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Gas sold on the island is priced roughly on the following formula: Wholesale Price + Michigan & Fed taxes (so essentially a dime or so below the Houghton retail price) + 90-odd cents for transportation + 24% surcharge -- charged by the park service on all goods and services sold on the island to pay for power, water, sewer etc.
I think the last time I checked it was $4.70 or so.
I'll carry an extra 24 gallons beyond what my belly tank holds, but I'm not going to go nuts to not buy gas on the island. An extra $100 for the ability to buy gas there isn't a big deal, IMHO.
I’ve added an additional tank that should increase my overall range to about 300 statute miles (about 90 gallons tanked), so I shouldn’t need to buy fuel on the island – but if there is any doubt, I’ll splash some fuel in at Rock harbor before departing for the mainland.
I’ve been working on my charts and trip planning. (Aside: the GoogleEarth feature in the newest MapSource software is really neat!) It looks like it is about 70 miles to Belle Isle from Copper Harbor, about 10 miles to the base of McCargoe Cove another 10 miles to Todd Harbor, about 20 miles to Grace Island, 25 miles to Hay Bay, and 15 miles to Chippewa Harbor and another 60 miles back to Copper Harbor.
That’s 210 miles, plus any side routes…call it 300 miles total for the week. I should be able to do it all without refueling if I am careful on fuel, engine and RPM management…of course, that includes the weather cooperating!
Pat – at 1.5 MPG, you’re looking at a good bit of fuel (perhaps a half tank?) on the island. We’ll have to stop in at Windigo for you to top up.
Any of you using Garmin/Mapsource, I can send the latest trip plan, including more than 100 waypoints for around the island. I believe Plotman gave me these waypoints in 2005 for my last trip – they are very helpful in planning routes around the island and skirting shoals.
Dave, thanks for your kind offer to "crew" for the trip,
but I will wait and make the trip when I have found the
right Whaler. Have looked at a 22 with potential.
Have you ever launched onto Superior from Porcupine
Mountain Wilderness State Park, near Ontonagon? It is
a very unspoiled and uncrowded part of the lake and the
state.
I was looking at the pictures of your Whalers, a-a-a-a - They’re a little different then mine. When you see my whaler you might be surprised that such a thing could ever happen to a whaler!!
Well I use it primarily for camping and fishing but I can sleep on it if I need to. It does every thing I need it to do and I don’t have to put much work in to it or be too carful of it. I’m formulating plans to make it more passenger friendly. If I decide to re-do it, it will be in the spring of 2008 at which time I will have the inside of the hull sandblasted and covered with, like pickup truck bedding, they have a marine version which is warrantied for life and can be made any color I will keep the original color of course. The consol will be about two feet wide and made of white oak. White oak front side decks with white oak railings with stainless steel hardware rising to about a foot from the side decks. The rear rails will remain standard. It will have cushioned bench seating with a front seat in front of the anchor well. White oak is my wood of choice because I have a lot of it. And I have just been given a fifty foot high four foot diameter white oak log. When I’m not fishing or doing religious services I do wood work.
I now plan to leave Houghton Lake for Houghton Hancock Wednesday Aug. First. And cross over from there to Rock Harbor where I will check in, weather permitting. I like to cross at night and I think it is the best part of the trip.
I have just got a GPS and figured my gas mileage - about five miles to the gallons so with 36 gallons I can go between 150 and 180 miles. And maybe even more if I slow down which when taking a long trip I do.
Well I look forward to seeing you guys up there but when you see what I have for a Whaler you may ask me to go some place else.
I have been watching theNOAA Bouy Center all morning and winds in the middle of the lake were 9kts or less and wave heights were less than 1 ft all day.
Heard Pat ran into some trailer trouble on the way up so I hope they were able to get across on such a nice day.
We're Back, What a trip, Logs and Photo's to follow asap.
A few glitches at the start, I had a Brake freeze up about a mile from my house at the start, no one could do anything immediately to fix it so I had the brakes taken off the trailer, had the Bearings all removed, cleaned replaced/repacked and went for it. Quite frankly, the rig trailered quite nicely without brakes behind my 2007 Ram 1500 Hemi W/Towing package and we negotiated some pretty steep grades.
Anyway, as we left Copper Harbor Saturday Aug 4th the water was like glass the entire 56 miles across, Buckda kept looking behind us for the cops because he thought a run like this should be illegal. In short the entire week was phenomenal and anyone within proximity should do this trip, this is great Whaler Country. We left for our return a day early because of reports of possible storms and high winds, it was a good call....we had 1.5'-2' and slight winds on the return trip, which made for a very nice run on Friday, Saturday we awakened to overcast & strong winds in the marina. Anyway, logs and photo's to come shortly..
I'd say that most docks were usable for a Whaler, however the overall space available for all boats was lessened. "T" docks generally had water only on one side of the T and across the top, with none available on the undersides of the T. "I" docks generally were usable for those further out on the dock. The deteriorating cribs on some docks made certain berths unusable due to risk of abrading gelcoat....and oversize fenders came in handy. Quite often, my gunwale/rubrail in the stern was far UNDER the dock...using a fender helped keep me alongside and not underneath....and also protected my railings from acting as rubrails in the bow.
I brought 2 oversize fenders, but should have brought 3.
The first two days:
Friday, August 4, 2007
1:00 PM CST
Leaving the office in heavy traffic, 90 degrees. It takes 3 hours to reach Gary, Indiana, on the South side of the lake. My trip plans have changed slightly; in part due to the unusually heavy traffic, in part due to Pat’s earlier trailer problems. I received a call earlier in the day from Pat, who I was going to meet in Copper Harbor on Saturday morning. Pat had trailer trouble in the Detroit area and is just now leaving the metro area. My plans changed from driving up through Wisconsin (back through Chicago) to driving up and following Pat through the lower peninsula of Michigan to ensure he didn’t have any further problems. This is a good idea for me on two fronts: 1st, it provides me with a travel companion in the 16 hour trip ahead; second, it provides a layer of protection from falling asleep at the wheel, since we were in CB communication the entire trip north.
10:00 PM CST Meeting up with Pat in the Wal-Mart parking lot in Gaylord, Michigan, I’ve fully fueled my new Ford F150 tow vehicle and we’re ready to charge onward to Copper Harbor. I’ve set the pace at around 70 MPH. It is faster than I normally tow, however, we’re behind schedule and traffic is light and the weather is clear. In about an hour, we find ourselves crossing the Mackinac Bridge. As we cross the center span, 200 feet above the lake below, I look to the East out to Mackinac Island. A nearly full moon is blazing and has lit the area in full, eerie light. The lake is flat calm. I remark to Pat on the radio that if we get up to Copper Harbor and it’s still dark, I’m game for crossing at night. Foolish me, I always forget how big the Upper Peninsula of Michigan is!
Saturday, August 5, 2007
1:00 AM – we stop briefly in Munising, Michigan for some fuel. The temperature in the interior of the peninsula has registered as low as 38 degrees, and there has been considerable fog on the highway. I’m shivering in my t-shirt, shorts and sandals as I pump fuel into the truck.
4:30 AM – we stop again at Baraga, Michigan for more fuel – the price ($2.85/gallon) is too hard top pass up. Pat pumps his boat full of fuel. I top off my tanks in the boat and the truck and we press onward.
5:45 AM – I’m driving dangerous. The sky in the east is brightening and I’m having trouble staying awake as we navigate the winding road north of Houghton into Copper Harbor…but I know we’re almost there…just a few more miles.
6:15 AM – we roll into the Copper Harbor marina facility as the sun breaks over the horizon. We pull to the ramp and begin loading the boats.
9:15 AM – after loading the boats, re-checking provisions, launching the boats and storing the trailers and tow vehicles, we buy a the last two bags of ice at the marina and start the voyage in a flat calm.
9:35 AM – as we clear the Copper Harbor buoy, I note the time and the sea state – there are small ripples on the water from a gentle breeze near shore, but further offshore, the lake is like glass. There is a gentle ½ foot swell left over from the previous day’s wind…enough to entice a gentle bounce in the boat as we spool up the outboards and begin our crossing at around 30 MPH. My twin 90 HP engines humming along at 3,400 RPM.
I look to the clear water to port and notice the reflection of the moon facing me in the glass-smooth surface. I look over at Pat’s 22’ Revenge, running alongside me with nearly perfect spray patterns coming from the chines. I look over and can see the grin on Pat’s face.
The 56 mile crossing slowly becomes monotonous – after a long overnight drive up to Copper Harbor, the travel fatigue is getting the better of Pat. I notice him crossing my wake back and forth several times (later he tells me that he actually nodded off it was so smooth!).
At one point, I look down at my depth finder: 913 feet deep, running at 30 MPH and 53 degree lake temperature.
The trip continues on – and Isle Royale looms on the horizon. Excitement returns with the return of the isle.
12:30 – after stopping at Rock Harbor for a few forgotten provisions, Pat and I divert to Raspberry Island to stretch our sea legs and for a picnic lunch. Our destination this afternoon is Belle Isle on the other side of the island, but for now, we need energy and a brief walk.
Back on the boats, we beat it to Belle Isle – I’m following waypoints and we’re running smartly. The plan is to get to the dock and settle in for the afternoon and await the arrival of David Pendleton in his 23’ Conquest, TAMPICO. After arriving at the island and securing the boats to the dock, I take a nap on a nearby picnic table, while Pat explores the island. I wake to the smell of diesel fuel in the fresh air. It rouses me from my nap enough to cause me to look up at a large cruiser waiting to dock. It is a dive boat, chartered to dive on the many wrecks of the area. We make room for them at the dock, and soon , the dock is filling up with new boats and no sign of TAMPICO. Eventually, David arrives and we have a grand total of 7 boats moored fast to the T shaped dock with three boats 3 slips rafted 2 deep and Gambler, in the sling behind two commercial dive boats.
Twilight falls and the curtain raises on a celestial display second to none. First Venus appears in the SE, then Mars, chasing Venus (he’ll chase her all week, never catching her). The brighter stars appear and then, our Milky Way galaxy appears in vivid detail. I say my goodnights and retire under the canvas, leaving the rear curtain open to allow the cool night air into my comfortable berth forward….It has been a long day and I quickly drift to sleep.
The day dawned bright and clear and breakfast at the dock found us having bacon and eggs on the Coleman stove.
After a brief walk around the island, we pack and stow our gear and head out toward McCargoe Cove. It is a beautiful day, and we idle along down the Amygdaloid channel at no-wake speed, enjoying the scenery.
10 miles or so later, we arrive at the entrance to McCargoe. We see an old 17’ Whaler at the Birch Island dock and comment about it to each other on the radio. Just then, I realize that this is probably “Hoagy” who had mentioned he was going to be up on the island when we were. I just couldn’t remember the name of his boat. I scanned 16 and actually heard an interaction between “Visitation” and the Amygdaloid ranger station. Visitation! That was the name of his boat.
When he cleared the channel, I hailed him on 16 and asked him to switch to 68 where Pat and Dave could overhear our conversation. The dock at Birch Island was full, and we invited him down to the dock at the base of the cove. He gladly joined and as we were tying up at the dock and Hoagy joins us in his 1967 Boston Whaler 16’7” with customized woodwork and a newer Johnson (Suzuki) 4-stroke 90.
Hoagy is 73 and a retired preacher man. These days he’s a prison chaplain and lives in the mid-lower Michigan area. He came to Isle Royale alone….at night…..in his boat…..from Houghton (70 miles)…..with no GPS…….and no working compass. Hoagy is one of the most colorful characters we will meet on this trip….and, perhaps, is among the most colorful characters I have met. Ever.
Not that I’m alone in that estimation of the man. Virtually everywhere we will go on the island, we will meet up with some hiker, boater or visitor who, upon being told we spent some time in McCargoe Cove, will ask – “Did you see that old guy in the little blue and white Whaler?” Hoagy certainly has an impact on people he meets.
Chaplain Hoagy joins us at the dock and soon we’re talking shop – about Whalers and whaler projects and such. There are a group of young men on the dock – they’re hikers – friends and a few cousins all camping together. It’s a warm day and they’re taking advantage of the sunshine to go for a quick refreshing swim. Soon one comes over and asks Hoagy if he will take them fishing. He agrees and shortly two guys and Hoagy are out in the boat casting for pike.
Pat, Dave and I busy ourselves around the boats. Pat is working on rigging a rain shelter for his cockpit aft of the helm and I help him out with that for awhile. Dave didn’t sleep well the night before, and takes full advantage of the relaxing atmosphere and gentle breeze to take a nap aboard TAMPICO.
Later Dave breaks out T/T TAMPICO – an 8’ Zodiac inflatable with 2 HP air-cooled Honda outboard. Cool!
I’ve been reading Bonnie Dahl’s Superior Way cruising guide and let Dave know it’s time to explore the cove. We go for a quick ride around the bottom of the cove and then proceed to explore up the small creek at the base of the bay.
When we return, it’s pushing dinner time and we begin to make meal preparations. Hoagy and the boys aren’t back yet and we wonder how the fishing is while we eat our dinner. The rest of the boys are up at the campfire talking quietly and looking hungrily at us.
Just as we finish dishes, the little Whaler returns with three successful fishermen – the young guys hooting their success loudly to their campmates – 5 pike, two are 29 inches. The group quickly crowds around the dock, photos are taken and three other boys grab the fish and begin cleaning them enthusiastically. I wander over to make sure they’re doing the job properly, while the other guys get their camp stoves out and begin making preparations for a dinner feast (There are literally MOUNDS of meat from this successful trip – and it ends up providing two meals for the seven guys).
After watching these guys struggle to prepare these fish, I can take it no longer. I quietly walk to my boat and grab a fresh onion, a clove of fresh garlic, cooking oil, my frying basket and saucepan….and some of my special batter mix. Returning to the campsite, I take my turn in showing these guys how to prepare a fresh catch!
Soon all bellies are full and tight and the conversation is flowing freely…the remaining fish fillets are securely in a cooler aboard TAMPICO for the night and the stars are blazing.
After quite an evening of conversation, where we learn that several of the boys were actually classmates of a CW Forum member, it’s time to turn in. I crawl into my berth and quickly fall asleep.
