South Manitou Island Lighthouse (Watercolor by Hether Hoffman)
Eight intrepid souls--Pat Lutsch, Hether Hoffman, Tom Heineman, Russ Johnson, Jennifer Ochsner, Dave Kaknes, Jeanie Kaknes, and I--spent a pleasant but somewhat challenging few days paddling the Manitou Islands of Lake Michigan. We had rain every day, high winds and small craft advisories that stranded the group for an extra day on the islands, unorthodox campsites, and a very good time. As Pat Lutsch summed up the trip, it was "the best trip from hell I ever had."
Sunset Over Sand Dunes Curling Like Waves
North Manitou Island and South Manitou Island are substantial islands located 8-10 miles off the mainland near Empire, Michigan, which is located about 25 miles west of Traverse City, Michigan and about 300 miles from Chicago. The islands are off the Leelanau Peninsula and part of Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. The islands form part of the Manitou Passage, a shortcut for ships running from the Straits of Mackinac to the Chicago area. Chart 14912 includes the islands and the Passage. As we learned, the islands are quite exposed, especially to winds from just about every direction except the east. The nearest buoy is the Northern Lake Michigan Buoy, No. 45002.
Both islands are served by a ferry that transports kayaks. Camping is at designated campsites only on South Manitou. On North Manitou there is a designated campsite near the ferry launch, but wilderness camping is allowed elsewhere.
The area is filled with high, steep sand dunes that dwarf those at the Indiana Dunes.
Sand Dune. The Tiny Dots Near The Center Are People
The beaches are mostly sandy, although there are plenty of boulders to keep things interesting for a paddler. The islands and much of the mainland is forested. (See photo sets for North and South Manitou.) There are no bears on the islands but plenty of wildlife. While we were warned about voracious raccoons and chipmunks we had no problems with either. Bugs were manageable with bug spray.
Deer
There are plenty of wrecks. While we heard and saw freighters barreling down the Manitou Passage with some frequency, there were few pleasure boats (perhaps because of the weather) and we didn't see other kayaks the whole time.
The inspiration for the trip came from a trip report Dave Kaknes had published recounting a trip that he and Tom Heineman and their wives had made to South Manitou in 2002. I also had heard from other sources that the Manitous rivaled the Apostle Islands for beauty, had more camping options and fewer people. We prepared for the trip by setting up a Yahoo Group, Manitou 2009, and most of the trip planning process was handled pretty efficiently via group emails.
The Chicagoans drove up on Friday. We stayed at the R&R Motel in Frankfort, Michigan. It offered cheap, clean accommodations and a nice shade tree under which we practice packed our boats. (The motel and attached house are for sale if anyone wants to chuck the city life.) Pat and I drove up to the National Lakeshore office in Empire, Michigan and picked up the necessary permits. Total cost for 3 night on the islands plus parking spaces at the launch site was under $10 per person.
Frankfort and its neighboring town of Elberta are well situated on a nice harbor surrounded by wooded hills. Nearby is the Point Betsie Lighthouse. We assembled for dinner at the Cabbage Shed Restaurant, where Russ and Jen joined us. They had been camping the area for a couple of days. Our trip planning consisted primarily of figuring out where and when to have breakfast the next morning. Our plan was to be at the launch site, which is about an hour north of Frankfort, in time to drive up and catch the morning ferry out of Leland, Michigan if conditions made paddling the 8 miles over to South Manitou impractical.
Saturday turned out to be a nice day. We assembled at the Cannery in Glen Haven. The Cannery is part of a park complex of restored buildings from the days when the area was a fishing, forestry and recreation center. The Cannery has been transformed into a museum of historic boats used in the area.
The Cannery
We parked our cars for the duration of the trip in the Cannery parking lot using the permits we had secured from the Park Service. The beach was quite close, which made loading the boats relatively easy. While we were mostly focused on packing, I'm sure we all had thoughts about the coming 8 mile crossing. What if freighters overtook us in the shipping channel? What if someone got sick or a boat started to sink? What if a storm blew up? I reminded myself that this crossing was akin to a trip from Montrose Beach to Navy Pier and back, which helped a bit. But an open water crossing is of a different character than a shoreline cruise. I was glad that we took this crossing; indeed, all crossings, seriously.
Contemplating the Crossing
The crossing over to South Manitou turned out to be pleasant and uneventful. We made the trip in about 2.5 hours, helped by a favorable breeze at our back.
The Crossing to South Manitou
We took at long break at the South Manitou Lighthouse complex and had an early lunch on the dock.
South Manitou Island Lighthouse
South Manitou Station
From there, we paddled another 4-5 miles over to the west side of North Manitou Island.
Approaching West Side of North Manitou
After about a half hour searching for the perfect camping spot we settled on a large field that once had been Fredrickson's Place, one of the farms on the island. (Interactive map here.)
Campsite Area
View from Bluff near Campsite. South Manitou Island in Background
This spot was well situated to allow for day trips back to South Manitou and around North Manitou. I pitched my new Nemo GoGo Ex tent and it served me well all weekend. It is a long tent/bivy. It is too low to sit up in, but its 7 inch by 7 inch size when packed is just perfect for kayak camping. It uses an inflatable bladder rather than tent poles for internal support, which eliminates a fair measure of fiddling during set up.
Nemo GoGo Ex Tent
We set up a big tarp for cooking and socializing and that was key for making this trip such a success. It was great to gather under the tarp a couple times a day to cook and discuss, often with the rain drumming down on the fabric. Tom Heineman got a real-life introduction to the five-second kitchen rule--a rule of which he implausibly claimed no familiarity--when a pot of pasta tipped over and there was a scramble by several hungry folks bearing forks and spoons to get the pasta off the grass and on their plates.
The weather turned Saturday night. Rainy weather and winds arrived and stayed with us the rest of the trip. By Sunday morning the lake was choppy and it was windy. The skies cleared for a period during the day. One group paddled around the south side of the island up to the North Manitou settlement and ferry launch. This group had to navigate some interesting waters around the points on the south side of the island, which featured boulders, shallow water and plenty of breaking waves. On the east side of West Manitou they found long curving beaches.
Another group hiked the trails threading around the island, exploring the remains of various homesteads and community life and death (e.g., overgrown cemeteries).
Abandoned Homestead
Monday was much rougher, with lots of whitecaps, brisk winds, and open water forecasts of 6-8 foot waves. Dave and Jeanie had planned to leave that day, but paddling the 11 miles back to the mainland was out of the question in these conditions. Russ, Hether, Tom and I did venture out into the waves to play around. This was no Montrose Beach playground. Instead of row after row of spilling waves, the water at our beach reared up and there was a single dumping wave. We spent a fair amount of time trying to identify little seams in the shore break that we might exploit.
Russ and I pushed on to the northwest tip of the island. It was one of those memorable paddles that required alert paddling. While generally sandy, the coast had plenty of barely submerged boulders. The water was shallow up to roughly a quarter mile out, which meant that, unlike where we camped, there was an extended and quite unpredictable surf zone. It was rainy and at times my glasses fogged up and I was paddling nearly blind.
West Manitou From the Water (By Hether Hoffman)
We threaded our way north through the surf zone, occasionally getting whacked by a breaker but much more often just missing the breaking waves by adjusting speed and angles. The going was slow as we had a strong wind and waves at our front left quarter. On the way back we choose to paddle out of the surf zone, although once Russ got caught by a breaker that spun him around 360 degrees before it let him go. We arrived back at our campsite a bit tired and very happy. It was a "peak experience" paddle to file away in the greatest hits box. (Thanks Russ.)
It was good that all of us had packed extra provisions. The forecast Monday night was grim. High winds, rain showers and 6-8 foot waves were forecast to continue into Wednesday. Temperatures were to drop and hit record lows by Tuesday night. It looked like our plan to get back to the mainland on Tuesday and head back to Chicago was a pipe dream. We started contemplating what we would have to do to stretch our provisions until as late as Thursday.
Fortunately, we were able to keep our "support team" back in Chicago informed. The islands have spotty cellphone coverage so were were able to call and email. It was delightful to email back to the office the message "stranded on island by high winds/waves, return date unknown." They don't get those kind of messages every day. In addition, we sent regular "ok" messages on our SPOT device. The last thing we wanted was to be rescued when were were warm, relatively dry and enjoying ourselves on a picturesque wooded island with lots of history.
Over dinner we developed a plan under which we would paddle around the side south of the island on Tuesday and camp near the ferry launch on the east side. On Wednesday we would take the ferry back to the mainland, some of us would hitchhike back to our cars, and then we would proceed home. The complicated logistics would make for a long day.
We could hear the pounding surf Monday night and when we awoke Tuesday morning. Indeed, we later learned that conditions were such that the ferries canceled their island service that day. By mid-morning, however, conditions seemed to be improving. We adjusted our plans such that Russ, Jen and I would paddle back to the mainland and ferry two cars to Leland. Russ and Jen would then head back home and I would meet the group Wednesday morning at the ferry.
The paddle back to the mainland was a blast. The waves were swells rather than breakers for the most part. The mainland, with features such as the Sleeping Bear Dune and Pyramid Point, was nice to look at. There is always a certain thrill that comes from being in a small boat in big water miles from shore in uncertain conditions. I prolonged that thrill for a bit when I slipped out of my boat to offload some coffee. There I was, hanging in the water suspended between two kayaks, in the middle of a shipping passage, 5 miles from the nearest shore with the swells pushing us up to a nice view and then plunging us down between the walls of water. I was happy as a clam. Fortunately, conditions continued to moderate during the 3.5 hour crossing such that we hardly had a surf landing by the time we reached the Cannery.
We hurried to pack up and get to Leland as Russ and Jen wanted to try to catch the 8 p.m. ferry from Ludington, Michigan to Manitowoc, Wisconsin, which they ultimately did with all of 10 minutes to spare. I got some essentials in Leland such as beer, smoked fish, fresh bread and fresh fruit, and then set up a guerrilla camp in a patch of land a few miles from town. All night I was expecting the local sheriff to bust me.
The rest of the group successfully navigated around the points at the south end of the island and made it to the North Manitou settlement. They camped in the group campground, enjoyed some of the amenities of civilization such as running water, and provided a dash of grizzled experience to the Boy Scouts who joined them around the communal campfire with the park ranger.
Wednesday morning opened with a steady rain so we all had to pack up our gear wet. I stopped in the Stone House Bread Cafe and got a bag of biscotti for the rest of the crew and then hung out in Leland around the ferry slip until the ferry was ready to leave.
The ferry ride out to the island was chilly and bumpy but a heck of a lot easier than paddling. I was a bit anxious, hoping that everything had gone according to plan and they were all safe. When I saw five kayaks lined up on the pier I could relax.
Kayaks Lined Up At Ferry Slip
The crew of the ferry was very accommodating and didn't complain at all about having to lug the kayaks.
Ferry with Kayaks
The ferry was quite crowded, presumably because it had not run the day before and thus was carrying a double load. I noticed that our group was bright and alert, while the backpackers tended to be glassy eyed and several feel asleep. This was yet another demonstration to me of how kayak camping--where the boat rather than your back carries the gear--is so much more fun than backpacking.
Hether Hoffman & Tom Heineman Bright-Eyed On Ferry
Upon landing we stopped back at the Stone House Bread Cafe for lunch and then went our separate ways back to Chicago. I was riding with Pat, who had helped organize the trip and continued to amaze us with all the cool things she packs into her boat (e.g., "would you like to use my folding table"). We took the time to visit the Sleeping Bear Point Coast Guard Station Maritime Museum, which has a proud history of rescuing people from sinking boats and boats stranded on the numerous shoals in the Manitou Passage. We also took the scenic drive to the top of the Sleeping Bear Dunes and enjoyed the 360 degree panorama. Both were well worth the time.
View of Land Side of Dunes at Sunset
After that it was the long drive back to Chicago, punctuated by a stop at the Pita Place in Muskegon, which is located close to the main road and is a nice alternative to the standard fast food options. The trip back provided a good opportunity to reflect on the trip. It was great to be with and learn from the experienced paddlers and campers who made up our group. The area was great for paddling and hiking and had much of geological and historical interest. Indeed, Tom Heineman indicated that the Manitou Islands area was part of his favorite stretch of paddling during his Lake Michigan circumnavigation.
Roughly six hours from Chicago, the Sleeping Bear Dunes area is easier to access than many of the places typically patronized by Chicago area paddlers (e.g., Apostle Islands). Kayaking appears to be much less established in the area than in Lake Superior or northern Wisconsin. With the ferry and a variety of working port towns, the area provides a good support network for paddling.
Typical North Manitou Shoreline
There is much more to explore. The weather conditions prevented us from visiting the big shipwreck and the even bigger dunes on South Manitou. In addition, the Manitou Islands are at the south end of the archipelago of islands that run northeastward up to and beyond Beaver Island. Beaver Island is the largest island in Lake Michigan and was once the home of a self-described "empire" run by a Mormon sect known as the Strangites, which sounds like a great name for a punk band. An ambitious trip would be to paddle from North Manitou Island to South Fox Island, 18 miles away, and from there to North Fox Island and on to Beaver Island. South Fox Island is reported to be very beautiful. Two-thirds of the island is privately owned and there is a mysterious mile long airstrip on the island. North Fox Island is state-owned and undeveloped. The coast of the Leelanau Pensinsula is also worthy of paddling.
Leelanau Coastline
This trip, however, spanned only five days on the water (June 27 - July 1) but it seemed very eventful. With the good company, challenging conditions and the scenic area, it is a trip that I will cherish.
Photos: Hether Hoffman & Tom Bamonte
Text: Tom Bamonte
