Launching Pecan and off to Charlevoix

Northport to Charlevoix track.

The big plan for our maiden voyage is to take Pecan under it's own bottom back to Florida via the Great Lakes and the Canadian waterway and canal system (Trent-Severn, Rideau, and the Richelieu-Chambly) on through Lake Champlain, the Hudson river then down the east coast intracoastal waterway. We'll see what we can do now that we're leaving so far north at the virtually the end of summer....and the beauty of this is that if the weather changes or something goes awry we can always get the trailer (of course, we'll need to have a suitable tow vehicle first!).

After applying anti-fouling and loading her up with stores, we proceeded to get Pecan launched this afternoon. After topping of the fuel tanks at Northport marina, we headed out of Traverse Bay at 2:30pm for the 20+ mile run to Charlevoix. Weather had cleared to a bright sunny day in the 60s with light winds although this morning was chilly with frost warnings for inland northern Michigan counties. Rich drove the rental car to the Hertz location at Traverse City's airport and took the Northport connector bus ($3.00) for the 27 mile up the west side of Traverse Bay to Northport.


Jeep pulling Pecan out of storage shed.


Pecan lifted out of wheeled cradle.


Tamara applying anti-fouling to the bare spots on the hull where the cradle pads held her and to areas around the waterline for additionally protection.


Video of Pecan launch.


Goodbye Northport Bay boatyard.


Charlevoix; marina location at the red arrow.


Tamara and James at the entrance channel to Charlevoix.


Charlevoix municipal marina. This has to be the best outfitted and maintained public marina. Half a dozen clean and private shower stalls; kitchen; TV lounge; Wifi; and a fountain with water jets synchronized to their piped outdoor pop music system.