The Voyage of the Jenny Lee

More coming soon!

2009-07-05T23:48:00.000-07:00

I know we have been lazy about postings for the last 9 months or so, but there is more coming soon on our summer expedition up the coast of Maine and over to Nova Scotia, maybe even Newfoundland. Stay tuned.

Rory and Jenny

The North Channel

2008-08-08T14:31:00.000-07:00

July 15th we started up the St. Marys river after stopping into Detour for some fuel and a pump out. A couple of fishermen docked just ahead of us, and after a quick chat they offered up as many fish as we could fit in our cooler (dinner!) After a quick trip to the hardware and grocery stores we continued up the river headed for Hatti Island. My family has vacationed there for the last 12 years so I convinced the guys that we should make that a destination. We spent four days there, which was just long enough for Rory and Drew to think up as many ways as they could to "tip" our boat to sail it under the bridge that separates Hatti Island from the rest of the north channel. We never did "tip" the boat (which, frankly, was fine by me), said goodbye to Drew on the 18th, and sailed back down the St. Mary's river on the 19th to sail the North Channel. We made Harbor Island that evening and had to battle anchoring the boat with just the two of us. I was a bit nervous about handling the boat while Rory dropped the anchor, but luck was on our side and I found it was WAY easier than I had imagined. It was the start to many nights of great anchoring all over the North Channel. We made Thessalon the next night (a great harbor and very helpful harbor master), and East Grant island the day after that. It was a great find (and I'm sure it had nothing to do with the fact that we had just motored all day into a 15kn wind and just felt like anchoring somewhere). We took the dinghy ashore that evening and had dinner over a fire on the beach. We had heard from a nice couple in Thessalon that Turnbull Island was a nice anchorage, so on the 22nd we sailed to Turnbull and joined the six other boats already there. There were a TON of little islands to explore so we tooled around in the dinghy before dinner. The next day we planned on making Kagawong but instead of heading straight there we took the scenic route going behind Johns Island and Aird Island. The wind was NW and perfect to sail through all the pretty narrow channels and passages. Throughout the Whaleback channel we kept hearing security calls for Little Detroit passage. We heard it was narrow but couldn't imagine that it would be narrow enough to require a security call for pleasure craft. In hindsight, we should have announced ourselves as well. The Little Detroit passage was a (very) narrow passage right through two rock faces that we had the perfect wind and perfect current to sail through. We managed to keep the sails up and the engine off through the passage which, we noted with pride, we didn't see anyone else doing. We anchored outside Kagawong that night and had an uneventful evening on the hook. The next day we sailed the five miles into the town of Kagawong and hooked up to shore power long enough to charge our batteries (which were quite dead after so many nights anchoring) and visited Bridal Veil Falls. That same day we made it to Little Current and got our most expensive slip yet of $1.75/ft. I wasn't impressed by Little Current so was happy to leave the next day for Killarney. The wind was strong but in the right direction and we had a beautiful sail up the Landsdown Channel. We managed to get a mooring ball for the night and, as things go when you're sailing, stayed three days. On the 27th we left Killarney to anchor in Covered Portage and it was one of the best anchorages we've seen. There were high cliffs of rock all around us and a million boats. We hiked and picked wild blueberries and got some great shots of the boat from above. We sailed for Tobermory on the 28th and spent an uneventful three nights there. For the next week we hopped down the Canadian side of Lake Huron, stretching our trip as long as we could before heading back to NH. On August 4th we sailed into Port Sanilac two months to the day after we left. Glen and Casey (good friends and previous owners of the Jenny Lee) welcomed us back with steak on the grill that night. The plan was to start down the rivers and explore the islands of the west end of lake Erie, but some logistical difficulties changed our minds and we left the boat in Port Sanilac for Glen and Casey to look after and then take a vacation of their own while delivering the boat to Buffalo.

2008-07-27T07:58:00.000-07:00

Well its been a while since our last posting but we have been doing a lot of anchoring and the internet is scarce. When we last left you we were headed for Mackinac Island. We made it, and we spent 3 days there right in the middle of Lilac festival.We met up with my old pipe band there and Dave, the drum sergeant, sailed with us from
Mackinac Island to Charlevoix. We left Charlevoix and got to Leland on the 17th of June just in time for Ashley's wedding and Quinn's baptism (Jenny's stepsister and niece, respectively). We also got a nice sunset hike up Pyramid point.
On the 25th we sailed up and around the Leelanau Penninsula and anchored in the little town of Omena. We made for Traverse City the next day with Jenny's dad on board. We spent almost two weeks there at the Maritime Heritage Alliance dock in exchange for some work on the tallship Welcome.
In Traverse we sadly had to say goodbye to Jay and drove him to his flight back to NH. We loved having you here Jay! Traverse was smack in the middle of Cherry Festival and town was insane. Each day we saw the Blue Angels practicing for the big show. On the 4th of July we watched the fireworks from the boat out in Grand Traverse Bay with some friends.
On July 8th our friend Drew joined the crew for the next leg up to Hatti Island. The next day we left Traverse for Charlevoix where we anchored for the night. There we met a fellow "under 60 cruiser" Dane who was about to have his boat shipped to Seattle where he would make for French Polynesia. We invited him for lunch on our boat and afterwards we said goodbye and sailed to Beaver Island. The plan was to set out the next day and make for St. Ignace or DeTour but we had east winds. They then switched around and blew from the NW at 30 -40 knts with seas 6-8 ft and building. The blow lasted for three days so we got to see a lot more of Beaver Island than we had anticipated. We were anchored in the very protected harbor and the wind was still howling, but we decided to go ashore and make the best of the day. We saw several Geo Trackers outside of one shop so Jenny inquired about them and, don't you know, they were for rent! So we rented a mid 90's pink Geo Tracker, which we later found out was also rented by Madonna a few years earlier, OH MY GOD! So we Geo Tacked all about Beaver Island. Though it was only 2wd we put it to the test on super muddy trails, in the woods, on the beach and over rocks and trees. We definitely got our 35$ worth out of it.
While on the trip we came across a grouse with a death wish. It would chase cars down the trails! Needless to say, I had to try and catch it, (which I did) and when I finally let it go we saw it in the rearview mirror still chasing after us down the road! The next few nights at anchor were spent laying awake all night wondering if we were dragging or if any other boats were dragging towards us. The last night we said the hell with it and got a slip for the night. On the morning of the 14th we left Beaver and had our biggest day yet of 70+ miles. It was a great run down wind wing and wing a good portion of the way.

We sailed right by St Ignace, which was our intended port, and decided to see how far we could make it. I looked over some charts and found a spot in the Les Cheneaux Islands which looked like a good anchorage so we made for that. It turned out to be the best anchorage so far on the trip, so we dropped the hook and had a good meal of hot dogs and a bottle of champagne which Drews Mom gave to us for looking after her baby boy. The next morning we hauled up the anchor and headed for DeTour, the St. Mary's River and whatever else lay ahead.

A Big Week

2008-06-12T15:41:00.000-07:00

Its been almost a week since our last post and a lot has happend. I'd like to say we put a lot of miles under our keel but 130 miles later we've only made Rogers City. On Friday the 6th we left Harbor Beach on our first big leg up to East Tawas, about 60 miles or 12 hours away. One mile out of the Harbor Beach breakwall we were hit by an enormous swarm of biting flies. Tens of thousands of flies covered every surface of the boat inside and out. The swarm of biblical proportions took the entire day to get rid of, and it took sailing through a hellatious thunderstorm to do the trick. That was our next significant event of the day. We were still 2 hours out from our destination when the storm hit. Lightining struck the water for miles all around us and we got the sails down minutes before the 40+ mph wind gusts hit. Jenny went below to batton down the hatches, put pots under leaks and secure all of our belongings being thrown about the cabin. We had to abandon our desired course and just keep the bow head to wind as we made no headway against the storm. The storm was gone as quickly as it came, about 25 mins of hell. We continued on to East Tawas and promptly hit the bar almost before the boat was tied up. We found a little Irish pub and as we walked in the guitar/singer was playing the Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, so we knew we had come to the right place. We spent two nights in Tawas and had a great daysail on the 2nd day.

Sunday the 8th we left Tawas for Harrisville, about 36 miles north. On our motor/sail north we noticed that our house batteries would not charge, so that ruled out the possibility of anchoring out. Monday I found a garage/boat shop selling marine batteries anbd we spent the afternoon rewiring and connecting the system. Jenny got some laundry and a bunch of other projects accomplished.

We left Harrisville Tuesday the 10th for Presque Isle, only another 20 miles north. Between the wind, fog, and thunderstorms our weather window and hangover recovery time only gave us about 5 or 6 hours of sailing time a day. After taking fuel and having a meal out we anchored on the other side of the bay and enjoyed a beutiful sunset. The next day we waited out a northwest wind until 4:00pm before heaving up the anchor and heading north.

We pulled into Rogers City Wed the 11th and went to the local sailor bar where we met some guys Taco and I knew off of the boats. I went to visit a buddy on the American Valor at 2am. Today we all slept in and are waiting out some very high wind and seas and hope to make Makinaw Island tomorrow.

Finally, we sail....well motor...

2008-06-05T09:06:00.000-07:00

Our plan to get underway on Tuesday was shot down due to adverse wind and weather conditions, but it gave us a chance to get some other stuff done. Jay, the ships carpenter, has so far fixed: leaky port holes, the VHF radio, the head, dinner and put up a second flag halyard.

We finally got around to scrubbing the boat and everything was set to sail the next day. We awoke on Wednesday to more fog and wind out of the north (again!). We waited out the morning hoping for some visibility. Around 1pm Matt and Pat, Jenny's brother and brother-in-law, showed up to pick up our truck. Our visibility increased just enough that we decided to make a go for Harbor Beach. Matt and Pat were able to come with us at the last minute so we all made the six hour trip together. Glen and Casey were nice enough to pick them up in Harbor Beach to return them to their vehicles.

So we got underway motoring against only a 7-10 knot north wind. It did clock around to the East a few hours later allowing us to motor-sail for a while. The wind was cold and Jenny was in two jackets and her wool hat. There were a few kinks to work out on our first leg, the largest of which being the over-heating of the stern tube gland. We shut the engine down and did some adjustments while bobbing around 3 miles offshore in the fog.

We pulled into Harbor Beach at about 2030, tied up, and proceeded to tear apart the head. We worked until late and then shifted to another slip. We awoke this morning to Pea Soup fog yet again and severe thunderstorms on the way.

So again we wait.

Our New Home

2008-06-01T08:53:00.000-07:00

We finally did it! It took 9 months of planning and saving and years worth of dreaming, but we did it. On Thurs May 29 we launched "Yasumi," soon to be "Jenny Lee." We spent our first night aboard, exhausted from a day of driving and two days of fit out, and the next morning we bought her. Getting her moved from the cradle and launched was a very nerve racking experience. I've heard horror stories of people's dream boats being dropped or tipped over by boat yards before they even saw it in the water. Glen, one of the previous owners, placed two good luck pennies on either side of the boat as it was launched, so it was obvious he shared a bit of my anxiety.

Over the last few days we have been rigging, cleaning, and making minor repairs with tons of help from Glen and Casey. We could not have asked for a better boat buying experience. They have housed, fed, and helped us make our dream come true, along with keeping our thirst at bay with beer. Thank you so much guys!

Our Friend Taco joined us the other day and another friend Jay is coming tomorrow. Our plan is to set sail on Tuesday May, 3 for Harbor Beach, the next port North, and then make the big jump up to Presque Isle the following day, weather permitting. We are almost done moving aboard and are excited to get under way. Wish us luck!

Under Construction

2008-05-21T20:24:00.000-07:00

Our site is under construction. The Voyage of the sailing vessel Jenny Lee will begin June First from Port Sanilac, Mi. to Leland, Mi. We will sail the Great Lakes for the summer and will make updates soon.