May 28, 1904.I 
FOREST AND STREAM, 
448 
TINO 
The Cruise of Minota. 
A Cfuiss on Late Michigan from Chicago to Charlevoix 
and Return. 
(Concluded from page 423.) 
BY REGINALD MACK. CHICAGO, ILL. 
On Wednesday (August 12) we dropped down the 
nver behind a tow of logs and anchored in Pine Lake, 
Vanenna doing likewise, and late that afternoon Rear- 
Commodore Wilber, of the Chicago Y. C, arrived on his 
steam yacht Marcia on his way from Mackinac to 
Chicago. The next morning at breakfast-time we were 
visited by Captain Merriman, of Josephine (also belong- 
mg to our fleet), who had been towed up from Chicago 
behind a lumber barge, and was waiting to continue on up 
to North Channel. We walked down with him to the 
life-saving station and saw the steamer Illinois, with 
Messrs. Fox, Clinch and McConnell (owners of Haw- 
thorne) aboard, come in from Chicago; and, very shortly 
after their_ arrival, they towed their yacht out into the 
lake and tied up alongside Josephine, behind the lumber 
barge. The schooner Alice, flying the Chicago Y. C. 
burgee, anchored near them, and left later in the after- 
noon for Harbor Point. On Saturday the Skipper and 
the Boa Constrictor took the train to Petoskey, and from 
there went across Little Traverse Bay to Harbor Point, 
where they found Mistral at anchor, and learned that 
Spray (both of our fleet) had left two days before in 
charge of two sailors for Chicago. That morning at 
colors all the yachts "dressed ship," and later on in the 
day we met on the flagship Marcia and agreed to start 
early Sunday morning for Grand Haven. All hands then 
went up town to lay in ice and supplies for that trip. 
On Sunday, August 16, Marcia took a line from 
Vanenna, we towed behind, and the procession started for 
Lake Michigan. It was a dead calm. About 9 o'clock a 
very faint breeze came out of the N.W. ; Minota, as usual, 
responded, and gradually drew away from Vanenna, 
Marcia having cast off our lines about a mile from the 
pier head. The steamsihp Manitou, on the way from 
Chicago to Charlevoix, passed us about 10 o'clock. The 
wind varied from NW. to N.N.W., and we were able to 
make a fair course for Cathead Point. At noon the 
sloop Neva, of Chicago, passed some distance from us, 
bound for Charlevoix. At 2:50 the cutter Charlotte R., 
owned by Vice-Commodore Burton, of the Chicago Y. C, 
passed us, too far away for us to signal her. 
Our crew had been augmented by the addition of 
George Brown, whom the Skipper had invited at Charle- 
voix to sail with us to Chicago and fill the vacant berth in 
the cabin. He was put on the watch with Harris and 
Olaf. Nature had favored him with a rich baritone 
Milwaukee Yacht Club House. • . 
voice, and we had numerous musicales on our homeward 
trip. Owing to his enormous capacity for food — which 
eyen exceeded that of the Boa Constrictor — we christened 
him the Anaconda. 
Although the wind all day had been light, we kept 
moving on our course, averaging about 3 knots an hour, 
and at 11 o'clock at night we were well through the 
Manitou Passage, the fixed white light at South Mani- 
tou Island being constantly in sight. South Manitou 
seems 'to have been placed there by nature as a safe 
harbor of refuge in N.N.W. gales ; and, in fact, from all 
winds except E. This splendid harbor is crescent-shaped, 
the, distance between the two arms being approximately 
tvi'o miles, and a safe anchorage can be found close to 
shore. The island is 7,000 acres in extent, and has a 
population of 70, mostly engaged in farming. The life- 
saving station is close to the lighthouse, and near the 
landing pier, about three-quarters of a mile from the 
lighthouse is a general store, where ice, milk, and a few 
staple provisions can always be obtained. The.re is no 
connection with the shore except_ hy boat, but I under- 
stand a telephone cable is being laid. 
, As the wind was fair and everything looked proasising 
for a pleasant night, there was no occasion for our mak- 
ing use of South Manitou harbor on this trip, and we 
kept on, heading for Point Betsey. At midnight the 
wind was S.E., and our course S.W. by S., with a fresh 
breeze, but not enough to warrant our reducing sail. 
Away astern, on our starboard quarter, we could see 
Vanenna's port light, hour after hour. The wind was 
now beginning to head us. We trimmed our sheets, and 
the best course we could make was S.S.W. At 3 in the 
morning, a steamer was rapidly overhauling us, and, 
fearing that we might be overlooked, we burned a flare, 
which quickly made her change her course. Shortly after 
dawn the wind again dropped, and hauled around to the 
S.W. At about S :30 the steamship Manitou passed us, 
this time on her way back to Chicago. Far astern — 
almost hull down — we could see our friend Vanenna, 
close-hauled, on the port tack, heading out into the lake. 
Throughout this cruise we had made it a practice to 
Anchorage at Charlevoix — Vanenna in Foreground. 
take the log every hour, with the wind and the course, 
and by 10 that morning we had made only 33^ knots 
since midnight, and were standing inshore. We came 
about close to the Manistee pier head at ten minutes past 
10, and then took a long tack out into the lake, heading 
W.S.W. The breeze was fresher than it had been in the 
early morning, and we were able to reel off 5 knots an 
hour. We kept on this tack for three hours, and then 
v/ere 6 miles from shore. On the starboard tack we could 
sail S.E. by S., and run in close to the Big Point Sable 
light, coming about at 2:15. A careful examination of 
the chart showed that the shore forms a bay S. of this 
Big Point Sable, and then projects into the lake again 
ai Little Point Sable, where the coast runs S.E., so that 
the Skipper calculated that by standing on this tack 15 
miles, unless the wind changed, we could then come 
about, giving Little Point Sable a good clearance, and 
keep on down the coast to Grand Haven ; so we sailed 
on for 15 miles, heading out into the lake until after 
supper-time. The Vanenna people afterward told us they 
saw us make this move and thought we had decided to 
take advantage of the fair wind and go across to Chi- 
cago ; but, as a matter of fact, we ,stood on this tack 
longer than we intended owing to our having put too 
much oil in our patent log, which caused the indicating 
finger on the dial to get loose, and we were over-running 
the log every hour. We calculated that by coming about 
at 6:30 and taking our course S.E. by S., we ought to 
have" a nice clearance passing Little Point Sable; but 
vvhen night fell and the light at that point became visible 
(a fixed light flashing white every 30 seconds), we found 
she was away to leeward of us ; certainly a good fault, but 
we might have come about an hour earlier and saved 
that much lime. 
We made the resolution when starting on the cruise 
that we would err on the safe side in the matter of carry- 
ing on canvas, and would always put in a couple of reefs 
before nightfall, no matter what the glass or clouds 
showed, but here we were, for our third night out, carry- 
iiig on all sail, and it seems inborn in a sailor — be he 
professional or Corinthian — to make the best time he can. 
The crew were all experienced, and, on the occasions 
when we had to take in reefs, it was done very expedi- 
tiously. We therefore continued this night to have our 
full mainsail and jib, and at 11 o'clock, when the Skipper 
and myself were thrown from our bunks by the heavy 
swell, we thought we had been indiscreet to carry on so 
much sail. The Skipper put his head, through the hatch 
and found that the trouble came from the big sea which 
is almost always to be^ found off Little Poi^it Sable, rather 
than a heavy wind, We decided to mg^e no change in 
our canvas, but we had little sleep for the rest of our 
watch. At midnight, when we took charge again, the 
wind was fair and we were right on our course, and at 
I o'clock had made 7 knots in the hour. The breeze, 
though, was shortlived, and gradually died down, so that 
when the other watch came up on deck at 4 o'clock we 
were barely moving. 
The last we had seen of Vanenna — the big, black 45- 
footer that had kept us company practically all the way 
from Milwaukee — was when we were standing out in the 
lake the evening before. She was then, as far as we 
could make out, about 10 miles astern. Much were our 
men surprised to pick her up at 4:45 that morning a mile 
ahead, standing in shore on the starboard tack. They 
•evidently had just seen us, for they were busy shaking 
out a couple of reefs they had put in the evening before. 
It was now a question as to whether we could take more 
advantage of the light airs we were now getting, and 
reach Grand Haven as soon as they did. We had just 
had breakfast, and were then about a mile N. of the 
pier head at Grand Haven, when Marcia came out, spoke 
to Vanenna, and steamed over to us, offering us a tow, 
which we agreed to take, and suggested that they pick up 
the Vanenna first and we would string on behind. By 
the time Vanenna had come up into the wind and snugged 
down her sails, we were close to the pier, and, as the 
wind was fair, we megaphoned Commodore Wilber to 
tow Vanenna up to Grand Haven, and we would sail 
up behind, which we did. 
The piers at Grand Haven run out a considerable dis- 
tance into the lake, and are 400 feet apart. The light- 
house consists of a white open framework tower, 25 feet 
high, located near the end of the south pier. It has a fixed 
white light, visible 13 miles. Under ordinary conditions 
this port is easy to make, but in heavy gales from the S. 
or S.W. a strong current sets down the shore and across 
the entrance. The same condition is noticeable all along 
Ihe east short of this lake, and in such cases vessels 
should be careful to keep well to windward. 
The city of Grand Haven is located half a mile from 
the pier head, and there the river narrows and runs in a 
northerly direction, through three draw-bridges, for half 
a mile, and then widens out into Spring Lake, an at- 
tractive summer resort where there is an active yacht club 
located. 
By the time we were abreast of the city, Marcia and 
Vanenna were tied up to the dock, so we dropped our 
mainsail and kept on up the river under our jib alone. 
Fortunately, when we neared the bridges (which are all 
close together) an excursion steamer cut in ahead of us, 
and we followed her through the draws, but I understand 
the bridges will open for sailboats giving three blasts of 
the horn, the same as at Charlevoix. 
We reached Spring Lake just as they were starting a 
Crew of Minota. 
race of their lark type boats. It made a very pretty sight. 
We dropped anchor alongside Sallie, a handsome 
schooner designed by Mr. A. Gary Smith, and owned by 
Messrs George and William Savidge, of Spring Lake. 
Our log showed 158.75 knots (182.75 statute miles), 
and we had been 5oV^ hours out from Charlevoix. The 
trip had been a very pleasant one, indeed, although we 
had practically beaten all the way down the Lake from 
the Manitous; it had been enjoyable sailing, and we had 
made fairly good time. 
As. soon as we had everything snugged down, all hands 
took a swim in the warm waters of Spring Lake. The 
water is so cold up in the northern part of Lake Michigan 
that swimming is out of the question, and even the morn- 
ing plunge over the side is not looked forward to with 
the keenest pleasure. Then we dressed and went ashore 
to stretch our legs after the two days' confinement on 
shipboard, and c -.lied on Commodore Savidge, of the 
Spring Lake Y. C, who gave us his usual cordial wel- 
come. At noon Marcia came up from Grand Haven tow- 
ing Vanenna, and in the afternoon a party of us made a 
trip around Spring Lake in an excursion steamer. The 
lake is irregular in shape, and con§i?ts of a number of 
