July 14, 2024: We woke up to a beautiful view of the sunrise. At 7:03 a.m., it was obvious a few boats had already left. I thought we were the early birds but that was definitely not the case! As I looked around the dock, I was surprised at how much activity there was already. We sat, enjoying our coffee and watching several sailboats leave the harbor. I wish I could ask each one of them where they're going...I'm so curious!!!

By 10:30, the radar showed that the rain was moving away from the area we are traveling towards. For the next 2.5 hours, we followed along the line of weather and experienced a few sprinkles but nothing serious. They were slow moving clouds and just as predicted, clear blue skies were right behind them. There is a significant size reef that we navigate around before making a sharp left turn towards the Port Austin State Harbor. This turn has been stressful for me in our past visits here but today the lake is calm and it's a pleasant experience all the way up to the gas dock. 

Since we waited for the weather to pass, we are arriving about two hours later than we had planned. Our friends, Mike & Mary are driving their car to spend the night with us. ​They are the only ones who have a named "bedroom" on our boat because they have traveled with us in past years. We expected to have enough time to fuel up and get settled into our boat slip before they arrived but that wasn't the case. Our time at the gas dock took much longer than we planned.

There were two young dockhands who were working together to help us. After they finished fueling and pumping out, I heard a slight "plunk" in the water. I asked, "What was that?" The two dockhands looked nervously at each other and said, "it was the cap for your holding tank." The one who dropped it said he would get it with a net and if that didn't work, he would dive for it which I quickly said, "I don't want you diving in to get it."

Larry realized this was going to take some time so he took our dinghy over to our assigned boat slip and said he would walk back to get me and the boat. Soon, the harbor master arrived. I didn't want to hover while they figured things out so I went down in the cabin for a few minutes, giving them some privacy. Then I hear the second dock hand yelling out, "Now what are you going to do?!" I came back up and looked in the direction of where he yelled and noticed the harbor master and dockhand drifting out into the bay on a motorized deck they were standing on. Apparently, their plan was to bring this dock around to where he dropped the cap. Being closer to the water's surface, they thought they would have better success using the net. After he untied the floating dock and pushed themselves off, they realized they had no fuel. He jumped into the water to try to pull them back to the dock but it was too late so he went back on and the two of them sat down in defeat. 

By this time, Larry was walking towards us when the second dock hand asked if Larry could go back to get the dinghy and deliver fuel to his co-workers who were half way across the bay by now. Just as everyone was returning to the fuel dock, I heard another "plunk." This time, it was the second dock hand's radio! WHAT is going on here?! They were like a bumbling trifecta! I wanted to yell "STOP MOVING!" but I restrained myself. :-)  After several unsuccessful attempts with the net, it was clear we needed to hire a professional diver. Mike and Mary arrived around the same time as the diver. About an hour and $150 later, the diver successfully recovered our cap and their radio. Whew! Replacing this cap wouldn't have been easy, especially while traveling. I thought we might be staying in a hotel for the night and heading home in the morning but it all worked out. 

We went to Pak's Backyard for dinner, taking in the views from our table, and enjoying the live music. Then we spent the evening on the boat, laughing and catching up with Mike & Mary while witnessing the most spectacular sunset; my favorite reason for being here. I must've stepped off our boat to walk to the end of the dock 20 times to take "just one more" picture. Breathtaking!

July 13, 2024: Just as we hoped for, the gas dock was empty this morning and we were their first customer. As the young dockhand was fueling up our tanks, he told us that he's worked there for a couple of summers and loves it. When he's not working the docks, he is working the fields. It was fascinating to hear how ambitious he is. I asked him if they have many transient slips compared to seasonal slips and he went on to explain how each of the docks are designated and then he casually mentioned that one seasonal boater reserves 6 boat slips. "What?!" I asked. I said, "I can't say I know anyone who owns more than one boat let alone an entire fleet!"

He shoved us off just in time for the 10:00 a.m. bridge opening. Moments later we were leaving the harbor and heading back on The St. Clair River. 40 minutes later, we were traveling beneath the Blue Water Bridge in Port Huron. This is usually a little unnerving for me because the water is often turbulent as Lake Huron rushes into the St. Clair River here, but not this time. We went from gentle ripples in the river to smooth as silk waters in the lake. I believe this is the first time I've experienced calm and peaceful waters right here. The tranquil waters continued and by noon, we were comfortably docked in Port Sanilac Marina. ​

As we got settled into tonight's boat slip, there was someone flying over the marina in what looked like a go-cart with wings. It was so cool! We walked into the marina store to purchase a new drinking water hose. They were so friendly and helpful and had exactly one hose in stock and it fit our needs perfectly. The salesperson told us that we must go to The Alli Bar which is a very short walk into town. 

We spent the afternoon exploring the area in our dinghy. With a small cooler, snacks, towels, and sunscreen in hand, we're always amazed at how many hours can pass before feeling the need to get back to the boat. We found our way over to the beach and relaxed in the sand for a while. The water was so warm and inviting, we both went in for a swim. Then, I laid down on my towel, luxuriating in the warm sun on my skin, the sound of gentle waves, and seagulls calling. This is total bliss to me. For dinner we ate one of our frozen meals we cooked before leaving home and then walked into town to find The Alli Bar. It was everything the salesperson said it would be and more! This place was an antique store; now it's the coolest outdoor bar I've ever seen!  It's located in an alley between buildings and you just have to see it for yourself. The live music was fantastic and as we sat to watch the performance, we realized it was the same person we saw on the beach earlier. Small towns. :-) ​The night sky was flawless and clear with a brightly shining moon, nearly half full.

July 12, 2024: It took 6 months of detailed planning and nearly a lifetime of dreams to get to this day. The boat is stocked and ready for our 30-day long adventure. At 5:24 p.m., we backed away from D dock in St. Clair Shores and headed out into Lake St. Clair.

The lake was calm, the sky above was crystal clear and brilliant blue with some white fluffy clouds, very low on the horizon and the 30 minute cruise across the lake was so serene.  As we entered the St. Clair River, we started seeing a significant amount of debris floating along. There were storms in the area a couple of days earlier and now we're literally dodging logs and boards that are drifting down the river. Thankfully, the currently calm conditions made it easy to identify them. We may have looked like drunken sailors as we swerved our way up the river. :-)

At 6:55 p.m., we arrived at our first destination; St. Clair Boat Harbor. Weekends are busy for transient harbors like this one and since today is Friday, there are already several boats hovering in the river, waiting for the draw bridge to open. On schedule, the draw bridge opens at 7:00 p.m. and we follow the other boaters into the Pine River. 

There are some restaurants along the river and we can already see that they are hopping. We can hear the music drifting from the restaurants and as we motor our way around the bend, there's a musician performing on the dock, waving to the boaters as they go by. We mostly prefer to fuel up when we arrive but the gas dock is busy so we will wait until the morning to fuel up as we are leaving.

After securing our lines in the boat slip, we hooked up power and water. It's such a luxury to have a/c inside the cabin! Soon we are sitting on the back of our boat on the "sea of couch" (as we like to call it), celebrating our first night with some light snacks and drinks. 

We walked over to Pepper Joe's to add our name to the waitlist and then walked to the plaza where it was packed with people waiting for the weekly summer concert to begin. Making our way to the boardwalk, along the edge of the St. Clair River, we were happy to see some activities at the St. Clair Inn. We discovered a set of stairs leading down from the boardwalk, directly into the river. It felt wonderful to stand in cool water, up to our knees. Heading back to the restaurant, it was heartwarming to see the benches filled with people chatting and savoring the night. ​

Our walk back to the boat, after dinner, was beneath a black, starry sky and a gentle, warm breeze. Summertime bliss.

This past weekend, we drove across the state to Holland, MI to watch our granddaughter compete in a swim meet. As soon as she was done on the first day, we drove to Holland State Park. The kids played at the playground with their dad and aunt. Meanwhile, Larry and I took off our shoes, rolled up our pant legs and walked along the beach. This is not typical of me if it's not 80 degrees but it was sunny, mid 60's and no wind so I didn't hesitate to follow Larry's lead and walk in the water for a few minutes. The sky was brilliant blue with some wispy clouds, the sun was reflecting off the water, a boater was heading out into the lake and a seaplane flew right over us. Bliss.

WHOA! I feel so liberated! I made the decision to remove all references of interior design associated with Jody Pear Designs, including the history and portfolio of my projects. It just doesn't fit me at this point in my life. I have a full time job again, working for someone else, and it suits me perfectly!

Over the past few months, I developed a new hobby. I started dabbling in the print-on-demand industry and I'm IN LOVE with the process! I can take white/blank, ordinary, every-day items and design them with something that is meaningful to me. I'm completely addicted and ended up designing many products. Yesterday, I deleted almost everything! WHAT?! :-) Madness or liberation? I'm leaning more towards liberation and clarity because everything I chose to keep is related to boating, my strongest passion, and this  choice feels AMAZING!

Two years ago, I started the habit of writing daily on Facebook whenever we traveled or went on a boating adventure. Recently, my account was compromised and has been suspended. For now, I don't have access to everything I shared on that platform. Thankfully, I have all of my photos saved on my iPhone which tracks the day, time, and location. These details will be incredibly helpful as I am going to recreate those daily entries I shared on Facebook, here, in this new blog.

Whew! Here I go again...completely guided by my heart and desire to share with others.