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Cruiser’s Notebook:
Lake Superior stop part of Alaskan sailing couple’s harbor hop ’round the world
by Cyndi Perkins
On a rainy autumn Monday at the
Lake Linden Village docks in
Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, the cruising
sailboat “Clair de Lune” of Anchorage,
Alaska is defying the calendar. Weathered
in by a cold front, Edd and Judi Clair
delayed their departure until early
October. By then most Lake Superior
sailors have yielded to the season, lifting
out for the winter or heading for warmer
climates as the geese fly South. In comparison,
Clair de Lune, a 1976 Valiant 40,
is considerably behind schedule.
Edd and Judi are not particularly
concerned about delays. “I’m from here
and we lived in Alaska, so we know about
weather,” says Judi. They heartily
embrace cruising off the beaten path, traveling
at Mother Nature’s pace. Their
secret to enjoying a live-aboard lifestyle
is meticulous preparation followed by an
easygoing attitude and sense of humor
toward dealing with whatever comes up.
True cruisers know that something
always comes up. If it’s not an operational
thing, it’s a weather thing.
After totally refitting their boat
(more about that later), the Clairs
embarked on a shakedown cruise to
Hawaii and back. Then they pointed the
bow south again, heading from Alaska
down the California/Mexico coast. An
interesting west-to-east transit of the
Panama Canal followed. After exploring
“the other side,” Clair de Lune sailed
across the Gulf of Mexico into the Eastern
U.S. river system. Awaiting game ensued
as spring floods impeded their progress
upriver through the lock system that
begins in Mobile and ends in Chicago on
Lake Michigan.
Edd jokes that he could write a book
titled “Doing the Loop the Wrong Way.”
Even after the floodwaters receded in
spring 2008, swift and powerful opposing
currents made for slow going. Clair de
Lune completed just 77 miles on her first
three days headed up the Mississippi
River, negotiating tow barges, logs and
other debris while avoiding fast-forming
ever-shifting shoals on hairpin curves.
Judi’s top piece of advice for safely navigating
the rivers is “Follow the charts, not
the buoys.” In some stretches of the
rivers, there are more buoys washed
ashore than in the water while others are
submerged.
From the Great Lakes, the couple
was in a good position to head in direct
yet leisurely fashion to the Caribbean for
the winter.
But first came a mandatory and
delightful side trip to Judi’s home waters.
The couple harbor-hopped from the Soo
across Lake Superior to the Keweenaw
Peninsula’s Portage Lake Shipping Canal
and into Torch Lake, where they tied up
and plugged in at Lake Linden Village’s
municipal docks in September rather than
July. “We thought we’d be here on the
Fourth of July. We were delayed by flooding
on the Mississippi,” says Edd. “For
seven weeks we waited on Kentucky
Lake.” While in the Land Between the
Lakes area in Kentucky the couple with
the help of a visiting granddaughter managed
to adopt two adorable turtles who
are with them still, contentedly clambering
about in a sturdy glass bowl. “We are
trying to find a good home for them,”
laughs Judi, explaining that a visiting
grandchild talked them into taking on the
amphibians. In addition to visits to and
from family, the layover also including a
side trip to Nashville, Ten., where Clair
de Lune found plenty of water for its six foot
draft, a hospitable town dock and
convenient public transportation to local
attractions.
Edd, originally from California, has
sailed for many years, breaking away
from it to spend several years focusing on
work and family. Newbie Judy took an
ASA sanctioned liveaboard sailing course
in Seward, Alaska. She sincerely recommends
the investment. “It was good for
me to learn it on my own,” she says. After
successfully completing the course and
having fun doing it, she decided that
cruising on a sailboat would be fulfilling.
She didn’t think Edd was going to jump
on her enthusiasm and buy “THE” boat as
fast as he did, but when he accelerated the
project she willingly kicked in her talents,
including sewing.
The times that they are able to set the
sails and let the autohelm pilot in the
tradewinds are among Edd and Judi’s
favorite sailing experiences. With an
autopilot and windvane for self-steering,
Clair de Lune does quite well on her own
in favorable conditions. Her best performance
was wing-on-wing most of the way
from California to Hawaii. “We hardly
changed the sail set,” says Judi. Edd says
it turned him into a “Gentlemen Sailor.”
“For 11 days I had hardly anything to do.”
Because he now strongly favors downwind
routes, Judi predicts that a global
circumnavigation is in their future.
The legs of the Clair’s cruising journey
thus far are San Diego to Hawaii in
17 days, followed by a 26-day sail back to
Alaska, then back down the coast to
“Frisco Bay” where they stayed for six
months before continuing on to Mexico
and the pleasures of the Gold Coast,
including Barra de Navidad. “The Gold
Coast was a fantastic experience,” says
Judi. In Barra 100 boats anchored in a
protected bay created the kind of atmosphere
that exemplifies the cruising
lifestyle. After listening to the cruiser’s
net on the radio each morning, to hear
news of arrivals, departures, requests for
help and random equipment for sale, the
Clairs eagerly awaited the local bakery
boat for fresh-baked bread. Judi says she
loves the “experiences of everything”
when encountering towns and villages
she has never seen before. “If you’re
going past, you’ve got to see this stuff,”
says Judi. “We’re cruisers. That’s what
we do.”
Edd has picked up quite a bit of
Spanish, and has found that “as long as
you try a little” communication in foreign
countries doesn’t need to be a stumbling
block. “Costa Rica, Mexico, Panama …
We’ve had great experiences everywhere.”
After experiencing Central America
and transiting the Panama Canal, Clair
De Lune crossed the Gulf of Mexico to
Mobile, Alabama. Edd’s 83-year-old
mother Kitty was aboard for the entire trip
from the Panama Canal to Mobile. She
had always wanted to experience the
canal and once that was completed there
never seemed to be a convenient time to
stop in a port and ferry her to an airport.
Besides, she truly loves living aboard, say
son and daughter-in-law. “She’d live on
the boat with us if we let her,” says Judi.
“In the locks we couldn’t count an 83-
year-old as a line handler. She was our
photographer.”
In 2008 it cost $605 to take a 40-foot
sailboat through the Panama Canal.
Passing from the Pacific to the Atlantic is
done in one day, an estimated 51-mile
nine-hour trip. Boaters who miss a lock or
otherwise get stuck overnight pay a $300
fine. Chugging
across Lake Gatun
their guide started
telling them that
they weren’t going
to make the lock in
time. Eight knots is
the recommended
speed. “We don’t do
eight knots,” says
Edd. Clair de Lune
valiantly plowed
toward deadline at
6.5 knots. “We
pushed it,” says
Judi. They made it.
In addition to
time limits on the
Panama Canal there
are requirements for
lines, bumpers, line
handlers and a hired
guide. There are
three locks up and
three down. Boaters
should expect to
encounter giant cargo vessels at any time. Rafting of
smaller vessels is required, and the
bumper of choice is tires wrapped with
packing tape. In keeping with the cruising
spirit of teamwork, boaters with tires they
have no further use for willingly pass
them on to new arrivals. With so many
boaters willing to help each other out, a
Panama Canal passage is not as daunting
as it seems. “It went smooth as silk,” says
Edd. “We hired an agent for $300 but we
could have done it ourselves and we will
do it on our own on the way back through.
He did do all the paperwork.” Contrary to
the widely held belief that it takes a long
time to get permission to transit, the
Clairs say their passage was arranged
almost too quickly to physically prepare
for it. A fellow cruiser pitched in as one of
the required line handlers, another common
practice among transiting boaters.
Judi said it was definitely helpful for Edd
to go through the canal crewing on another
boat before piloting Clair de Lune.
Their local hired guide Julio was “a real
nice guy,” she says, and it was easy
enough to supply the required three meals, water, soda pop and coffee for the
crew as they made their way through the
famous channel.
Clair de Lune’s free and much easier
journey up the Portage Canal to Lake
Linden was a homecoming for Judi, with
the docks located just a few miles from
the little town of Laurium where her
mother Leona Walkonen still lives. The
couple enjoyed great time with family
and friends and were able to make one of
Leona’s wishes come true after Judi
learned that the Portage Lake Lift Bridge
operators wouldn’t be annoyed to lift the
largest, heaviest lift span in the world for
the 57-foot keel-stepped mast. “My mom
wants to go under the bridge,” explains
Judi. Since it would be a leisurely three hour
trip out to the north entry of Lake
Superior and back, obtaining a couple of
lifts on demand was not a problem. Leona
got her wish in early October, after Clair
de Lune stopped for a pumpout and diesel
at Houghton County Marina. A couple of
days later the Clairs took a weather window,
heading for the Soo in favorable
although distinctly not balmy conditions
on Oct. 9. They were looking forward to
shedding the fleece and socks. “We just
do warm now, there’s no reason to be
cold,” says Judi.
The couple did enjoy returning to
Alaska as cruising tourists, especially in
Kodiak, which they say is expensive but
friendly. “We recommend it — there is no
better place to check out whales, bears
and eagles — but it cost $9 for a shower
at the Laundromat. It was $6.75 for a
washer and $8 for a dryer.”
The couple planned to decide on a
route out to the Atlantic once they reached
DeTour at the east end of Michigan’s
Upper Peninsula. Unlike boaters who prefer
sheltered grounds, both of them speak
reverently and fondly of long passages on
wide-open water. To reach the Atlantic,
possible routes include the New York
canal system through Oswego after venturing
across Lake Huron, Georgian Bay
and Lake Ontario. Or they may have chosen
to retrace the Great Lakes-river system
route with favorable currents. When
it comes to cruising style, the Clairs prefer
anchoring out to staying in a marina.
From January-May 2008 they spent just
15 days in marinas. While at anchor they
take the dinghy ashore as needed for provisions
or excursions. To get around on
land they use their folding bikes, or walk,
rent cars or use the courtesy cars available
at some marinas.
For Hurricane Season the options
include Bonne-Aire (St. John’s) or
Corozal, Belize. Edd noted that it’s very
important to keep the insurance company
happy by ducking below or above the
storm lines during the most threatening
times of the year.
On overnight passages, the Clairs
have settled on a watch system that works
for them. Edd is a night person and Judi is
a day person, so she begins watch after
dinner and ideally stands until midnight.
Edd takes over until dawn. During the day
they play it by ear, taking turns to nap as
needed. “We try to do six on and six off.
The goal to short-handing is to feel good
so that you can do your part,” says Edd.
“You don’t have that third person.”
The sail system is designed for efficiency
and safety. “When conditions warrant
we snap on,” says Ed, “but my theory
is to avoid going on deck. All lines for
every routine operation are in the cockpit.”
The couple was able to put so much
thought into a designing the boat to their
specific needs because they began from
scratch. Claire de Lune was rudely used
in the cleanup of the 1989 Exxon Valdez
oil spill then left to rot in a boatyard for
nine years. “The boat was a derelict when
we bought her. There was an oil slick
instead of an engine,” says Edd. “There
was no useable plumbing, just mold and
mildew.” The exhaustive two-year rehab
and retrofit including installing a Perkins
4-108 diesel. Wisely remembering that
“all work and no play” is no fun, the couple
stowed work materials out of sight
and continued to entertain family and
friends in the boat as-is throughout the
project.
A wind generator, solar panels, 17-
gallon per hour watermaker and other
amenities render the couple self-sufficient
for six months, in keeping with their general
cruising theme of proper preparation
to prevent poor performance. Because
they don’t like to be cold, the Clairs outfitted
their boat with a Wallace forced-air
diesel heater. “I think it’s the best on the
market,” says Edd. “Instead of turning off
it goes to idle, so it never does cool down
and restart. It’s very economical to run.”
Clair de Lune carries an EPIRB and
a life raft as well as redundant paper and
electronic charts and GPS systems, single
sideband and a variety of means to obtain
up-to-date weather info. The communications
system enables them to keep in regular
touch with family, including their son in Anchorage, daughter in Des Moines,
and three grandchildren
Benchmarks of a true cruiser include
a willingness to cheerfully admit to running
aground or dragging anchor. The
Clairs admit to several groundings, and
proudly report that in all eight instances
they “got off by themselves.” For anchors
and tackle they carry two CQRs, a
Danforth, a Bruce-style claw and the
appropriate chain-rope set-ups, along
with a hydraulic winch to assist in the
hauling. One of the biggest anchoring
challenges was Hawaii, where the Clairs
say they found cruising friendlier than
anticipated but not a good place to stay on
the hook for an extended period of time.
“There’s lot of surf,” notes Edd.
The Clairs began their travels with
St. Bernard Sophie, who became ill and
sadly perished. They cherish their boat
dog memories, including how such a
large dog managed could magnificently
manage to make herself so comfortable
on a sailboat. But they aren’t looking for
any other pets — besides the aforementioned
turtles — “until we’re land lubbers
again,” says Judi. Too many countries
have pet quarantine requirements.
In the future, the couple plans on
traveling back through the Panama Canal
“and then we’ll get lost in the South
Pacific for a while,” says Judi, obviously
relishing the thought.
“We have been rediscovering ourselves.
There is stress but it balances out.
We both saw chiropractors when we were
constantly at work. We are in better health
than we were 10 years ago,” she says.
On November 24 I received an
update on the Clair’s progress. They were
in the river system at Kentucky Lake, on
the Tennessee River headed for the Tenn-
Tom waterway. They reported some very
cold nights but little drama, save for an
autopilot failure on Lake Michigan that
diverted them to Holland, Michigan.
There are repair services and marinas
available in the area but Edd said he was
able to use on-board spares, completing
the repair “in just a couple of hours.”
Having started the Loop the wrong way,
Clair de Lune has set sights on doing it
the “right way,” closing their loop with a
trip up the East Coast of the U.S. and into
the Hudson River at New York Harbor.
Upriver they can catch the Erie Canal and
start working their way back to Lake
Superior. First of course comes the winter
in the Caribbean. For snowbound sailors
that is a delightful thought.
“Off the water, we have had fun also
since leaving your area,” wrote Edd and
Judi. “We flew to Anchorage with our
daughter and her family and visited our
son and his family for a week. Then
returned to our daughter’s home in Iowa
for another week of grand parenting. In
Alaska, we had all three grandkids there
for a week. Very special.
“That’s all our excitement for now.
More to come.”
Cyndi Perkins and husband Scott,
Houghton County Harbormaster, have
been sailing Lake Superior for 14 years
and have completed two 6,000-mile passages
of America’s Great Circle Loop
aboard their 32-foot DownEaster Chip
Ahoy. Opinions expressed by the author
are solely hers and not necessarily the
opinion of Northern Breezes magazine.
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