On a beautiful sunny morning, we cruised west through the Straits of Mackinaw, our northernmost point on this trip. It’s the end of Lake Huron, and the beginning of Lake Michigan.

The XO pilots Ginger Lee through the Straights of Mackinac.

The Mackinac Bridge. The longest suspension bridge in the western hemisphere. Those that live on the northern side in Michigan’s upper peninsula are called Upers (pronounced Yewpers). Those that live on the southern side are called Trolls because they live under the bridge.

There are so many memorable ports on the eastern shore of Lower Michigan.

After coming down Michigan’s eastern shore, we crossed the bottom of its namesake lake from Burns Harbor to Chicago. It was one of those trips that seemed to take forever because we could see the windy city looming in front of us for the whole 4 hour ride.

Chicago Looms.

Chicago looms closer.

We hooked up to a mooring ball in Monroe Harbor. It was very close to the city and offered wonderful skyline views.

Sailing school in Monroe Harbor, Chicago.

We took a dinghy tour, had a late dinner, then drinks on the aft-deck as the sun set and the city lit up.

Dinghy tour.

Dusk in Chicago. Drinks on the aft-deck.

Chicago night scene.

The next morning, however, was overcast and grey. The wind shifted and we rocked and rolled unmercifully on the mooring. It was almost impossible to sleep.

Day one.

Day two.

Cloudy and yuckie.

I made a reservation for the next 2 days for a slip at DuSable Harbor Marina, a much calmer place behind a second breakwater, and we were better able to enjoy our time in the awesome city of Chicago. SOCOBO 10/20/17

Docked in calm DuSable Harbor.