Pictured Rocks NLS

Looking at doing a couple of days in the UP this summer and thought taking the TI out to see the rock formations would be cool. Has anyone done it in their AI/TI? Any suggestions as to routes, launch sites, etc.? Thanks!

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2015 Hobie Tandem Island Hibiscus
"Third Normal Form"

• Trampolines
• Hobie cover
• Davis Spar Fly
• Kayakbob's Sprayskirts
• Spine Board Hakas

Anybody?

The most I've found is an outfitter that will take you out, but they supply all of the equipment. At a cost of almost $100/person that gets pricey for a family of 5 for just a 3 hour tour (Gilligan's Island reference ). I have all the equipment I just need either a guide or some pointers.

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2015 Hobie Tandem Island Hibiscus
"Third Normal Form"

• Trampolines
• Hobie cover
• Davis Spar Fly
• Kayakbob's Sprayskirts
• Spine Board Hakas

Maybe nobody knows what the "UP" is. I don't. Is "UP" the upper peninsula of Michigan?

Keith

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2015 AI 2, 2014 Tandem

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex ... It takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." A. Einstein

"Less is more" Anon

Yes, the UP is the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I assumed that locals would know what the UP is?

Just for further clarification NLS = National Lakeshore

_________________
2015 Hobie Tandem Island Hibiscus
"Third Normal Form"

• Trampolines
• Hobie cover
• Davis Spar Fly
• Kayakbob's Sprayskirts
• Spine Board Hakas

Jim Quinlan (CaptnChaos) has been up there with his AI (from FL). He might pick up on this.

Keith

_________________
2015 AI 2, 2014 Tandem

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex ... It takes a touch of genius and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction." A. Einstein

"Less is more" Anon

I've taken my AI to northern Michigan but never the UP. Last fall we drove the entire southern UP and I thought how nice it would be to have a Hobie island in this area (during warmer weather of course). But I believe the rock formations are in the northern Lake Superior section. Cold water but beautiful. Some day I would love to load my AI on the ferry and go to Isle Royale National Park camping and sailing the inland waters. It's a beautiful part of the country. And it's a great vacation idea you have TI_Tom.

Thanks Jim. We're doing a large loop through the UP, down to the Traverse City area (where my folks live), down to Columbus, OH (where my in-laws live), and then back to boring Nebraska. I just figured that there had to be Michiganders with AI/TI's that would have pointers. Oh well, I know the ice just came off the lakes up there so maybe nobody is thinking about sailing quite yet.

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_________________
2015 Hobie Tandem Island Hibiscus
"Third Normal Form"

• Trampolines
• Hobie cover
• Davis Spar Fly
• Kayakbob's Sprayskirts
• Spine Board Hakas

My wife and I did pictured rocks last year on our TI.

There is a short kind of paved ramp on Sand Point Rd 46°26'50.9"N 86°36'23.5"W were you can put in (or at least back the trailer off the road, and carry a TI 10 feet). There is plenty of street parking (parallel), so you can park with a trailer on either side of the road. It is a nice ride north, with a couple of waterfalls, and little boat traffic.

Miners beach was too crowded and too far to cart and carry a TI, and from there north the rental kayaks show up at Miners for their paddle north bound. The neat rock formations are north of Miners beach, so that is the big destination.

Paddling.net has a decent map of places the ramps.

I went with one of the outfitters in tandem kayaks a couple of years ago (just bought my AI last December). We launched from a public beach on a protected cove a couple miles out of Munising, at the southwest end of the national lakeshore. Here is the approximate address / location I pulled from Google Maps (same location mrbrightwork just posted):
1690 Sand Point Rd
Munising, MI 49862
46.449102, -86.606384

It was too rough to tour the rocks that day, so we just paddled across to Grand Island. Waves in the protected area were a foot or two. We paddled to the Trout Point, past which we could see 5'+ swells on the open water. (We did the large boat tour of the rocks the next day, which was nice too.) All the standard Lake Superior warnings apply: the water is cold, the fetch is long, and you could be miles from safe landing when the weather turns bad.

At the time, the outfitter (http://www.uncleduckyoutfitters.com/) was OK with the general public bringing their own gear and paddling with the group, as long as they were competent and had the necessary safety equipment. They would be slower pace than your TI, but if you just want the scenic tour and someone familiar with local conditions, you could see if they still allow it. Be sure to check to Coast Guard requirements for the Great Lakes as well. They can and will do a vessel check and terminate your journey if you come up short. I'm way down near Lake Erie, or I'd think about joining you with my AI!

Our Minneapolis friends loved to sail the Apostle Islands - but always mentioned that the water is very cold. I'm toying with taking our TI and the Kokatat gear up there in September. It is beautiful. (wait for the first frost to kill the skeeters - otherwise tie the kids down lest those buggers haul one or two off into the sky.) We've seen the northern lights a handful of times in mid-Sep in that region.

Thanks Mrbrightwork! That is exactly the kind of info I was looking for.

_________________
2015 Hobie Tandem Island Hibiscus
"Third Normal Form"

• Trampolines
• Hobie cover
• Davis Spar Fly
• Kayakbob's Sprayskirts
• Spine Board Hakas

I was wondering if they would let us join with our own equipment and just cut us a deal since we weren't using their gear. I just hadn't gotten around to contacting them yet. We're still a few months out so I was just putting some feelers out. Thanks!

_________________
2015 Hobie Tandem Island Hibiscus
"Third Normal Form"

• Trampolines
• Hobie cover
• Davis Spar Fly
• Kayakbob's Sprayskirts
• Spine Board Hakas

OK, so I've done some more research. I've found my put in spot on Sand Point and I have my route planned to Miner's Beach. It's only ~1nm. My only concerns now are what I read on the Parks Service website about recreational kayaks not being allowed on Superior. They classified a recreational kayak as a sit in under 14'. Do you think that they would consider my TI a recreational kayak or more along the lines of a sailboat? My other worry is that damn CE sticker.

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_________________
2015 Hobie Tandem Island Hibiscus
"Third Normal Form"

• Trampolines
• Hobie cover
• Davis Spar Fly
• Kayakbob's Sprayskirts
• Spine Board Hakas

The NPS page I found on kayaking sounds more like advice than actual rules... good advice, and strongly worded, but still just advice. The definitive source for the rules on the Great Lakes is the US Coast Guard. You can request a courtesy vessel safety check if you want to verify your compliance. It looks like there is a USGC station in Omaha on the Missouri, so you can probably even schedule a check with them and have it taken care of well before your trip. Make sure to let them know you'll be taking it to Lake Superior, in case there are any differences in the required equipment.

As far as classification, I'm pretty sure a fully rigged TI would be considered a sailboat. The vessel safety check manual specifically mentions "sailboats less than 26 feet of completely open construction and not equipped with propulsion machinery", which seems like an apt description of the TI.

Thanks Nissawinagong!

_________________
2015 Hobie Tandem Island Hibiscus
"Third Normal Form"

• Trampolines
• Hobie cover
• Davis Spar Fly
• Kayakbob's Sprayskirts
• Spine Board Hakas