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Sweet Escape is the Alpine Chocolat Haus name for Bruces boat as Don Campbell watches it., originally uploaded by Don Campbell Models.
Alpine Chocolat Haus – Todays picture shows me in Charlevoix at the Channel near the bridge and our friends Bruce and Barb as they wait for the bridge to raiseup. They just brought the boat around from Indian River Marina , Mullet Lake, to Cheboygan out and around and under the Mackinaw Bridge and around Petosky to Charlevoix. A ten hour trip in 5 foot seas and they asked us to go with them and we said no thanks.
As a young boy I was on a boat that size in Saginaw Bay with my family when a tornado hit and we were bouncing around out in the bay like a bobber for over a hour and a great Lakes Frieghter spotted us let us tie up to them . We were taking on a lot of water and would not have made it . It was a terrifiying experience as us kids cryed thinking we would surely die.
When we returned to Brennon’s Marina that evening many boats were sunk at the docks still tied up . The buildings were detroyed and the streets of Bay City looked very scary with trees and houses ripped apart everywhere. It was only when we returned that we realized how bad it really was and how lucky we were that frieghter was there.
So these days i enjoy boating a lot just like I am in this picture, ha,ha. On the shore watching tham pass by, ha,ha.
When we took our week long trip on the largest Frieghter on the great lakes, the Paul R. Tregurtha, I was even nervous then. Would you believe when we left the dock at St. Claire Shores there was a tornado near Port Huron. We got out in Lake Huron and that boat was twisitng and snaking 5 to 8 feet the captain said . We could see the front of the bow twisting back and forth. I was not so scared then but almost everyone got sick including me, as we swayed back and forth and the waves splashed over the bow for over two hours. After the storm was over the next five days going to Duluth and back was smooth as glass.
In other words, we don’t plan on buying a boat anytime soon, ha,ha.
The little girl on board did get very sick and could not wait to get off .
Have a Great Wed.
