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Coming Semi-Circle
 The way I figure it, I’m just a hull, an engine and a couple of personal flotation devices away from owning a boat.
I already have deck-compatible shoes, a bilge pump, a marine
battery and, just recently, added a life ring with my name on it,
thanks to the generosity of the Lake Superior Marine Museum Association
and Allouez Marine. (I do have a boat pin, though it’s a small fishing
boat.)
Now, people of wise wisdom say that a boat is a hole in the
water into which you throw money, and my husband, Bob, and I got an
early start on that throwing money part with our first acquisition
toward owning a boat - the bilge pump.
The whole adventure started with a leak, of sorts, when a
two-day power outage sank the sump pump and created a new, nearly
navigable, waterway in our basement.
 We bought the bilge pump to encourage the water out of our
“hold” and through the “porthole” onto the lawn. To use the bilge pump
to remove the water, we also needed to buy a marine battery. Standing
in ankle-deep water, it came to me that we were well on our way to our
own boat.
Some might say that I’m a lemonade-out-of-lemons kinda gal; I’d go so far as to admit that I often like lemons straight up.
After working here at the magazine for boaters who actually
own boats, I knew it would be rude to wear black-soled shoes to scuff
the deck of someone’s boat, so I acquired a pair of light-colored,
rubber-soled sneakers. One step, so to speak, closer to that boat.
Recently when the Lake Superior Marine Museum Association
board gave personalized life rings to me and my fellow board
“retirees,” I could almost feel the lake wind in my hair and the bucking boat beneath my sneakers.
You may be hard-pressed to see how I’m going to circle around to a point - one valid
for Lake Superior Magazine - out of all this. Well, here’s the
lemonade: While that actual boat might be off a ways, I’m having a lot
of fun collecting the little parts of a waterborne craft (and the
stories that go with them). In other words, I’m enjoying the journey as
I’m able to take it.
As we head into the peak season of both water and land travel
around Lake Superior, many readers may despair because they do not have
the time for an entire Circle Tour.
Not to worry. The circle will remain for you to enjoy as you
are able. If you can just do one piece of it now, you can come back
again and again to complete the full circle.
There are lots of reasons to enjoy this journey piece by piece.
Our story on the Sault Ste. Maries in Ontario and Michigan
show how much you can do in just one place. A local author has given a
rollicking tour and some great ideas for the next time you stop in his
town(s). This is our third installment of “not-so-secret” views into
Lake Superior cities, starting from Duluth and heading west to
Marquette and now to the Saults. Next city stop: Thunder Bay. (Your
insider’s tips would be welcome!)
Yes, it takes some time to make the circle, but what fun along the route.
If you’re headed to Thunder Bay, check out the story on local troubadours who sing out their inspiration from the Big Lake.
You’ll also find a tale of how some fanciful young ladies
from the 1920s enjoyed their one piece of Lake Superior each year at
“Gert’s Getaway” to the Apostle Islands.
For those lucky folks who can make the full circle, you’ll be
well guided with this issue’s updated Restaurant and Lodging Guide. It
lists places to eat or stay in all the states and the province of our
lake.
Once you complete the Lake Superior Circle Tour, you still won’t have been here enough. You’ll want to come back to the shores.
I
know I’ll be tackling parts of the circle every year. And it won’t be
long, I’m sure, until Bob, the dog and I can do it in our “accumulated”
boat.
Or at least I’ll be wearing my boat-compatible sneakers in the car.
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