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Lake Erie War Stories....

Old 10-27-2012, 07:17 AM
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Default Lake Erie War Stories....

Been thinking for a while about starting this thread. Reading about the northern boys final Put In Bay trip brought it to the surface and I figured while I can still remember them...., why not? I'm also a fan of the old school offshore when they guys went out in horrid conditions to challenge the sea so some of these make you think that direction.

I'm 53 yrs old and grew up spending every summer w/my folks on the big lake and then as an adult before moving down here to Fla. 6 yrs ago.
Lake Erie has a very well deserved, and nasty reputation. I've been quizzed about it down here by my cracker buddies and tell them all the same. I've seen bigger waves in the Atlantic but never worse conditions than I've seen in Lake Erie. It's shallow enough that it has chop normally coming from all directions and the waves are very close together compared to deeper water like the Atlantic.
I have many stories from dads boat as a kid, me on my boat's as an adult and eye witness accounts of many others. Good and bad, smart and stupid.

I think also, lets keep this thread about Lake Erie only. The other great lakes have at least as many of their own stories and could easily fill their own thread.

Anyone else w/their stories of Lake Erie though, feel free to chime in.

Some of mine as w/many of yours, won't be the smartest trips but did at least end well and hopefully we learned from them.

My first one to come to mind was one of my first big trips up there on my own boat. Was lucky enough to grow up w/a really smart/experienced old man to teach me a ton about the lake and I played w/boats for ever so was pretty good at knowing their limits and how to handle them.

So my wife at the time and another couple tow up from Columbus for the beginning of a vacation on the water in my 1969 19' Glastron Carlson O/B that I had just restored.
Plan was to splash the boat in Vermilion and then run the approx 40 mls to the north end of Pelee Island and stay there a few days.
Weather sucked when we got to the lake though so we spent the first night in a hotel hoping for better weather the next day. Got up the next day to no change in weather. Only bonus was that we now had all day to attempt our trip compared to the couple hrs of day light we would have had day before.
The boat was fast so I knew we could make good time in good water. We all voted and decided to go for it. Another get out of jail free card was that we could run the shore line for the first 1/2 of trip in case the weather turned and knew there were safe harbors along the way.
First 30 mls were spooky (due to skies) but uneventful. When we pulled into Dicks Marina on the south end of Pelee Island to clear customs (in Canadian water) they had their weather radio on and it was bad. When I quizzed the dock master about it she said oh it's bad, you don't want to hear it. I replied, ma'am, we're in a 19' boat and have 12 mls to go, we have to hear it! Forecast was gale force winds and 5 - 7' waves building to 7' to 9's, then and now! I told my friend to get the women from their restroom break and I'd fire the motor, untie and be waiting.
This was a judgement call on my part and looking back, it was questionable. We were at a protected harbor and could have stayed put and out of harms way. Issue was, the harbor was on the wrong side of the island. Nothing there but that harbor Vs our intended destination which had store/bar/restaurant/fun etc.
The good was the weather/wind was coming out of the west so I knew if I ran up the east side of the island I knew I'd be in it's lee and have good water for the first 9 mls along the length of the island.
What I also knew was when we got to the north end of the island we'd have to make a turn due west straight into the weather for the final couple mls to make it to the safety of Scudder Harbor.
So we haul ass and run 70 -72 MPH (WFO) up the east side of the island while laughing and having a grand old time. When we got to the end of the island I told everyone to get something solid to hold onto and prepare themselves for a final nasty few mins.
I buried the trim, held my breath and turned left It was as bad as I expected. Probably 5' to 6's and we had no choice but to go straight at them which is not good in a 19' boat. Was going as slow as I could while staying on plane and each wave crest we crossed felt like we were being dropped from a crane! Everything in the boat that wasn't strapped down (everything was that could be) was was flying every where.
Luckily we made the few miles OK and I think the fact that the crew could see our destination and how close we were kept them calm.
Couple of funny side notes though.
We got tied up and were secure and it stormed hard for the next three days while the 4 of us slept in the cuddy cabin of a 19' boat We were prepared and had foul weather gear so we were able to go exploring but still came back to a tiny ass, stinking, wet cabin.
I also found out that with 4 four of us in the vee birth the bow floated so low that the non-stop, pouring rain ran under the cabin door instead of the bilge to activate the pumps auto switch!
Every couple hrs I had to go out in the weather and sit on the motor so the water would run back out from the cabin so it could be pumped over board

A high note was a picture that I shot from inside the Pelee light house, looking through a window at the storming lake and sky got published in Lakeland Boating magazine and made me $50.

Our friends had to take the ferry home when it started running again.

More to come. Just spent my morning typing this one.


Last edited by Twin O/B Sonic; 10-27-2012 at 07:25 AM.
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Old 10-27-2012, 08:03 AM
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Great story, Gary! I loved growing up on Erie. Your pix above looks like B dock on PIB with Gibralter Island in the background.

Did you ever use Zeller's Beach on Marblehead? Or Castaways?

Last edited by X-Driver; 10-27-2012 at 08:06 AM.
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Old 10-27-2012, 08:42 AM
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Originally Posted by X-Driver
Great story, Gary! I loved growing up on Erie. Your pix above looks like B dock on PIB with Gibralter Island in the background.

Did you ever use Zeller's Beach on Marblehead? Or Castaways?
Shannon. That picture was shot at Catawba Island State Park on a another trip before I discovered Mazurks Access which then became my favorite due to its' size and protection. Catawba was horrible is any weather was coming out of the north west. Actually launched there one time where my boats bilge pump kicked on while the boat was still on the trailer
Been to the ones you listed but not launched from.
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Old 10-28-2012, 06:05 AM
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I guess 200 views is enough for another one (w/two cups of coffee). Especially since I'm visiting family in Ohio and it's 40* and raining outside!

So I have my old 24' Sonic stored at my house I used to own in Vermilion when we agree to meet a group of boats from Columbus at the Huron Boat Basin for the weekend. Like always we busted butt trying to make it to the lake Friday after work before dark but failed.
Our Cols friends beat us there and launched at the ramp a 1/4 mile from the boat basin, idled to their dock, fired up their stereos and cracked a beer. I of course am way too smart for that
Never been a fan of running at night but based on Vermilion to Huron being a straight, 10 mile shot along the shore line we (I) decided the ride would be fun. Forecast was for nasty conditions but when we drove out to check, it looked OK. Problem was it was very cloudy and had very little ambient light from the moon so I couldn't see the real conditions
Worst part was that coming out of the Vermilion River there is a break wall perpendicular to the river so you couldn't actually see the lake until you passed that wall.
We passed it and instantly drove into the fan! 5' - 7' beam seas w/near zero visibility. Was bad enough that for one of the only times in my life, I truly wanted to abort. Issue w/this was that just past the opening to the lake, heading west, is very shallow/shoaling towards shore so I couldn't make a turn that direction (for fear of running aground) which would have been with the waves and the only safe way and it was too dark to see the waves coming to be able to set the boat up for them to make my turn against them. I was afraid of broaching the boat.
Only option I saw was heading for Huron, 10 mls away. Ran GPS of course and could follow previous routes so I knew I was in good water but the only time we could see the waves would be the reflection of the moon on the crests just before they hit the boat. Was very spooky, like they were just appearing out of the dark before they attacked us. That boat would stay on plane at 20 which is what we were running. I did the math after the fact and the top of the windshield on that boat was approx., 5' above the water line at planing speed. The few wave crests that we actually saw were 2' above the top of the windshield!
The trip was actually non eventful other than being scared silly. I remember finally getting into the harbor at Huron and no one there believed we just came in from the lake.
Was the girlfriends b.day and I remember her telling me that she thought I was going to kill her on her b.day

OK, back to the coffee pot.

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Old 10-28-2012, 07:35 AM
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And people wonder why I have a slow Mistress, the best Lake Erie boat I can afford.... lol

I have gone over in conditions many times that left every other boat in the marinas, I had a Chris Craft 245 Limited and went in 6-8 fotters once, what a trip that was, the boat had a 19dgree deadrise and you can imagine how that was, we made it though...

Had the 32 Baja out numerous times when nobody else was out due toi big water, no idea how I made it back after parting the boat and finding the amout of rot I found...once we came down so hard my GF pants fell down... ahhah

Love Lake Erie, if you think you have seen rough conditions, come to a great lake this time of year, I have friends that have boated all over the country and they still swear the great lakes are the worst of the worst, they may not be 30 ft ocean swells, but our square waves suck especially if you have something less then 30ft....
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Old 10-28-2012, 09:51 AM
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Pulling into lk. Erie Metro park for a Kellys run the sign at the booth said 3-5. Figured we would be ok since we were loaded down with fuel and running with a pack of boats. Met up with a 32 AT, 43 BT, and a handful of Cigs. Started running and thought "eh it's not too bad. Just don't rain". Well the farther we went the bigger the seas were building. Within a mile or two a Cig and I tucked in behind the BT hoping it would break a lil bit of a path, yeah right! Another half mile or so and we were falling into holes so deep we would lose sight of the boats around us and were starting to get separated.
We were getting beat bad and right around the moment I decided to turn back my bow hatch broke further enforcing my WTF was I thinking moment lol. The ride back was only a few miles and now we were going with the waves so it was easier on us and the boat, only stuffed twice! Noticed my buddy in his AT off my port side and couldn't help thinking he and I are gonna catch hell from the Cig guys for turning back.
Made it back to the launch just to find out all the Cigs turned around a few min before we did, whew! Pulling back out of the park we noticed they changed the sign to 6-8'. Later we found out the BT made it in about 3-3.5 hrs by skirting the shore along Ohio.
Yup. Erie can be one nasty biotch!!!

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Old 10-28-2012, 10:12 AM
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The shallow kills us badly, you can kick from 2 footers to 6's in no time... thats the scary part!
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Old 10-28-2012, 10:13 AM
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Ahhh.... it's comin!!!!! I always hear... "It's a LAKE, how bad can it really get?? " LOL

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Old 10-28-2012, 10:23 AM
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Default Cool stories guys.

Originally Posted by Full Force
Ahhh.... it's comin!!!!! I always hear... "It's a LAKE, how bad can it really get?? " LOL

That is going to be bad.
I remember being weathered in on Pelee one of the rare times we had access to a car. I threw in a cooler and drove around the island looking for the best place to watch the waves from

How about fish nets?
Another time at Pelee when the weekend "on call" island Dr. was on his way over from Leamington in his 30someting Searay when he got caught in nets just off the island, at night in 3' - 5's!
Of course the boat instantly swings bow down wind putting platform into wind/waves. They were stuck for hrs while the Dr's wife held him by his feet as he hung over the platform in freezing water trying to free themselves.
One of the local fisherman had to go cut them out.
They came into our dock and I've never seen two people more scared or cold. The Mrs. thought she had lost her husband several times.

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Old 10-28-2012, 10:51 AM
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Originally Posted by Full Force
The shallow kills us badly, you can kick from 2 footers to 6's in no time... thats the scary part!
Yep! We have pulled into the hot hole a few times with flat water and left a few hrs later in 3-4'. Just the opposite on a pokerrun where it started out rough then was like glass after the first stop. The funny thing about the Kellys day is. We trailered back up to st. Clair. The report was 3-5 and we were able to get on top and run wide open. We were still the only 2 boats out that day and the people at the bar we pulled up to thought we were nuts. Told them it was nothing compared to what we were in earlier in the day .
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