May 22-June 9, 2009, Charlevoix, MI
We are back aboard KOKOMO II as of May 22, 2009.
We took almost two weeks driving from Florida, spending several days with John and Julie, Christopher, Jack, Ryan, Tommy, Gracie and Mia, in Hickory, NC.
Julie and John have a new addition to their home consisting of a family room, dining room and screened in porch and a home office for John. The addition is complete and we all planted a few shrubs around the new foundation to match the rest of the house. 
Linda spent lots of time in the backyard where the children used the swing set and played sports and where Julie's summer vegetable and flower garden is well underway. We enjoyed being with everyone and participating in their busy family life. 
Our next stop was to visit Rick and Kathy in Grosse Pointe, Michigan. We got to see Jenny and Andy and their new baby, Luke. What a cute little chunk. Everyone is busy and happy. We took a trip with Rick and Kathy to "The Henry Ford" and had a tour of the "Rouge" Ford manufacturing plant where we watched the assembly line in action where workers make Ford 150 trucks. Fabulous plant tour. Makes me want to buy a pickup! 
We arrived in Charlevoix and found KOKOMO II at Bergmann's Marine, already out of the heated barn and ready to be launched. The yard work was complete (bottom paint, new stabilizers)and we installed the propellers from Florida and the boat looks ready for another summer. She was launched at the public boat ramp, using a large hydraulic trailer, just like you might launch a much smaller boat. I was a little apprehensive but they do this all the time. Our launch went without a hitch.
Now that we are back aboard the boat full time, we have checked out the systems on the boat one by one before getting underway and found several that needed attention. As the boat is self contained, we spent a very busy week provisioning and getting things 'ship shape'.
My cousin Chris Branch, lives nearby in Boyne City, and we were able to see Chris and Russ several times while we were here. We had another great dinner at the Bay Harbor Yacht Club and planned some time together later this summer with grandchildren. They let us borrow their car again this year. The car made some distant sightseeing possible and our shopping easy. Thanks a million.
Our marina in Charlevoix, Michigan is located right in the middle of this delightful town. The marina is brand new and has great new showers, laundry, and internet in the lounge but not broadcast to the slips. (I am writing this from the lounge). Temperatures are generally 55-65 degrees during the day (very comfortable if the sun is out) and goes down to the 40's overnight. The leaves are just coming out on the trees and spring is underway although it got down to 32 degrees last night. Summer is not here as yet. We are seeing lots of people wearing shorts with jackets. Summer is said to arrive in July. Still, the cooler weather is a nice change from Florida.
We have a 'tall ship' the DENIS SULLIVAN that is berthed next to us in the marina here. We were aboard this boat last winter in Florida where it was spending time at the Florida Oceanographic Institute in Ft Pierce. The DENIS SULLIVAN is now on its way back to their home port of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
The town of Charlevoix is special. There are plenty of restaurants, shops, a movie theater, a grocery store and a drugstore all within walking distance of our marina. This town has a year round population of 3,000 and a summer population of up to 30,000. Some tourists now with lots of tourists expected later in the summer.
We drove around and saw some more of the homes that the builder, Earl Young, built in the 1920's. A subdivision, 'the Boulders', has some of his homes that were built with large boulders that are still wonderful to enjoy from the street. He designed and built the 'mushroom houses' we were photographing on our visit last fall. Drove by those again. Remarkable.
Our plan is to move to our next location with good weather. Wind blowing today so staying in port for now. This is a very nice place to be for a while awaiting the good weather.
Chris and Russ have offerred us the use of their car while the are in Canada fishing. So....we have decided to stay several more days in Charlevoix. We are enjoying our proximity to Charlevoix with it's stores and restaurants close by and find that it is really a wonderful town to spend some time. The weather has been cool but pleasant and everything on the boat is ship shape.
Temperatures are in the 30's overnight and mid 50s during the day. Our view of the water from the boat in the marina is spectacular as we are on an outside slip with a full view of Round Lake. This beats travelling for now. We are content to stay awaile in Charlevoix. And we have a car to go sightseeing.
Charlevoix has several very nice public buildings including the hospital, library and City Hall.
Owen had a short visit to the hospital emergency room on Friday as he was having difficulty swollowing. Dr Wendt performed an EGD and everything was back to normal by early afternoon. Eat slower and chew completely were the instructions so we would not have to have this proceedure done again. Owen says he knows to do that and will be more diligent in the future. Great to have the hospital facility here close by and available. Staff very friendly and helpful. Staff says they have one of these a week. 
We made a day trip to Petosky and had breakfast at an old hotel (1890's) now called the Staffords Bay View Inn. This was once the center of social activity of the Bay View Association, a Methodist Church Camp, that evolved into a summer community. The Bay View Association is still active and sponsors Chautauqua programs all summer in the community hall.
There are several good reataurants in Charlevoix. Stafford's Weathervane, Terry's and Grey Gables were all very good. We are eating on the boat whenever the weather is too rainy to head out to dinner. We are well provisioned and Linda has internet access to the cooking channel for recipe's and inspiration.
posted by KOKOMO II @ 11:40 AM
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