September 14 & 15, 2017 Thursday & Friday
Sept. 14 – Thur: Today we entered Wisconsin and are in the Central Time Zone for the first time since March, one step closer to our final destination. We are staying at Sister Bay Marina on the Door Peninsula of Wisconsin. The peninsula was named for the route between Green Bay and Lake Michigan, named by Native Americans and translated into French as Porte des Morts: in English, “Death’s Door” because of the treacherous water passage the lies between the Door Peninsula and Washington Island. According to the locals, this small strait is now littered with shipwrecks with the most famous shipwreck at Sister Bay being the Meridian, a schooner that sank in 1873, it is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Sept. 15 – Fri: Leaving Sister Bay we headed south to the Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal which was dug in 1872. The 1.3-mile long canal provided a safer and shorter passage for ships going to Green Bay than the route of Porte des Morts. The seas were only 1-2 feet but with the wind blowing from the south and short periods between the waves made for a bit of a bumpy ride.
Entering the Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal we encountered a navigation marker that we had not seen before called a leading light. When you are in the channel you can see its flashing yellow light if you get out of the channel you can’t see the light, this helps guide traffic through the middle of the channel.
Tonight we are staying at the Quarterdeck Marina, Sturgeon Bay which is a lovely marina that we can hang out in for a few days if need be. We would like to continue our southward journey tomorrow but the weekend forecast does not look promising.
Note: Rick just checked the weather, we are not leaving Saturday or Sunday. Hopefully, we can go on Monday but even that looks problematic.
