Below is the running list of projects we’ve done and are planning to do on Resande. Where relevant, we included links to blog posts tied to projects on the list
We bought our boat in Bower’s Harbor, on Old Mission Peninsula near Traverse City Michigan but we live near Grand Rapids Michigan. So once the purchase was complete we needed to get the boat closer to home. Our timing wasn’t perfect since we officially owned the boat at the end of September. But we decided to sail down the first weekend of October. We went from Bower’s Harbor marina to Muskegon which is approx 176 nautical miles.
This is the post where we tell you all the lessons we learned so you can learn from our experience and our mistakes:) We do not claim to be experts right now but here is what we learned:
1. Communication is critical
You need to make sure everyone is on the same page, especially when you are learning or have a crew on board. You may want to start planning a tack or jibe several minutes before you need to. Make sure everyone knows the goal of the maneuver, their specific job, and what needs to happen before we can start it. It is better to over-communicate to minimize confusion.
2. Make time to talk about what went well, what didn’t, and what we could try to do differently in the future.
This is a new boat for us, so everything is a bit foreign. Every time after docking, I want to know what the crew’s perception was of the approach, speed, fender location, etc. so we can improve it in the future. It helps to approach it constructively, not critically: “how can we improve X” instead of “we messed that maneuver up”
3. Using a preventer line is super helpful when on a run
We would have had several accidental jibes while on a run on day 2 without that on
4. Take your time
As new sailors, tasks aren’t second nature yet, if you try to rush and get anxious you won’t be thinking as clearly. For example, I tried to pull the halyard as you do when raising the mainsail as I was trying to lower it. I was exhausted from the day and I could not at that moment figure out that I just needed to ease the line out to lower the sail.
5. Having an extra set of hands can be helpful but be mindful of who you invite.
We would recommend someone you know and are comfortable with (especially if you are going on a longer trip). If you are new to sailing it can be stressful and frustrating at times so having someone you know can handle that and not take things personally is helpful. Someone who has any on the water experience or sailing experience is also great. You want someone who will be willing to take on jobs, learn new skills and be helpful to you.
6. Explaining sailing to your guests
Some people will want to learn more than others. Even if your guests aren’t interested in learning to sail they still need to know a few things. Telling them in general what the lines that are in the cockpit do is helpful so they know at the very least to stay out of the way of those lines and not to pull on them or adjust them.
7. It is exhausting at first
We had a great time on this trip but we will not deny that it is very tiring to sail for 12+ hours at a time. As you gain more experience it likely gets easier but at first, as we have said, things aren’t second nature so you are thinking through every move. We knew this was a huge undertaking for one of our first sails but we had to get the boat back to where we live.
8. Autopilot is a necessity!
We have an old ray marine steering wheel-mounted autopilot that we have named “Old Ray”. Old Ray worked okay when we were motoring on day one with no wind or waves. With wind and waves, our autopilot couldn’t keep up so we had to hand steer. Hand steering is very tiring in the wind and waves, it takes more effort than you might think to keep the boat going straight. We are planning to upgrade our autopilot in the next year before setting off on our next big sailing trip.
9. Boating/on the water experience is beneficial
We were power boaters before we bought our sailboat. We had experience in waves and changing conditions in lake Michigan. We also had two sailing lessons with friends on their boat in Lake Michigan. It is crazy how much you can learn and pick up on in a few lessons if you are really motivated to learn. On top of our lessons with friends, we did buy the ASA 101, 103, and 104 books. The additional reading helped everything sink in. Our point here is even if your on the water experience isn’t specifically sailing experience it will still help you. Your overall comfort on the water and understanding of water, waves, and weather is something.
10. Don’t psych yourself out
Sailing, specifically taking a long journey on a boat for the first time is daunting. It can be really scary and make you anxious. It is easy to psych yourself out! But stay calm, plan your trip ahead of time, review the steps and any necessary obstacles that you know about. When you are on your trip, take it one step at a time, think about what you are doing at each given moment instead of the big picture. Once you are out there and the only things that matter are the boat and the water and where you are going it is honestly really nice! The rest of the problems and stressors you have in your life on land all fade away.
11. Don’t be afraid to try new things
Sailing on our own was new to us on this trip. On day two we were on a run all day, going as close to directly downwind as we could. The wind was too high for the asymmetrical spinnaker so we tried to sail wing on wing. We tried twice throughout the day and both times we just couldn’t get it to work. So we retrimmed our sails and just kept going. Yes, it didn’t work, and we still aren’t 100% sure what we should have done differently to make it work. But you never know until you try and you can learn a lot from mistakes and things that didn’t go well. As long as you know you can keep yourself, your crew, and the boat safe it’s okay to try!
12. Pack food that is easy to eat
When the water is flat and there is no wind it is easy to eat whatever type of meal you want. When the water is wavey, the wind is stronger and the boat is heeling over it makes relaxing for a snack or a meal a challenge. It might be going along okay and you may think you have some time. But you might have an accidental jibe or you may need to tack or jibe or do something to adjust the sails at any point. Bring food that can be prepared quickly and that you can easily set down and pick back up as needed.
One of the best things a long trip like this can give you is confidence in yourself and in your boat. After three days of living on SV Resande, we feel way more comfortable! After all, the best way to learn is to get out there and do it! You will never know everything and there will always be something to fix on your boat. At some point, you just have to go!
Any tips/tricks you have learned from your sailing experience? Questions? comments, leave them all below!
When we bought our boat (SV Resande), we knew it was the end of the season and about 180 nautical miles from where we wanted to store her for winter. We bought the boat in Bower’s Harbor, near Traverse City Michigan but planned to store it in Muskegon for the winter. We closed on the boat on September 25th, and at that time we had never sailed on our own. The goal was to get the boat to Muskegon before they pulled the docks for winter in Bowers Harbor on October 10. We decided to sail down the first weekend of October.
Bower’s Harbor Marina, our starting point
Before this trip, our sailing experience included two sailing lessons with friends on their boat, a day sail on our boat with the previous owners, and one day sail on our own. In total maybe 7 hours of experience. In preparation, we had also been reading and researching as much as we could. We found the American Sailing Associations books to be helpful (ASA 101, 103). We had previous boating experience on Lake Michigan with the powerboat we owned prior to buying our sailboat. While we were nervous about the length of the trip, we felt we could safely make the passage despite our limited experience.
The Route
Bower’s Harbor is about halfway up Old Mission Peninsula so it is located in the West Arm of Grand Traverse Bay. The bay is between Old Mission and Leelanau Peninsula. We first had to go around the Leelanau Peninsula, so we could start heading south down the Lake Michigan coastline to Muskegon. Assuming 5.5 knot average speed, we estimated this trip would take 32 hours of sailing.
Our Route: Bower’s Harbor to Muskegon
We checked the weather forecast repeatedly the week before we left. We planned to leave Bower’s Harbor early on a Saturday morning. By Monday we were expecting to see gale-force winds from directly out of the south (on our nose). We planned to complete our trip in three days, which would get us into port at Muskegon before the weather turned. Given the weather, we decided to push a lot of miles the first day to set us up for a shorter day on Monday to beat the gales.
Day 1 Bower’s Harbor to Frankfort: 77 nautical miles ~14 hours
Day 2 Frankfort to Pentwater: 55 nautical miles ~10 hours
Day 3 Pentwater to Muskegon: 44 nautical miles ~8 hours
Day 1: Bower’s Harbor to Frankfurt, 77 nautical miles
We woke up super early to get this day started. This was our longest day and we were anxious to get going. We pulled all the dock lines and were off the dock by 5 AM. From Bower’s Harbor, we had to navigate past a few shallow spots near the small island just outside the marina. Once we were past those we could easily navigate north up the Leelanau Peninsula, working our way out of the Grand Traverse Bay. We made a quick detour to Northport, near the top of the Leelanau Peninsula to top up our diesel.
Ryan’s dad – our crew, sleeping on the job!
The entire day there was pretty much no wind. We had about 10 knots for about 10-15 minutes but other than that we motored all day. It was a cold and cloudy day with some sprinkles of rain along the way. We passed the Manitou Islands and the Sleeping Bear dunes, getting some beautiful views along the way. Since we were just motoring this was a very easy day. We were able to set ‘Old Ray’ (our autopilot) on a bearing and move about without too much intervention. We were relaxed, we cooked breakfast and lunch underway, using both our oven and our stove. In total it took us about 14 hours to reach Frankfort. We arrived just before sunset so we were able to dock before dark. Once we were docked we enjoyed a warm shower at the marina and then closed ourselves in down below to stay warm and out of the rain. We cooked dinner on the boat and went to bed early.
Day 2: Frankfurt to Pentwater, 55 nautical miles
We slept in a little bit this morning, we were off the dock by about 7:30 AM. The wind was out of the north/northeast at about 10-15 knots at the start of the day, building to 15-20 knots. Since we were heading south, we could sail on a run/broad reach most of the day.
We hooked up a preventer line to keep from accidentally jibing. Due to the coastline, we had to jibe several times since we couldn’t keep the sails full on a true run. We would sail with the waves for a while then have to head out further from the coastline going parallel to the waves for a bit. The waves started at 3-5 ft and built to 5-7 ft as the day went on. The boat handled the waves really well. It was another mostly cloudy day, we did get some sun but it was still cold. In total, this stretch of the trip took about 10 hours. We had great speed over ground most of the day but probably added 8 nautical miles due to having to jibe.
We had to hand steer this entire day. ‘Old Ray’ couldn’t handle the weight of the boat under sail and the belt that drives it was slipping. We bought a replacement belt that will hopefully fix it, but for this trip, he was pretty much useless unless we were motoring. We also discovered our house battery bank had a bad battery. When we stopped the engine to sail, the Autopilot (which was barely working) only lasted about 20 minutes before flashing ‘low battery’.
Again we arrived before dark so we could dock with some light. We were physically and mentally exhausted from all the sailing. Since we are new sailers, everything isn’t second nature to us yet. We still have to really think about each step and each time we have to jibe or adjust the sails. After two long days, we were ready for a little time off the boat. We walked into town and enjoyed a beer and a burger at the Brown Bear pub. It felt great to be inside and to be warm at least for a little while!
Heading into Pentwater
Day 3: Pentwater to Muskegon, 41 nautical miles
Our final day! We had been checking and rechecking the forecast. The gales were supposed to hit Muskegon at about 2-3 PM. So in order to beat the weather we left Pentwater in the dark at 5 AM. The wind started off out of the west at about 10-15 knots so we comfortably sailed south on a beam reach for a few hours. We had a full moon and clear skies so we could easily see. Between the cold and the wind we were freezing this entire day! We had a beautiful sunrise and mostly sunny skies but it was still very cold!
Shortly after sunrise the wind shifted to more straight out of the south and picked up a bit. We continued sailing a bit longer then motor sailed on a tight close reach the rest of the way to help make time and get in before the high winds. We heeled to about 20-25 degrees most of the sail. Once we got used to it this became more comfortable. The heeling was something that made Erika nervous before the trip but by the end she barely noticed. We had 3-5 ft waves on our beam most of the day. They began building in the last hour of our sail and we could feel the wind picking up more. In total this day was about 8 hours.
It was such a great feeling when we finally made it! We gained a ton of experience on this three-day trip! We know that we still have a lot to learn! But we feel like we can officially call ourselves sailers!
Docked in Muskegon, we made it!
We have more on our lessons learned from this sail on our post here
What resources have you found helpful in learning to sail? Any advice? Leave us a comment below!
