Run through Les Chenaux over to Drummond Island

Friday, June 2 -- Hessel to Drummond via Les Chenaux Islands (42 miles)

After we signed in with the high school girl who was running the docks this morning, we headed back to the former Mertaugh Boat Works showroom to buy some coffee and some souvenir merch. It was a good thing that we stopped, because the woman running the place warned us about staying in Detour Village, which was the original plan, as "there is nothing there but an old bar" and steered us instead to the Yacht Haven marina over on the NW shore of Drummond Island. This turned out to be good advice. It is a big, well-run operation with a big laundry, which is just what the Chief Steward ordered. 

We had another calm, clear day, with inland temps in the 80s. We left the marina at Hessel a bit after 10:30 and had a lovely ride through the back-and-forth channels of Les Cheneaux. Lots of beautiful old cottages and high-end boat houses back in these protected waters, plus some downright funky places. 

As you exit the eastern end of Les Chenaux, you pass right by the Port of Dolomite, where they ship out, well, dolomite. It is mined, purified and processed for use by steel makers, most likely. Some time on Google and Wikipedia revealed that this dolomite mine and processing plant and dock are owned by a Belgian company called Carmeus, which specializes in this sort of mineral processing all over the world. The freighter is a tug/barge combination, the barge Menominee being a former self-contained freighter that was built back in the 50s and the tug dating back to the late 20s. Together they can haul 21,000 tons at about 10 mph with a crew of 13. All this per the Rand Logistics website. Check it out. And the Carmeus website. 

 

Our next landmark running along the coast of the underside of the UP was Detour Light. It's not very attractive, but it is very important, as it marks the southern entrance to Detour Passage, which all the ore carriers take going to and from Lake Superior to the lower lakes.

After we rounded Detour Light we headed north up Detour Passage and the fun began. First there was the dolomite dock on the Drummond Island side of Detour Passage, which is also owned by Carmeuse. (It would be interesting to know when the Belgians bought these assets.)

Then came the Detour Passage ferry. One is getting ready to cross and the other is loading or idle. There are about 1,000 year-round residents on Drummond Island and this ferry is the only way to get to the mainland (i.e. the UP)

After the ferry there was a down-bound "salty", the Alamosborg, which is owned by the Royal Wagenborg Line out of The Netherlands. She was built in 2011 in China for general purpose cargo. Again, check out their website.

And finally there was this gorgeous old yacht churning along down-bound in the passage. I'd guess her to be 40s or 50s vintage. A thing of beauty is a joy forever!

We pulled into the Yacht Haven Marina at close to two and had a relaxing afternoon doing laundry, chores and reading. We used the marina's showers, which were fine, but not great, and were definitely using well water laden with iron sulfide. (One could write a thesis on the critical features of marina shower facilities and the care and feeding thereof.) Then we got our marina "loaner" car (for which we were charged $20) and Janet drove us to "the four corners" (there being no town per se) for dinner at the Northwoods Restaurant & Bar. Janet had a tasty burger and John had a "mega pasty" (pronounced like "passed" not "paste") made with homemade pastry (pronounced like "paste" not "passed"). It was a true regional delight, but unlikely to be exported outside the upper, upper mid-west. 

 We had a lovely sunset back at the marina and then to bed.

P.S. When we pulled into Detour Passage the temperature increased probably ten degrees, and it even got warmer as we rounded the NW end of Drummond Island into Potagannissing Bay to get to the marina. There was also no wind, so we ended up running the AC in the cabin all afternoon, which was a first for this trip.