Manistee

Manistee had not been on our list but around midnight at anchor in Sleeping Bear we got phantom waves rocking the boat so hard that it woke us up and they did not subside until about 4am—there was no wind or boat traffic so somewhere on Lake Michigan was a storm or something.  Anyway we learned a lesson- you don’t want to anchor right on the Lake.  Most of the marinas or anchorages are at the end of canals and usually connect to an inland lake —I guess Lake Michigan’s unpredictability is the reason.  Manistee got us another 40 miles down the creek and in port by 4 pm so we could take a nap.  We met Loopers Werner and Kathie aboard Its About Time and had docktails then to The Ramsdell Inn and TJ’s Pub for dinner.  This neat little town has an ice cream place called House of Flavors where you can buy a 13 scoop sundae for less than 10 dollars—yum.  But the biggest attraction (at least for Fitz) has been the huge 6 story freighters that come right down the canal and through the bridges and turns to transport cargo to the industrial plants on the lake.  So far there has been 1 a day and draw all the children and men of the community and boats to the Riverwalk to gawk and take pictures.  Us girls like it too but really…. Report from Facebook was that we missed a great party at the Knoxville Reunion—we will see them in 5 years. 

The Buffalo was an awesome sight

Sunny Days docked along the Riverwalk--Nashville should take notes this runs a couple of miles along the canal

If you look real hard you see The Buffalo making the turn at the end of the canal to go into Lake Michigan

The Ramsdale Inn has 8 suites and TJ's Pub in the corner

River Street with Restaurants and neat shops