Detroit!!! 10/12/2018

After what seems like FOREVER, we arrived in Detroit.  It was pretty cold, so I didn’t want to exit the pilot house on the boat to take pictures so I did not.  We didn’t expect the channel leading from Lake Erie to the Detroit River and north to look as it did.  There are actually two large deep channels to accommodate those huge barges and commercial ocean-going ships…one is north bound and the other is south bound.  With almost no traffic, we decided we liked the south bound side better, so that is the way we approached the city.  Picture this (because I didn’t take any actual pictures!):  a very wide, maybe 100 yards wide, channel lined with trees on both sides.  Also, about every 100 yards or so, there was a lighthouse-type tower, red on one side, and green on the other.  This stretched for about 20 miles.   Impossible to get lost with markers like that!

We tried reaching a marina in downtown Detroit by phone.   Our first choice, the state park, was not taking any transient boats and was in the process of closing for the season.  Our next choice was the Erma Henderson Marina.  We did reach the office.  Unlike ANY other marina in the entire eastern seaboard, Hudson River, Erie Canal, and Lake Erie, this marina (and Riverside) requires (1) picture ID, (2) proof of insurance, and (3) copy of our vessel registration.  We weren’t getting the best WIFI reception out in Lake Erie, but I managed to get the documents together.  Once they received the documentation, they said, they would email an invoice that we could pay online.  Only then would they tell us what slip we could use.  I tried all afternoon to make this happen – some issues weren’t their fault, i.e. weak WIFI signal, my email’s routing their note to junk folder.  But, finally, I gave up.  We were approaching the marina, we were tired, it was very cold and windy – I was done!  I thought to call Sinbad’s Restaurant, knowing they had a few slips.  Not only did they have slips available, but we could stay overnight for $45! And, we both love the restaurant!  Done deal.  We had a lovely dinner, and retired for the night.