Day 2 in Ontonagon

Day 11, August 10

We awoke to a cold boat.  The temp on our thermometer registered 56 degrees so I braved the cold and lit the alcohol heater while Janine performed the duty of keeping her side of the bed warm.  The heater works well and after about 10 minutes, the cabin was tolerably warm enough for her to arise. 

The inside of the boat appeared to have had an explosion occur with wet towels and clothing spread all about.  We prepared breakfast and spent the next hour putting away stuff and hanging other stuff out on the lifelines to dry. The sky was beautifully clear although the wind was still blowing at about 15 to 20 knots from the Northeast.  The huge wave could be heard crashing on the beach and into the jetty that is located about a mile from where we were moored.  It would not have been a good day for us to resume our travels so we established a strategy for our entertainment for the day.

Early on, I sent an email to Mike Sullivan, a fellow Balboa 26 owner who resides in Houghton.  Mike had picked up our blog and suggested that we get together when we pass through Houghton.  I let him know that we were going to try to get to Houghton tomorrow and we would enjoy meeting up with him.  We texted back and forth and at one point, he reminded me that we needed to stop at Syl’s for a “pasty” and when I told him that we had indeed been there and that Janine had earned the right to be called a UP’er, he said that I needed to do the same, however, that purists don’t eat pasties with gravy.  So we added to our itinerary another trip to Syl’s. 

Gitche Gumee Landing

We took the Damn Dink back across the Ontonagon River and headed into town.  As we approached, we noticed a large building that appeared to be a tourist trap that advertised gems, stones, gifts etc.  The name was "Gitche Gumee Landing."  We decided to give it a look and were pleasantly surprised to find a rock shop of extraordinary quality.  They had a huge assortment of polished and unpolished fossils, cut concretions, soapstone carvings, onyx items of various types and jewelry.  I must admit that we were unable to get out of there without spending “entirely too much money.” 

Nonesuch

Down the street a ways, we came upon another shop, the "Nonesuch," that appeared to have a lot of interesting stuff plus coffee so we wandered in.  Needless to say, we didn’t get out of there without spending “entirely too much money!” I have to admit that I was the culprit in that store.  In their basement, they had a really nice tenor 4 string banjo that was quite old but very well cared for.  You know how it goes.  I had to have it.  What can I say?

Syl's - Famous for Pasties

We walked around a bit taking a few more pictures and wasting enough time that we needed to head for Syl’s for my initiation in the world of pasties.  I ordered a mini one and a side of gravy.  I ate the first two bites and passed the requirements for UP’er status then put a bit of gravy on it to make it much more enjoyable. 

Ontonagon Lighthouse

After lunch, we rushed back to the boat, dropped off our treasures, and then headed back to the Ontonagon Museum to join a light house tour.  The tour was conducted by a volunteer from Pennsylvania who, along with his wife go to a different lighthouse each year to conduct tours.  They live in this lighthouse while they are guiding.  This is an old abandoned lighthouse that built in about 1860 and the locals have restored it wonderfully.  The tour lasted about 1 ½ hours and turned out to be a true highlight of the trip.

Back on the boat, we performed little maintenance chores that seem to always be there waiting and then after supper, we went to settle up our bill with the Harbor Master, Bob.  He was a very pleasant fellow who grew up here and worked in the copper mines until they closed down.  He had 29 years of service when he lost his job.  That seems to be a common theme in this little town.  Earlier in our visit, I spent quite a bit of time discussing our similar stories about Viet Nam.  He was in the army and was serving during the same year as I was.  It was fun to compare notes.

We both took one last shower in their fine facilities before heading for bed.  We plan to leave for Houghton early tomorrow.