Chicago to Mackinac on a 16...

Alright so im about ready to graduate college in may and will be moving home (ohio) in early july. a buddy and i want to take our 16 from chicago to mackinac. we want to take a few weeks to do it; just bounce around from town to town. i have friends all up and down the lake to stay with and just want to bum around for a few weeks on the boat.

im very familiar with the lake and how ruthless it can be. i've never sailed a 16 in large swells before and im worried about how it will handle in the steep, close waves of lake michigan. I'm confident (but not ****) in my sailing abilities, i'm just not sure that this is the right boat for the job. I know its a very very dangerous lake and would obviously avoid saling in storms/high seas etc...

i'm not worried so much about my sailing abilities as i am about the ability of the boat to handle those conditions and just want some overall advice on this idea.

Should we do it?

How big is too big? (in terms of waves, keeping in mind the nature of the waves on the lake)

and

Would it be fun or would we just get pummeled all day, every day?

any words of wisdom are appreciated!

well thats real ambitious man, im a minnesota sailor and know nothing about the lake but have a great time and good luck

If you've never sailed in big waves before, taking a trip like this is foolhardy at best and potientially suicidal.

A 16 in racing configuration would do OK, but what are you bringing with you? Camping gear? Food / Water? Clothes? All of those items add weight and significantly degrade the boat's ability to handle waves (and sailability in general).

I've raced many times in Lake Michigan, - Wilmette, Chicago's south side, Gary, St. Joseph / Benton Harbor, South Haven, Muskegon, Ludington - and I've seen waves and been in conditions that would make your toenails curl.

If you've got a ground crew to haul your stuff and stayed within sight of the shore, I'd say you'd have a chance. Make sure you have a personal EPIRB and a good, waterproof radio.

For a reality check, read the "Steeplechase Stories" thread in the open fourm. Those guys are highly experienced sailors who came a lot closer to drowning than they'd like to admit. That's also in 80 degree water, not the mid-60's you're likely to encounter in Lake Michigan.

We were out on Lake Ontario last summer in 6'-8' waves with short wavelength..not fun sailing..not really difficult, just slow and a lot of work..We were going straight upwind about 20 miles. How far is it? I wouldn't want to get caught out there at night. I would probably drive around if what you are talking about is crossing the lake. And I definitely wouldn't do it alone. All it takes is one little thing and you are in a lot of trouble. There are over 6000 ships on the bottom of the great lakes!

First you say you are very familiar with the lake and then you say you have no idea how a Hobie 16 would handle it.

If you are really asking for opinions, I say you should NOT do it. You say you are graduating from college, but college does not teach common sense. I hope your parents did not pay your college bill. <img src="http://www.catsailor.com/forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

There might be a better boat for your post-college fling before you enter the reality show. Why don't you just get a ride on one of the boats in the Chicago-Mac Race? Have somebody drive your car up to Mackinac Island and visit all your friends by ROAD on the way back south.

If you know the lake like you say you do then you would know that a trip like that is a stupid idea. Man, what school do you attend?
You would be a newspaper headline waiting to happen.

There are more reasons not to do it than there are to do it. I don't know your sailing skills, but the first thing to tip me off that this is a bad idea is that you plan to do it with one boat. That's bad enough, but your boat is a 16! It is not designed to carry the provisions you'll need. I know you're thinking of sailing maybe 20 miles a day, which isn't much. You're probably also thinking that a catamaran would be ideal since you could go ashore and camp anywhere there's a beach. You're probably also thinking that you'll have a radio or cell phone, lots of local contacts, and a credit card as support. Also, you don't have any responsibilities and no one depending on your support, so you don't have much to lose. Those are the good points.

Have you also thought about what could go wrong and how you'd get out of it? There is no convenient time for something to go wrong while on the water. What will it take to rescue you? What sort of emergency provisions and replacement parts will you take? What about food, clothing, camping gear? How with these provisions affect the boat's performance and therefore your assessment of what it will take to complete the trip? How are you getting back? How will/won't the Coast Guard help?

Here's a better idea - make the trip with someone with a larger boat and more experience and learn first hand what it takes to make the trip. Another idea is to create a flotilla of cats (at least three boats) with a support boat (one with a motor and preferably 25 feet long) carrying the extra gear you'll need.

Your idea sounds like a fun adventure, but it will behoove you to make a better plan.