Gemini Loop: St. Joseph, MI

Hi everybody! This is our last entry from Michigan. Today we cross Lake Michigan to Chicago!

St. Joseph is a great town. We got here on Tuesday and the marina van took us to the grocery store to stock up. Our guide books said that it was easier to provision before we got to Chicago. Town is actually a little bike ride (with hills) from the marina. We borrowed a bike for Chris and rode into town yesterday to look around. There were lots of shops and restaurants, of course. Chris picked a South American restaurant for lunch (the Cuban pulled pork sandwich was heavenly!) and then we rode around town some more.

There were all manner of barnyard animals, painted or decorated, on the main streets. On a bluff that overlooked the lake, we found a park with war memorials, statues, a fountain and a band shell. Below us was a huge compass rose, with shooting water for kids to play in.

We had docktails with several other loopers in the afternoon. Some we had met before, but most we had not. All of us are leaving today - some for Chicago, some for Michigan City. For the first time since we left Savannah, we had dinner at a yacht club with a reciprocal agreement. The St. Joseph Yacht Club lives in an old building once used by the Coast Guard. It was the place where they hauled in buoys for maintenance. A railway brought the buoys up to the building - you can see the rails in the concrete. Oh, and they had a carousel horse in the lobby!

The forecast today is for winds under 10 knots and seas about 1 foot. It isn't going to get any better than that!
We will stay with Chris for a few days in Chicago and then head home for a few days. Since we are landing in Atlanta and driving to Savannah, I asked Sara and Ryan if I could take Olivia with me - to get some extra "granny time". They have graciously agreed and I am SO excited!

We will let you know about Chicago soon....