After completing a circumnavigation of Lake Superior, we decided it was time to start another Great Loop. We hope to make it home a few times along the way, and after a Michigan summer we’re looking forward to warmer weather this winter.
Setting Out
Before we could even get going, we owe a big thank-you to our daughter and son-in-law, Rachel and David. We live about 50 minutes from Jefferson Beach, but they drove all the way from Ann Arbor to pick us up in White Lake, delivered us to the boat in St. Clair Shores, and then turned around and drove back to Ann Arbor — a long day in the car just to get us started. We’re grateful for the ride and the send-off.
We left Jefferson Beach Marina in St. Clair Shores — our home port for the last two years — on a great weather window, and made the run all the way to Straits State Harbor in Mackinaw City.
There are two marinas in Mackinaw City, and we’ve stayed at both. Straits State Harbor is a little farther from downtown, but it’s better protected and sees no ferry traffic. Mackinaw City Municipal Marina is closer to downtown, has loaner bikes for guests, and sits right where the Shepler’s Ferry comes and goes throughout the day — nice for convenience, but it does mean some wake. Rob stayed at the Municipal Marina back in the spring, before the season officially started, and found payment instructions taped to the office door — easy to slip in after they’d closed for the day, leave before they opened, and pay online.
Looking Back at Spring
Before the Lake Superior trip, Rob single-handed the boat from Holland, MI — where we store the boat for the winter — down to Jefferson Beach. That run went Holland to Mackinaw City, then Mackinaw City to Harrisville for fuel (one of our favorite stops), and finally on to Jefferson Beach.
Diesel prices have swung a lot this year. The lowest we paid was $3.50/gallon at Jefferson Beach, filling up to start the Lake Superior trip. The highest was $6.60/gallon in Mackinaw City, filling up to start the Loop.
Back to the Loop
Once we arrived at Straits State Harbor, the weather turned, so we stayed in Mackinaw City for a while. While we were there, we were visited by relatives Lydia and Josh McNeil, from west Michigan. It was great catching up and hearing about the success of their photography and film work. If you’re ever looking for event coverage or professional photos — they travel, or you can catch them from the dock in Michigan — we recommend Josh & Lydia Photo + Film.
Once the weather broke, we headed down to Frankfort, MI, and enjoyed staying at Frankfort Municipal Marina, just outside the main part of downtown. The other marina we’ve stayed at in Frankfort is Jacobson Marina Resort — we like both. Jacobson’s is closer to downtown but has higher docks that require a big step up off the boat. The Municipal Marina is a few hundred yards east, across from the library, and its docks are the right size for Leland Tug.
We spent two nights in Frankfort, then made a long run — about 12 hours — to Safe Harbor Great Lakes in Muskegon. This is a regular stop for us on the west side of the state; they have a full boatyard and good facilities, and it’s usually where we service the boat before putting it away for the season. This year we only stayed the night — with the weather looking good, we left early on 9/17/2026 for a 13-hour run to Chicago, where we are now: Navy Pier Marina.
Partway across Lake Michigan, a few small finches found us. Worn out, they’d land on the boat to rest for a while and then fly on. One of the bolder ones came right into the pilothouse — in one door and out the other — giving us some excitement along the way.
A tired finch that stopped to rest, mid-lake
Navy Pier Marina just opened this year, and everything is new — new docks, new everything. Here we met Curtis, who helped us into our slip and tied us off. Curtis is learning to be a marine diesel mechanic and plans to become a boater himself, offering his skills to help others in need — it was a pleasure meeting him and the team here in Chicago.
Loopers are starting to gather here before heading down the inland rivers — there are currently more than 25 Great Loop boats in the marina.
Next up, we need to plan our way down the rivers. Three years ago, we weren’t able to run through downtown Chicago because a bridge was stuck in the closed position. This year, an Amtrak train bridge is stuck as well. We’ll check the status today and see whether we need to skip downtown Chicago again this year, or wait a few days for it to be fixed. Right now, there’s no known ETA for the repair.
Our view from the dock at Navy Pier Marina
That’s all for now.