaking the average beach scene for a clam digging party. It won't be clams that beach goers are hunting. Rock hounds, the popular moniker for a sub genre of tourist, hunt the popular yet elusive semi precious commodity stones: Petosky, Charlevoix, Agate and Leland Blue.

Rock Hounds range from casual hobbyists to rabid collectors and professional geologists. Many guidebooks aid the more committed hunter with identification, forming the foundation of a hobbyisttreats's knowledge base. And yet there will always be something beyond the known. Professional Rock Hounds generally enjoy engaging new comers to the sport, regaling the uninformed with a wealth of information. C&M Rock shop in Honor is a fountain of information. Bruce is always happy to sign a copy of his published works.

The beach is filled most days with curious eyes and hands. Serious collectors don't wait for the warm weather, they get to the beaches early in the Spring for the best of what Lake Michigan has churned with its ice floes. I am the average rock hunter, curious & looking for treats for the eyes. My housemate is a bit more serious. She reminds me very much of my mother's best friend, Eileen. Eileen was a professional lapidarist who initiated my passion for purple gemstones and beach combing. Eileen made her money traveling the country in a beat up yellow Datsun, from quarries to rock shows and home during Winter. In Winter her saws and tumblers ran constantly so she could produce finished pieces to ply her trade. My housemate is a hobbyist at the moment. She relates to rocks better than to people and doesn't think me the slightest bit strange for searching the surf splashed shore for "pretty things". I do not hunt for profit.

Agatized chert, fossils and perhaps some jaspers, with
chert, granite, maybe some gneiss and a quart piece in a
random photo of the shoreline from out first outing. 

I hunt for eye pleasing colors, patterns and shapes. I have since I was a kid. Contented for hours looking through the baubles on the shore. School taught me about fossils which is probably where all of it started. I've never had any belief that anything I found would ever be gem quality and net me millions. However, I always thought that the stones on the beach were precious to someone, even if only me. My mother didn't like me bringing home "the whole beach" because they were not valuable. I'm sure most mothers feel the same way. Many times in my life I have had a collection of stones in boxes or jars. And many times I have had to rebuild my collection.

The beach is a place of solace and energy. I always feel better in the water than on land. And I always feel better when my feet have been in the sand and tortured by the lake floor. If it is true that stones have their own energy that heals, soothes and imbues one with special qualities then the beach is just a natural rave. After our first trip out to the coast, I was so relaxed my blood pressure dropped below normal. This second trip I sunburned myself and didn't get the same effect though I did have a significant reduction in the blood pressure.

As if to prove it is about aesthetics and not value, this Summer I have been picking up a lot of Blue Chert. Only one geologist/gemologist acknowledges it as a specific kind of chert, separate from the common browns and reds... Bruce at C&M. He seemed amused that I was so enthralled by this worthless stone. Chert is not viable for commercial applications as it is a stone of surface color. When you slab chert you find a disappointing plain white interior of flint. Yep, that gorgeous blue stone that mocks sodalite is a piece of fire starting, arrow point flint. It's as common a mineral as you will ever find. But the blue apparently is found in few places around the world other than Northern Michigan. It can not be tumbled for the same reason that it can not be slabbed. It would have to be dipped or reside in an apothecary jar full of distilled water and sit on a shelf. What a shame. It truly does imitate the colors of sodalite. Which is perhaps why I find it so appealing.

Adding to the entertainment of rock hunting with the pros is the find that inspires jealousy. Hunting Petosky stones, agates and Leland Blue and finding bigger pieces or the first piece ahead of a true rock hound is especially fun. Especially when they are big pieces that are already well rounded by wave action. Petosky stones and Charlevoix stones are two types of colony coral fossil common to Lake Michigan. The Petosky is the State's stone, while it's cousin the Greenstone is the State's gemstone. Agates are a bit harder to find than the fossils. And the Leland Blue that rock hounds are currently obsessing over can only be found in Leland and Frankfort Michigan. And they are not even real stones.

Sitting on a piece of polished sodalite, chert (top) and two
pieces of Leland Blue (bottom). 

Leland Blue is slag that was dumped after iron smelting has been performed and before there were ever any environmental regulations regarding disposal of manufacturing waste. The slag glass makes for beautiful jewelry. The bluest of the blues with its foamy white bits is more a piece of the water than the earth. To me the best pieces are like picture jasper, they tell the story of where the piece has been. I haven't found yet any of what I consider the best pieces. I know other will argue, especially about the ones that mock agate, which seems to be the purple variety which is not common. Leland Blue goes for 30.00 a pound so my little collection from our second trip could get me a little bit of cash. But we will have to see how it polishes before parting with it.

Destination: Mighty Mac

Summer in Northern Michigan means road trips. Be it a day long excursion or a multi-day adventure, the folks here have to get out and see our beautiful countryside after a long discontented Winter. While Winter 2016 was mild in terms of cold and precipitation, it was still brutal in terms of the lack of energy giving sunlight. And some times, you just have to get out of Dodge.

Resort towns dot the landscape of Northern Michigan. The months between Memorial Day and Labor Day provide a good chunk of yearly income to the mom & pop stores here. Without Summer some places would fold up for good. Traverse City keeps ranking high on travel lists, creating a larger tourist base and a greater need for locals to get out of the quintessential city of discontent. *

While not everyone can afford the kinds of vacations our listings encourage, the kind our economy thrives on, there is one way to enjoy the surrounding area of this, and any other hometown without going broke...

The Old Fashioned Way.

Clean out the car of the Winter debris, give it a good vacuum, pack some essentials then load up the gang and head out on the highway. When we were kids the Coleman cooler in electric teal blue filled the trunk almost entirely and was packed with all the essentials for a family of five for the day: Water, Faygo, lunchmeat, condiments, bread, onions, cheese, tomato, fresh cubed melon or fruit salad, potato salad, bean salad and chips, complete with a small cutting board and a sharp paring knife. Mom also packed paperplates, plastic silverware, cups and paper towels.The cooler was surrounded by beach blankets and towels, extra pants or shirts, sand toys when we were very little, and jackets in case of rain while the backseat held our distractions. For me it was a copious amount of reading or art material.

Little has changed in my 40 years. May and June are perfect travel months in Northern Michigan. Sure the weather is wholly unpredictable and requires an Eagle Scout level of preparedness but those months won't sizzle your brain like July and August do even with air conditioning. So this week, unpredictability in the forecast, the household packed up the car with lunches and drinks in a soft insulated bag, spare batteries for cameras, copious amounts of art supplies for the teenager and books for me. Then we aimed for the Mighty Mac and meandered on an undecided path to get there.

We knew we needed to hit a certain beach to look for rocks, that we wanted to travel M119 and eventually get over the bridge for some of the best smoked fish ever. Everything else was up to Fate of Wit & Whimsy. Getting out of town is always an adventure in and of itself as there is road construction just about every where you look. So after a rousing 10 minute round of Todd Yohn's Orange Barrels, we were finally reached escape velocity and were off.

The morning started out cold and windy, frost advisories should have been given the two nights before we left. My smarter gardening friends covered their plants any way. It was in the low 50s when we left. In spite of the cloud cover the day was bright and cheery between cloudy conditions.

First Stop: East Port.
East Port sits at the north end of Antrim County and directly across US 31 from the northern tip of Torch Lake, 32 miles from our start, Traverse City. That 32 miles is dotted with farms, some of which still function, multiple farmers markets and farm stands and most notably the city of Elk Rapids and the town of Torch Lake. There are also a few towns that consist of a single store, a school and are "If you blink, you'll miss it" size. East Port is such a small town. It's major landmark is the Barnes County Park where our first adventure takes place.

We are a simple people and find pleasure in the quiet pursuits. My housemate is a rock hound, I am a photobug and the teenager is interested in viewing up close and personal those things which will improve her art. Barnes Park has a reputation for quietude and a cache of interesting things washed upon the shore by Lake Michigan's churning tides. The shoreline here is still within the boundary of the Leelanau Peninsula which lies across Lake Michigan's East Grand Traverse Bay from East Port. Judging from the wave action in the cove here, that protection is negligible in the face of strong westerly winds. Northport Bay is directly across the bay from East Port at the thinnest most northern point of the peninsula. Living in Traverse City and it's immediate environs, one is quite used the the water having a boundary. Here, in Barnes Park, one starts to feel the vastness of the water. The realization that Lake Michigan more than deserves it's description of an inland Sea settles in.

top left, examining rocks and oblivious to the low flying squadron upon them; top middle, resort HQ; end, shorebirds in a rough surf. Center, the small cove at Barnes Park beach. Lower left, the walkway down the beach; lower right, bits of little significance tossed up on the sand.

I spent our short time there with my camera in an attempt to catch birds in flight. Barring the elusive photo capture, I was willing to settle for one of the birds being smacked hard by the waves. Seagulls must be inherent surfers as none met a watery end. One of the other delights of this beach, at least for this year, is the quality of the shoreline itself. There were no bugs; the winds was so strong that they may not have been possible anyway. Without bugs, I was able to spend a good amount of time looking at the coastline. With higher water levels, there seemed to be two coastlines.

The obvious coastline is where the water and shore meet in the surf. But just inside of that line another formed. You can almost see it in the end picture above.  This photo on the right is more evident. There is a slight indentation which allows the water to collect and not completely recede when the waves ebb. The last few years water levels have been so low that where coves are protected the slope up the beach is even and none of these very shallow pools have a chance to form. In coves with tremendous wave action the water carves banks for steep drops that have eliminated much beach. Gouged beaches are not terribly interesting. There isn't anywhere safe for wildlife to stand and there is no good footing for wading. Gouged beaches are also very rocky and not fun for a long term sit. The smooth beaches are equally uninteresting in their flatness and the predictability of the wave action.

Just look at this beach though. It has been cut into terraces over time, gentle terraces. The line of dune grass in the foreground marks the edge of the first terrace and the gentle slope down to the surf makes for interesting things in the space-time between ebb and flow. I think it also gives the waves a more photogenic foam.

I've always been partial to sea themed art, especially watercolor. And this is the beach that is emblematic of the type of coastal art that I find most soothing and interesting to look at. While art and photography are wonderful things for preserving a moment, nothing really beats the live action of being there. I'm a water baby and have always been drawn to the constant motion of the shore more than the placid surface of an inland lake. I could watch water all day long if it is moving. Light dances, the wind draws you in as a participant rather than leaving you as a casual observer on land. While I can not do the complicated math involved in measuring wave action I do love dynamics of motion.

It was too cold to be in the water searching for Lake Michigan's geologic treasures or to enjoy the crystalline waters as a swimmer but it was a perfect day to watch the water and the waterbirds who seemed to be showing off their flying skills. With my merry band of travelers, it was also the perfect day to pull out the puns: George, Katie and Steven Seagull playing in the water.

You & Shakespeare want to kill me now. Imagine how badly my housemates want to kill me nearly everday!





*That would be the aforementioned Dodge

You Can Always Go Downtown

Recovering from this heart issue is taking longer than I like. And I am getting a bit anxious about how it is all going to work itself out. In the mean time I am taking the opportunity to get back in touch with the activities that really have helped me to grow in the last decade. One of those things is the area I grew up in. There are many beautiful vistas and some quiet spots for contemplation. This week everything came into blossom so I will be out with friends who drive to get some of the quintessential and iconic photos of the area. And I need to go back and figure out why my panoramas didn't work today.

The next few days will be busy for me. To tide you over, here are some random photos from my therapeutic walk downtown.

This is one of three bridges that cross the Boardman River in Downtown Traverse City. The very last building in the background on the right is the courthouse. The Park Place Hotel is obscured  by trees in the midground. And fortunately, there were no cars during the busy lunch rush crossing the bridge.

The Central United Methodist Church's dome rises above the Boardman River. From this  vantage is seems to be the tallest building in down town. It is soon to be dwarfed by taller structures as the City Commission is struggling on building up rather than building out.

The top of the Park Place Hotel is a distinguished landmark rising above the treeline in Traverse City. It too will soon be dwarfed by larger buildings. Whereas the Park Place and the clock towers of the Michigan State Bank building and the Grand Traverse Courthouse were the most prominent features of the Traverse City skyline, they will be replaced. Several buildings already compete for attention above the verdant Summer and the autumnal tapestry of landscapes.

The clock tower of the former Michigan State Bank still shines from the corner of Front and Union. It has changed hands over the decades an still has remained a bank.
As kids, from any place we were in town. we knew that we were close to home, or at the very least how to get there, because this copper beacon served as a way finder. Between this tower and the steeple of the old St. Francis Church at Cass and 10th, we could always be certain of where we were.

One of the best things about Traverse City is the topography, landmarks abound and a talented parent can teach any child how to find their own way home.






I hope that you are all getting out and enjoying the Spring and Summer that we are being given. Explore your town with fresh eyes or look for the things that always bring you comfort. Seer them into you minds because everything changes. I photograph them because no one believes me when I describe the changes. At least here we have some proof.