• betty staugler
  • betty staugler

Molly’s Great American Loop

We’re Betty & James, along with Luna cat and Moki dog we are cruising America’s Great Loop aboard our boat the Molly Brown. She is a 24’ C-Dory TomCat. We expect it will take us 8 or so months to complete 😀. Meer informatie
  • DeTour day two

    30 augustus 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☁️ 70 °F

    We were going to leave late this morning but it was very windy and after getting reports from Bernie who did leave we changed our mind. He did too and is back here at the marina. So After work Moki and I walked to the Botanical Garden. Very nice and worth the visit. On the way back we swung by the ferry landing where there’s a maritime museum. Moki and I have walked enough that people are starting to recognize us. Tonight winds have laid down and it’s very calm. Heading out tomorrow.Meer informatie

  • Carp River

    31 augustus 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☀️ 63 °F

    50 miles today and some of it was down right rough. The animals were not happy. We left this morning around 8am and first headed across northern Lake Huron to Les Chêneaux a group of islands near Hessel one of which has a large nature preserve with trails (Aldo Léopold). Apparently growing up Aldo’s family had a summer cottage on the island. Moki and I hiked around 2.5 miles. Parts of the trail were really nice, some way overgrown and lots of poison ivy. Hoping we avoided it all. When we got back to the boat winds were already noticeably stronger. We did another 15 sporty miles to Carp River which has nice protection. It’s within the Hiawatha National Forest and is a National Wild and Scenic River. Moki and I did a short kayak paddle up to some rapids and then turned around. We later saw several groups of kayakers who had portaged across the rapids. May have to try that tomorrow. Winds are supposed to be NW 15-25 with gusts to 30 tomorrow and there’s a small craft advisory (there was for the second leg today too ) so we’re here till Monday. Carp River is 22 miles long and the rapids we encountered are apparently the only rapids on it. Beyond that there’s a kayak launch and a very busy fishing pier. The road in is nice for dog walking.Meer informatie

  • Carp River day two

    1 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ⛅ 63 °F

    It was some kind of windy today. James and Luna had a down day on the boat while Moki and I had quite the kayak adventure paddling up and back down the river. We are not sure what is meant by “this is the only patch of rapids” because we traversed four sets of rapids before deciding to turn around and head back downstream. All good fun! This afternoon we got a “wellness check” phone call and visit from the St. Ignace police 👮. We don’t know how they got my cell number but the officer on the phone knew my name and asked if I was related to James (the registered boat owner). He said someone called for the wellness check… We said all is well, hung up and then noticed two officers at the fishing pier looking out. Assured them we were ok too. This was a first for us. We assume the locals aren’t used to seeing a boat at anchor in this river. Winds have already died down considerably. Getting down to 46 degrees tonight 🥶. Tomorrow we are headed to Mackinaw City.Meer informatie

  • Mackinaw City

    2 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☀️ 61 °F

    We’re in Mackinaw City so that I can take the bus tomorrow to Pellston Airport. This will be a short trip. Just a one day meeting in Toledo on Wednesday and then back on Thursday. Mackinaw City was crazy busy when we arrived. Labor Day is the annual Bridge walk over I-75 to U.P. Michigan. A regular season day is 6000 people but the annual walk draws as many as 100,000. They even close the bridge to boat traffic (a 9/11 thing). It quieted down in the afternoon. This is a pretty touristy place regardless . Good that we’re here at the end of the season. There are four ferries that do nonstop runs between here and Mackinac Island all day from this Marina.Meer informatie

  • Mackinaw City day something

    6 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☀️ 54 °F

    I returned from Toledo yesterday and had good intentions of taking pictures today but … regardless I had a good meeting in Toledo and my presentation was well received. This trip was pretty uneventful despite having to navigate the bus, air travel, Uber and a shuttle bus. Pellston airport has got to be the cutest airport ever! Today I met up with loopers Donna and John who we hadn’t seen since Waterford NY. They are in the other marina. A few minute walk. We had a nice visit. We also enjoyed dinner with loopers David and Norma here in the marina aboard their boat. She cooked stew which was perfect! It is really chilly. Temps in the 50 but very windy. We are likely here till Monday. Pic collage from the last few days.Meer informatie

  • Mackinaw City day six

    7 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☀️ 46 °F

    Today was the 16th Annual Mackinac Bridge Antique Tractor Crossing. It was estimated 1500 tractors participated with the parade of tractors starting in Mackinaw City at 8:30 crossing the bridge and ending in St Ignace. It took until 12:30 to get all the tractors to the bridge which is another 5 miles long. Moki and I watched them from several spots on our morning run… which was cold and windy. I don’t know why I thought we needed to run so early 🤦🏼‍♀️. This afternoon we hit up the tasting rooms and picked up some wine and whisky.. two different vineyards and a distillery… all from the region. Supposed to be ten degrees warmer tomorrow (68 predicted) but still windy. Still hoping to leave on Monday.Meer informatie

  • Mackinaw City day seven

    8 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ⛅ 54 °F

    We are ready to head out tomorrow! Oil is changed (motors and generator), shopping done, laundry mostly done ✔️… tomorrow morning we will fuel up on our way out. Today was still pretty windy but the sun was out and it was noticeably warmer. Winds should lay down overnight. Moki and I ran on the N Central State Trail this morning. It’s a rail-to-trail and wooded. Very pretty. We saw two deer… or maybe the same deer twice. There are hiking trails off the main trail but we didn’t check them out…Although I was tempted. We also saw a guy on a bike.. and that was it. Made for a nice morning. I should mention this area is known for fudge. There are lots of stores where you can watch it being made and buy some. Neither of us are fudge eaters though so no temptation there. But I took pictures because it is pretty cool 👍Meer informatie

  • Charlevoix

    9 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ 🌙 64 °F

    We went 53 miles today! It was pretty rough going west across the top of the lake but once we turned the corner to head south it was noticeably better. When we headed out today we really didn’t have a firm game plan. Started out maybe going to Beaver Island.. or better yet Garden Island with better protection but that was more west and south was better. So then we discussed Petoskey, and then Harbor Springs which was shorter. But then after calculating the distance Charlevoix was only 3 more miles without having to go east so we’re actually a fair bit further south. This is a super cute town and much less touristy. Nice downtown right on the water. Tonight Moki and I stumbled upon a concert at the library. It was the last one of a summer series. They played everything from Jethro Tull to the theme song of Charlie Brown. It was fun. Charlevoix is also home to around 20 mushroom houses. May try to squeeze finding some in before we leave.Meer informatie

  • Leland

    10 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☁️ 70 °F

    We are inching our way down Lake Michigan. Today we traveled 38 miles most of which was fine but crossing Traverse Bay was pretty sporty. Moki slept and Luna never left her seat so that’s a good sign. We are in Leland Municipal Marina until Thursday as tomorrow will be pretty windy. Leland has a small downtown and a Commercial Fishing District… one of the last remaining on Lake Michigan. There’s also beach on either side.Meer informatie

  • Leland day two

    10 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☀️ 70 °F

    Today was a down day for the most part. I got allot of work done and James worked on the stove which has been acting up. He thinks he figured it out… maybe got some biodiesel by mistake. Moki and I ran across a group of deer this morning… 6 total. This evening he got to play with his new best friend Ash a red Merle Aussie. Ash’s humans live in a van and are traveling thru Leland as well. We plan to leave early tomorrow to take advantage of the winds.Meer informatie

  • Frankford

    12 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☀️ 64 °F

    We did 40 miles today with a stop midway so Moki and I could climb Pyramid Point Dunes. What a workout! There is a way to tire a crazy Aussie!! Seas today were the nicest there been all week. Fingers crossed tomorrow will be nice too 🤞. We are now at the Frankford City Marina which has a great view of the bay. Very nice downtown and a multiuser trail right outside boat that goes for several miles. It also goes to the lake which has a nice beach. We walked there tonight after getting our ice-cream. Oh and we hit 4000 miles yesterday!!Meer informatie

  • Ludington

    13 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☁️ 70 °F

    Today we had a really nice cruise to Ludington 53 miles. Seas were the calmest they’ve been on Lake Michigan. On the way we stopped at Nordhouse Dunes which are just amazing!! The dunes weren’t as high as yesterday but the extent was huge and the sand squeaked. Ludington is about the size of Punta Gorda. Fridays from 3-7pm is the farmers market and from 6-8pm live music. We are here for two days.Meer informatie

  • Ludington day 2

    14 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F

    Today was a 4D… Domestic Duty Down Day. Groceries are bought, laundry is done, boat is clean… relative to living on it for six months with a dog and cat. Today we also got a visit from our neighbor Shelly and her boyfriend Mark. Always great to see our friends and learn what’s happening in the hood. Moki and I got a couple nice walks in today and found more sculptures along the sculpture trail. Such a cool idea.Meer informatie

  • Muskegon

    15 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☁️ 73 °F

    Today was a 55 mile day… most of which was on plane. After spending a few nights in marinas we are happy to be on the hook tonight. We are anchored off Muskegon State Park just inside Muskegon Lake. It’s pretty rolly with all the boat traffic but all day boaters so settling down for the evening. There’s some big dunes here and miles of hiking trails. Moki and I got a little over 3.5 miles in. Very pretty wooded trails. This evening we hiked up the dunes for fun.Meer informatie

  • Saugatuck

    16 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☀️ 77 °F

    We made it to Saugatuck today with great anticipation of meeting C-Dory friends Lee and Jan. They live not too far away and drove over. We enjoyed a great dinner and conversation with them and then walked around downtown. We are staying at Sergeant Marina which is right downtown. There are several loppers here. One of them got his degree in French from the University of Florida years ago but is still fluent so James got to parle français tonight. Beyond that it was a pretty busy work day for me so less pictures tonight.Meer informatie

  • Kalamazoo River

    17 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☀️ 75 °F

    We went a whole two miles today! It was a busy work day for me so we left the dock late and dropped anchor in a nice little basin right before exiting into Lake Michigan. There’s a sandy beach and dunes here. When we arrived it was just us but then another looper we know anchored and around five lots of boats arrived… all day boaters and all gone now… except our looper friends.Meer informatie

  • South Haven

    18 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F

    Today was not at all as planned. We were headed to Benton Harbor about 20 miles further but I suddenly got nauseous. It was not at all rough but I was hard at work and suspect the little bouncing while I was focused on my laptop was enough. Hopefully first and last time for that. So anyways we came in for a break around lunchtime and decided to stay. We are at the South Haven Harbor Marina and there’s a ton of loopers here. They did dock tails. Went towards the end when folks started leaving the boaters lounge and congregating outside. This week has been busy busy work wise and I just wasn’t into being social. But South Haven has a nice downtown with lots of art around town and I did enjoy a stroll thru it.Meer informatie

  • South Haven day two

    19 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☁️ 73 °F

    Deadlines, deadlines!! I had a busy day meeting a work deadline so we are here another day. All good… deadline was met… although more to come. Not many pictures today since I was face planted in my laptop but this evening’s sunset was quite nice. Tomorrow we are leaving early. *Added a few more pics from our morning walk before l leaving.Meer informatie

  • Welcome to Indiana !

    20 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ 🌙 72 °F

    Yes… the bottom sliver of Lake Michigan is in Indiana and tonight Michigan City Indiana is where we’ll be resting our heads. We had a surprisingly enjoyable cruise down the Lake getting here today and I say surprisingly because it was already pretty windy when we got up this morning… we had two outs if it was too rough but ultimately didn’t need them. Michigan City is definitely not touristy which is fine but also not really the most enjoyable. Not super walkable. All good though and we are only here one night. Today we also crossed time zones… getting dark at 7pm 😩. I’m not going to like that! Today’s log puts us at 60 miles and 4265 for the trip. Tomorrow early we are headed to the Windy City.Meer informatie

  • Welcome to Illinois !!

    21 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☁️ 64 °F

    We were up early this morning… still functioning on eastern time… and on the go before the sun rose. We enjoyed our smoothest crossing of Lake Michigan… barely a ripple and arrived at the Chicago Harbor lock at 8:15. Smooth and quick lock through and made our way thru downtown Chicago. Getting there early made for an enjoyable cruise as hardly anyone was on the water. Navigating the Sanitary and Ship Canal was painless too as it was Saturday and very little activity. Our second lock though… wow! Let’s hope for no more of that. We were in the front with a barge beside us who had his engines in reverse to keep him from getting dragged forward… but we got all the prop wash and it was hard to stay on the wall even before they started letting water out… which was a long time as we waited on four boats to arrive. This lock dropped 40’ which also took a long time. Our two Chicago locks brings us to 134 locks completed so far this trip. We are now on the Joliet Free Wall with nine other loopers. Enjoyed dock tails with half of them. Five arrived later. We’re now looking forward to a good nights rest. Supposed to rain tomorrow so we may stay here… but one never knows 🤷🏼‍♀️. 82 miles today. It also got up to 92 degrees!!Meer informatie

  • Sugar Island

    22 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F

    Playing catch-up since I flaked out yesterday. We had a decent night on the Joliet Wall without too much rocking. It rained but not as bad as predicted … and knowing 5 more boats were coming to the free wall we decided to slow cruise. Both locks we went thru we had to wait on barges and each time when they were ready for us the sky opened up and rained and then as soon as we left it stopped. Oh well. We didn’t melt. We did however find a nice anchorage at Sugar Island along the Illinois River. Just enough dry shoreline for the obligatory pup walks and good protection from wakes.Meer informatie

  • Ottawa

    23 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☁️ 70 °F

    We did another couple locks today and have landed on the free dock in Ottawa. This dock has 30 amp power but the dock is a little rough. We made it work… or should I say James did. This afternoon while I worked James biked to the grocery store. After work Moki and I checked out downtown. It’s cute. Lots of history here. This is where Lincoln’s historic debate with Douglas occurred in 1858. Lincoln was also a frequent visitor.Meer informatie

  • Ottawa day 2

    24 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ 🌧 61 °F

    Today’s theme was rain rain rain and work work work! Not allot of sightseeing today but while I worked James and the animals were entertained by commercial carp fishers who set nets right out from our boat. They have an interesting way of corralling fish by revving their motors and throwing rooster tails i guess to push the fish towards the net. Today’s high was 67 with no sun so it felt pretty cool. We are definitely seeing signs of fall with hints of color change and leaves dropping. We plan on moving tomorrow but if ours plans pan out it won’t be far.Meer informatie

  • Starved Rock State Park

    25 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☀️ 73 °F

    We traveled a whole eight miles today and traversed one more lock. We initially were planning to go 5-miles to Buffalo Rock State Park but then realized we’d have to scale a bluff to get access to it 🧗 … um no. But right at the lock is another State Park and this one has good access… although there’s considerable current from the lock dam. Honestly this is one of the coolest parks we’ve visited. It was Illinois second state park, established in 1911. The park has 18 canyons with moss-covered St.Peter Sandstone formed by glacial meltwater. There’s several waterfalls… and it’s a beautiful hike. Moki and I did just over 4 miles. We are at anchor tonight with a view of the main river but tucked behind an island for protection from wakes.Meer informatie

  • Peoria

    26 september 2024, Verenigde Staten ⋅ ☀️ 54 °F

    This morning’s fog! Holy smokes!! We got socked in!! Ran with all the lights on.. including the spot light. Just about the time we were thinking about finding a place to pull off it of course let up. Once the fog let up It was nice weather wise today but we are expecting allot of wind tomorrow. As such we bumped up our Marina plans and traveled 75 miles to make it to Peoria. We are at the Peoria Boat club. Everyone here is very nice. And there’s eight other loopers here. There’s a Riverwalk trail right outside the Marina that leads to downtown. Moki and I explored but it was hot. Two hours later for dock tails there was a noticeable drop in temp. We are here at least two nights but probably three. Power, water, showers and Free laundry.Meer informatie