Night Crossing

by Nancy R. Saint

NO NEWS, our Nor’Sea 27, departed harbor at 2:10 pm on Tuesday onto a beautiful blue Lake Michigan. The winds were perfect for the full jib and reefed main at 12-15 kn. A slight haze made the Chicago skyscrapers appear fictitious as we headed across the lake.

It was hot back in Jackson Park harbor, but as usual, it was "cooler on the lake". Our destination was Holland Michigan, 86 nautical miles away at a heading of 52 degrees. The south east wind made this beat very comfortable with waves of only 1 foot. If we could average 4 knots in our heavy displacement 27’ sailboat, we would arrive at the Macatawa Bay Yacht Club about 12 noon local time.

The last 3 weekends, we had worked on the installation of a Monitor self steering wind vane. The shiny stainless steel apparatus had 4 arms that had to be secured to the hull with 4 bolts each. Drilling 16 holes in your boat is not easy. Now it was time for a test drive. Once we had the sails set, we hooked the center link of the wind vanes control line chain to the tiller and turned the vane so it was pointing into the wind. It sailed the boat for hours without complaints nor requests for food or beer.

The watch system that works for my husband, Gale and I, is 3 hours on and 3 off. My watch started with 2-5 pm. At that point, it was similar to going for an enjoyable afternoon daysail. The weather reports included a possible afternoon thunder shower and then another chance for thunder showers on Wednesday morning as a low front was meeting a high. Shorts and T-shirts were comfortable until the Lake Michigan flies descended upon us. The chatter on VHF channel 16 was not significant, so we sailed on with our own thoughts and plans for our 4 week vacation. Other years, we had just used 2 weeks and had gotten as far as Lake Macatawa and each time, had to head back to Chicago. This time we hoped to start with Holland, MI and head north, maybe as far as Beaver Island.

Gale’s watch from 5-8, gave me time to put together a supper of cold chicken and salad and catch a short nap on the V-birth. Gale had tracked one tanker on the shipping lanes. The setting sun quickly disappeared into the heat haze that covered Chicago and Illinois. Now I was on watch on the big lake with darkness gradually settling in. The damp evening air had sent me below to put on my jeans. The thermometer still showed 71 degrees.

Before Gale had gone below, we had rigged the jack line from the cockpit to the bow and back to the port side of the cockpit. The new inflatable life vests we wore, were very unobtrusive. Each one had a tether to connect it to the jack line, should we have to go forward to the mast while on watch alone.

The stars and planets slowly appeared overhead, but clouds eliminated those to the west. I picked out the constellations I could remember- always starting with the big dipper and the north star, then follow the ark to Arcturus and spy on Spica. Sometimes the stars would flash a red and green light and turn into TWA flight to Miami or San Juan. I wondered if those passengers even realized they were crossing the lake.

I continued to scan the horizon and spotted some twinkling lights in the distance. I’ll have to get the hand compass to check their bearing, I thought. I guess I’ll also get some of the hot tea Gale made before he lay down. The Monitor continued to control the tiller and adjust it ever so slightly with the slight shifts in the wind. The twinkling lights on the horizon are becoming more visible, but the compass bearing has increased, so at least we are not on a collision course. The freighters are well lighted - like "the city of Minneapolis" Gale says, and seem to follow the shipping lanes as marked on the charts.

Gale came on deck before 11 and we watched the freighter slowly disappear to the north over the horizon. We checked our location with the Loran and GPS and marked it on the chart. We were progressing well - just a little above our rhumb line, but the winds were predicted to clock from SE to South. Even after we shook out the reef in the main, we continued along at 4-5 kns.

I headed for the V birth and the cozy down comforter that waited. Sleep came fast but it wasn’t a deep sleep, due to the motion of the boat surfing down the waves. The wind had picked up. At one time I thought the moon was shining through the hatch, but it turned out to be Gale’s flashlight, checking the telltails on the jib. It was time for my 2-5 am watch, so I climbed out, put on my jeans and joined Gale in the cockpit.

"There’s some lightning in the distance up to the north", he reported. It was the kind of lightning that lights up the sky. "Lets put the reef back in the main", I requested, as I knew our Nor’Sea 27 had an oversized main. Our speed remained constant, in spite of the reef. "Call me if you have problems", Gale instructed as he climbed into the V birth I had just vacated. The stars were now all hidden by the clouds.

It was July 2nd, but the lightning show was spectacular enough to top the man made 4th of July fireworks. One branch would start across the sky and then split into hundreds of tiny branches, lighting the entire sky. Occasionally some errant lightning would head straight for the lake. Some thunder rolled, but it was mostly a visual show.

Gale was awakened by the motion of the boat and the light show the Lord was presenting. As he headed to the cockpit, his little toe jammed against some teak trim, and he let out a shriek in pain.

The lightening was getting closer so we started the engine, furled the jib and took down the mainsail. We watched from under the dodger as the engine and the electric autohelm propelled and guided the boat towards Holland. The entire sky would be bright daylight one moment and then pitch black for a few seconds, as the lightening seemed to dance in the sky overhead. The storm passed over quickly and soon we could see the sky getting light in the east as the sun was about to rise. The wind increased and shifted south as predicted. The sails went back up, and the wind vane was put back into action. At 9:10 am we motored to the transient dock at Macatawa Bay Yacht Club. The 86 mile trip across the lake was covered in 19 hours for an average speed of 4.5 knots and included a free inspiring light show.

An X-ray of Gale’s foot 3 months later for a bunion problem, revealed that he had indeed broken his toe sometime in the recent past. The doctor showed him how it had shattered the bone, but had healed very well. I guess the pain that Gale felt that evening as he stubbed his toe on the boat was legitimate.

With the help of the wind vane for steering, and a light show from the Lord, it had been a great crossing and an exhilarating way to begin a 4 week cruise of Lake Michigan and the many fascinating ports on both sides of the lake.

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