boaterforlife

Hello,

I am planning on making a trip early next summer. I keep my boat on Lake St. Clair and I would be heading up north making various stops along the way. Some stops I would make are Mackinaw island, possibly Bay Harbor, Lake Charlexoix, Traverse City, and maybe even continuing as far down the Lake Michigan coast line to Grand Haven. I don't have a time table as it will be a vacation and I am willing to take a few weeks off from work if necessary. The biggest thing to me that I would like to figure out is where to make gas stops along the way. Is there anything I need to lookout for along my trip, like any hazards I should know of, shoals, etc stuff like that. And maybe approximately how long it will take to get to Mackinaw, I have a Formula 400 super sport and would be cruising prob between 35-40mph. Can I make it to Mackinaw in one day, or would I even want to do that? Any stops that I really need to make in order to check things out along the way? And what would be the first stops I should make on Day 1, etc stuff like that. I appreciate any help you can provide.

offshorexcursion

iTrader: (5)

I've done the trip and its amazing!

You can get further then you think in one day but at the same time don't need to rush.

Yes you can make mackinaw in one day but I would at least stop once on your way.

I will chime in again when I have more time to type.

Looking forward to meeting you while your in TC! Make lots of time for mackinaw, cheboygan, petoskey, harbor springs, bay harbor, charlevoix, boyne city, and especially TC! Plus the manitou islands are amazing along with the sleeping bear dunes. So maybe stay in Leeland for a little while and explore around there. Going to be hard to travel further after all that beauty!

Doc's Holiday

Home port for my Stinger is Port Huron. Running north is a beautiful trip. I also am very familiar with the Huron shoreline. To answer your question about fuel, there are numerous stops, BUT there no longer is fuel in Oscoda. Following the coast line North of Saginaw Bay, you can fuel up at Au Gres, East Tawas (great place to overnight at State Docks/visit the taverns), Harrisville, Alpena, Rogers City, Mackinaw City and Mackinac Island. The State Harbors generally have slips available, as they are Harbors of refuge. The only time it becomes a real issue is during Holidays. I would highly recommend making reservations if you are intending on staying at Mackinac Island. On your route, East Tawas would be a great stop, in order to split the trip up and enjoy. They also have a very nice hotel within walking distance of the Marina. Good luck, enjoy and cruise safely.

Relaxing

Might want to check out this thread, he just did this last year. He might have some answers to your questions along with Offshorexcursion.
http://www.offshoreonly.com/forums/g...boat-trip.html

mainstreet

Just remember if you stop at Bay Harbor they don't sell gas. You would need to go to Harbor Springs or Petoskey. If you come to Boyne City you can check with the Harborage if City Marina is full.

Interceptor

Do not get close to shore around Harbor Springs ! What I thought was cloud shadows on the water turned out to be huge boulders beneath the surface. Harrisville is a nice clean overnight stop.

boaterforlife

Interceptor, is there gas in Harrisville as well? Also, how long, approximately, would it take to get there from St. Clair shores cruising between 35-40 mph? What places along the coast have gas, as that is something I would need to figure out as well somehow? I would probably go to Harrisville on Day 1, and then plan on getting to Mackinaw on the second day visiting the island, maybe golf, etc. Is there some kind of boating map I can look at to find all the gas stops along the coast, and marinas that offer overnight docking, or do I need to google each spot and check it out for myself?

Interceptor

Harrisville has gas,89. Three hour run appx. Get the state of Michigan harbor guide, has all the info you need
http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,4570,7...8018--,00.html

Cheyobgan is a good overnight prior to Mac. Island also. A member on here owns a rack facility there.
ed

stevewy

That's an amazing trip. I live in Harrison Township, and had the boat hauled to TC. We brought it back at an easy pace (40-50MPH). I think we spent a total of 5 nights.

I planned ahead and never found fueling a problem. I have 280 gallons of capacity and never took it below a half tank. I fueled in Charlevoix, Mackinaw City, Cheboygan, East Tawas, Port Austin (I think), and St. Clair. Always stayed in the municipal marina's. They were great. I would call in (cell phone) in advance, radio'd as I got close and they were there to help and made docking in unfamiliar area's easy. I could have spent much more time in each spot. TC and Charlevoix were great party stops. Charlevoix to Boyne City is a very easy and worthwhile run. Harbor Springs was a nice lunch stop --- was very windy there. Mackinac is ---- well, you've probably been there, by boat it's even better. Cheboygan is a neat town, with easy fuel. As you know, on trips you always come back with a "story". Among many; I came away with a Cheboygan fuel story.

I pulled up to the docks and was met by a very young attendant. With me still on the boat, I asked him twice if he was sure that their fuel was ethanol free and 89. He confirmed it was. He was having a hard time getting the cap off, so I walked over and helped him. That short delay probably saved my trip and maybe my boat! There was a man standing about 50 yards away. He yelled over: "Hey, does that boat take diesel?" I almost freaked out. The kid was getting ready to pump me full of diesel! Oh well, everything turned out ok, but could have been disaster. As you can expect, I had a couple shots of Crown Royal at one of the local bars and pulled it back together. LOL

Presque Isle was another nice stop. Very scenic, and nice marina. The restaurant was highly recommended by a number of people, but I must have caught it on a bad day. Not a good meal, but a very nice stop.They had premium fuel in Harrisville, but I chose to run to East Tawas. East Tawas was a riot. Could have easily spent a couple nights there. Quick run over to Port Austin - another nice stop. I had planned on stopping in Lexington, but the Lake was perfect condition, weather great, and we were having fun. So, I cruised all the way to St. Clair. The only near mishap I had occurred as I came into the St. Clair River. I've done it a zillion times, but didn't appreciate the effect a wake from a 50' would have on me as I was going to fast -- about 30 MPH. I hit it pretty hard -- got yelled at by wifey --- but all was ok.

It was a trip that was well worth doing. I recommend it to anyone. When I first landed in TC, Offshore Excursion met me at the dock. Really a nice guy, and a good way to start the trip.

For this year, my plan is to go to Niagra Falls.

I live in Harrison Township. I would be happy to meet up with you anytime, and talk in more detail about the trip if you would like.

Good luck.

boaterforlife

Wow Stevewy, that would not have been good if he pumped your boat full of diesel. I'm really excited about this trip, thats why I am starting to plan so early. Gonna make sure I have all my charts, etc and that Michigan harbor guide that interceptor sent me has all the info I need plus more. I do have a question though, why did you mention, stevewy, that you stayed at the municipal marinas? Are those better kept up than say township marina such as Leland township marina? Lastly, is there some kind of boat mapping app or device that will help me to map out approximately how long it will take me to drive from one city to the next? For example, I have no idea how many hours it could take me to go from say Mackinac, to traverse city. Just trying to get a rough ball park estimate on timing, etc.