Overdue

Something I have been thinking about and meaning to do since last Spring is to write some entries about Bayfield, Wisconsin.  I somehow kept putting it off.  It’s overwhelming to put into a short blog entry the last 25+ years in about a place so beautiful, special and life changing.   And now, it is almost Thanksgiving and I have zip.

I also will admit the other daunting task would be to look into several boxes of photographs downstairs in storage in order to chronicle the Bayfield adventures with photos. Ok, its just too much (dramatic sigh). I readily admit a few of the photos included here are borrowed from publications. I’ll get to those boxes….. but sadly there are no young Mona & Joe pics in this story. I believe, if I started to go through my photos and started searching the Cloud, I would just be showing you a picture book of beautiful images.

We have been asked by friends, family and fellow cruisers to describe our summer lifestyle on our sailboat.  Our attempt will not be even close to recounting our vast experiences but here goes….

The town of Bayfield is located in Northern Wisconsin on the edge of the largest of the Great Lakes—Superior. It is a charming, picturesque harbor town that looks like it belongs in New England. Bayfield is a world famous freshwater sailing, boating and kayaking destination.

In the late 1990’s, Bayfield, the gateway to the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, was voted the ”The Best Little Town in the Midwest” by the Chicago Tribune.   The author of that article drove 8,000 miles in six weeks to visit 139 towns in search of The Best Little Town in the Midwest. Unfortunately that article is unavailable from the Chicago Tribune without a subscription but I do recall that it boasted of no traffic lights or chain stores. This is still true but there are complaints about the abundance of the touristy t-shirt shops!

Bayfield is stunning in the spring with flowers, orchards, berry patches and the opportunity to buy bare root plants from Hausers!

There are restaurants, bars, art galleries, orchards, shops, farms, a winery and brewery (of course) and even a grocery and hardware store. There is live music with an amazing plephora of local outstanding musicians. Just a bit out of town is Big Top Chautauqua, a large tent venue at the bottom of the local ski hill. They brings in famous brand name acts and showcase the area’s fabulous talented musicians and singers. A few shows that stand out in my mind were Chris Isaak and Dave Mason. If I thought about it a little harder, I’d come up with many more.

I could go on about the glories of the town but this is a blog about boating so on that note…. We purchased a sailboat, Moonlight, in 1994, the same year we married.  She is a 1984, 35′ C&C sailboat.  She is both comfortable and fast.  She points like a dream and so fun to sail. She is called a racer/cruiser.  For you non-boaters, the inside of a sailboat is similar to a motorhome in that there are beds, a kitchen and a bathroom or … berths, a galley and a head.  We love her classic lines and beautiful teak interior. She has everything you need to enjoy long weekends and extended periods in total comfort…. weather permitting of course! We did many upgrades to Moonlight over the years: a permanent fix to the well-known C&C issue of leaking windows and refrigeration come to mind as the best dollars spent!

Joe began his Bayfield journey in 1986 with another sailboat named Scandia—the same brand as Moonlight.  He began exploring the area and bonding with fellow sailors and locals.  We built on that with the bigger boat and by joining the Bayfield Yacht Club.  Be assured, this is not a stuffed shirt type of club.  It was a great opportunity to make friends and fortunately, we did just that. We planned many fun events for the club, a gumbo boil, rain gutter regada, hat party, ugly shorts contest and a fantasy ball to name a few.  We were young and having fun.

We also had a lot of fun “racing” over the years. Most notably the Annual BYC Ashland Rally and the Around Madeline Island Singlehanded Race. Joe raced in the very first Single Handed race and 13 or 14 consecutive races after that. At first, it was a struggle while he learned the boat and the course. After a while, he and Moonlight enjoyed some success including a few “First in Class” and even 1 “Best Overall” trophy. We put on the Ashland Rally and participated in the Rally events for many years. It was always a great way to kick off the sailing season.

The sailing adventures on the Lake in the Apostle Islands though took it all to a higher level.  The islands!  The Apostles are a National Lakeshore.  There are 21 islands and 12 miles of Wisconsin shoreline.  Stunningly beautiful and wide open for cruising and exploration.

All the islands are uninhabited except for Madeline, which is actually not a part of the National Lakeshore and would be a whole story in itself! Just google “Tom’s Burned Down Cafe on Madeline” and you’ll get a hint. The Apostles are an unspoiled wilderness, with hiking paths and beautiful beaches.  Turn of the last century mining, fishing and logging helped shape the area, both the islands and nearby towns —so much history!

Exploration and sailing was unlimited.  I can throw words out that may give an idea of the experiences:  Sparkling water, forests, flowers, fish, birds, animals, stars and the milky way, sunrises and sunsets, sand, rocks, boats, lighthouses, caves, waves, spinnakers, rock formations, sandstone, wine, wind, anchorages, storms, gatherings, beach glass, dogs, sandy beaches, kayaking, beer, wind, singing sand, seagulls, hiking, fishing tugs, docks, sea caves, laughter….. it has everything nature has to offer… and I didn’t even throw in any sailing lingo!!

At this starting point, we were working full time and would plan as best we could to get off early on friday and get to Bayfield as fast as possible.  We would arrive, connect with friends, look at forecasts and plan to “head out.” How we did all this without electronic assistance is back in the memory bank someplace….it all somehow worked.   

Stockton Island, specifically Julian Bay, was a favorite destination.  A huge beach and attractive anchorage that, except for the color of the sand and the temperature of the water, rivals Caribbean beaches.  Stockton is a big island with hiking trails, a DNR presence and docks but our pleasure was anchoring the boats, taking the dinghy into shore and enjoying the day.  Beautiful blue water, a view to the big lake, refreshing (ok cold) water and coolers stuffed with snacks and beverages.  We walked, swam, talked, laughed and felt so very fortunate.  As the sun begin setting, we would start packing up to go back to our boats to cook a meal, sometimes on one boat and other times enjoying the solitude of the sunset on Moonlight. At times, you could watch a huge Laker (freighter) heading to or from Duluth.

We also took took extended trips exploring most of the Lake, including Canadian waters, with other boats and many solo trips as well.  Life memories.  Great stories.

The sailing, happy hours, meals and plain old good times went on for many, many fortuitous years.  How many people passed through this circle would be a real memory test but how fortunate are we for the experiences.  Thankfully, we still count many of this group as some of our closest friends! We are so very grateful to have all of this.

An interesting aspect of Moonlight is the fact that she is literally in thousands of tourist’s Bayfield photographs. We had the same slip at the end of a main dock for the entire time we owned the boat. She sat parallel to the shoreline where visitors to Bayfield strolled. We also saw several depictions of the boat in paintings and photographs sold at annual art fairs. In hindsight, we probably should have bought a painting …

Oh, and one more thing, Moonlight was also featured in an article about Bayfield in SAIL magazine. She was on the cover!

As with all things, changes must come. The worst, the loss of our friend Mike, those of us close to him still feel the hole even though we’re coming up on 12 years. 

Good friends moved, got out of boating and with some we just lost touch.  Then Covid.  As with everywhere, Bayfield the town struggled with the depth of effects from the pandemic.  I don’t have to recite the life changes; you all lived them.  

After the second summer with the pandemic, we remained healthy and decided it was time for a change for us. We may still be fun (at least in our minds) but we are no longer young.  We spend time on the boat but we do not sail as often.  A lot more docktail parties. Weather pattern changes and older bodies are part of the reasons or maybe we grew restless.  We have always discussed exploring the south shore of Lake Superior and made plans to do so several times.  It just never worked out.  Hard to go long distances at 6 knots and the 6.5’ keel on Moonlight also came into play.  

The tough decision was made to sell our beautiful Moonlight and move explorations to Lake Michigan. After a few missteps, we found a small, flybridge Bayliner that will suit our needs.  The summer plan is to spend a couple weeks on her at a time and then be home for a few weeks.  It is a further drive to Lake Michigan but we are ready for the change especially after spending a bit of time in a few lakeside towns purchasing and moving the boat north from Port Washington, MI (near Milwaukee) to Kewaunee (straight east of Green Bay). 

We will stay in touch with Bayfield friends and hope to return there next summer for visits, but for us, now that some time has passed, we are excited about the new adventure more than being brokenhearted over the sale of Moonlight. We get what people say about boats having a life of their own. Moonlight and Bayfield what a life.

Joe may have described our Bayfield history best in an early morning email to some old friends …..

Epilogue: 2:27 AM, September 7, 2021

After a quiet night in the BYC clubhouse with Tom, Cyn, Jill and Mona, we spent one of our last nights on Moonlight. It turned out to be one of those nights on Lake Superior that started with a gentle, understated sunset that blended into a dramatic palette of light blues and shades of gray that looked like they were smeared by a huge unseen artist’s brush.

We had our last yacht club meal with sailors like Richard and Meridee, and Bill Boyt sometimes sharing the atmosphere but yet somehow separate from our core group. Maybe they are the “new guard”?

We had one final toast to “The way we were” and reminisced about those who couldn’t be there and had gone before us. All in all, a memorable group, they were.

Then back to the boats, Moonlight, Savanah, Ambrosia, for the night. As a front swept through, bringing a sudden squall in three part harmony, I realized the the stout vessels that we have chosen as partners, have protected us through it all. Whether good solid plans or misguided folly, they have been there for us.

Be that as it may, we should not forget, however, that in the end, it is us personally, who made this happen. We all brought our own personalities, strengths and weaknesses, our sense of adventure, and our perseverance to create this sailing life of ours.

May we all remember those good times and good friends who shared this sailing life with us.

Thanks to all.

Joe Longtin

Somewhere South of Disorder