Pentwater, MI and a bold change of plans

June 20th, 2024

But this point in our journey, we had begun to think about our upcoming trip to Knoxville Tennessee for a family get together over the July 4 holiday. Long range weather forecasts were not particularly encouraging for our planned transit from Frankfurt, Michigan, across Lake Michigan to Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. However, an earlier weather window which appeared favorable was available. We decided to skip Muskegon, White Harbor, and Frankfurt, and instead stage our lake crossing from Pentwater. On the day of our departure from Grand Haven to Pentwater, the weather predictions look great, and initially the water was glassy. However, as we proceeded north, the waves began to build and by the time we reach the Pentwater Inlet, we were dealing with 2 to 3 foot waves regularly and occasional waves which were larger off the port beam. It was slightly uncomfortable, and entirely unanticipated. Pentwater is located on a really nice protected bay with a small town adjacent. We tied up to some floating metal docks which were slightly questionable but served the purpose. We explored the town which was mostly gift shops, although we did discover an exceptional Italian market immediately next to the marina where we went crazy provisioning.