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BACK TO MANITOWOC ~ AUGUST 3 -6

After an enjoyable and hurried trip at home, we started back to the boat by car on Tuesday, August 3. We made our first stop in Lonoke, Arkansas, at a Holiday Inn where we

had stayed once before. Our night this time was not as restful as the other stay! A terrible storm came through that caused a lot of damage to the county; power out, trees

and power lines down and flooding. The wind awakened us and we realized we had no power. It was blowing so hard, we decided to leave our room on the top floor and

go to the lobby. There were many others who had evacuated their rooms, also. It was raining very hard, accompanied by thunder, lightning and hail. The hotel personnel

told us that we were under tornado watch and severe weather alert. There were battery back-up lights in the stairwells, so it was easy to get up and down the stairway. We

eventually went back to our room after an hour or two when the wind died down a little. We actually went back to sleep and when we got up the storm had passed, leaving

only rain and wreckage throughout the area. By this time, the battery back- up lights had failed, so it was a little iffy in the stairwell. Fortunately, we always carry flashlights

into a hotel and we were surely glad we had them on this trip! Some local highways were closed, but the Interstate was open. After a breakfast in the dark in the lobby,

using only flashlights, we loaded the car and drove away in the rain. We were glad to be away from Lonoke and thankful that, as far as we knew, no one had been hurt.

We arrived at the boat in Manitowoc on Thursday, August 6th. We were glad to be back. We were surprised to see in the slip next to our boat, two 40 foot canoe-like boats

with dragon heads on the bow. We found out that yearly there is a fund-raiser for the children’s hospitals in the area and the big event is the dragon boat races. Each boat

has a rowing crew of eighteen with a captain and a drummer in front and a helmsman in the back. The drummer beats the drum and keeps the timing. There are many

rowing teams and they use the same leaders and same dragon boats. They practice all week and the races are on Saturday all day long. We walked over to the harbor

and watched them race for a while. They also have a children’s carnival and a huge tent for food, drinks and entertainment.

Then it was back to work on the boat. We were having some friends at the boat for a few days, so the next couple of days were spent in a flurry of cleaning the inside,

washing the outside, cleaning isinglass, etc.

AUGUST 9 – 22, 2009 ~ FAMILY AND FRIENDS

Howard and Alice arrived on Sunday. Phil and Howard worked together in the space industry for many years. I had met them only once at their daughter’s wedding about

five years ago. We had so much fun! They were so easy to have on the boat. We took them to our favorite old-fashioned little sandwich/ice cream/chocolate shop,

Beerenstein’s, for a late lunch, which they loved. The next day they wanted to buy cheese, so we went in search of a good place to buy cheese curds. We went first to a little

dairy and asked where they got their cheese curds. They suggested that we go to Henning’s Cheese Factory near Kiel, Wisconsin. It was not far, so we went to buy some

cheese, but we stayed three hours! It was so interesting and the people were all so nice. It is a family operation. There have been four generations of Henning’s in the

cheese business. We were fortunate enough to have Kurt Henning as our guide through the plant. He is in the sales end of the business. His brother, Kerry Henning, is

the Cheese Master, having been through the long and involved study regimen required to be certified as a Cheese Master. Kurt was gracious enough to explain the process

to us and, even took us through their storage and refrigeration area.

We did not get to see them in the actual process of making the cheese because by the time we got there, they were cleaning up. We left with a promise to Kurt that we

would be back early the next morning to watch the actual process and a fifteen minute video.

Because we had other places we wanted to see and explore, we all agreed that we were only going to spend thirty minutes at the cheese factory. We set out the next

morning, albeit a little late, to view the cheese making. Kurt greeted us on arrival and quickly filled us in on what was happening in the process. His father, Everett Henning,

came over to introduce himself. While he is retired from the cheese business, he still comes in and works in the office. Everett’s father was the start of the business in

1914, so it is now in its third generation, with some of the fourth generation working there also. They are such a nice family. Kerry came out and introduced himself to us,

also.

They recommended several places to eat and told us to go to The Cedars for lunch and have the nachos. After spending three hours at Henning’s Cheese Factory again(!),

we left for The Cedars. We four Texans were a little unsure about Wisconsin nachos, but we ordered them and they were delicious! The Cedars is a small resort on a pretty

little lake. We sat out on the patio overlooking a beach and the lake. It was very relaxing and peaceful.

The next day, Everett called and asked us all to dinner. We accepted, paged Howard and Alice at the museum to tell them the time and the plan (scared them to death!) and

we four left for Everett’s home to meet the family an hour or so later. Everett, his wife, Helen, Kurt, his wife Christi, Kerry and his wife Barb all were there to go to dinner with

us. They took us to a wonderful restaurant, Schwarz’s. The food was excellent and it was so gracious of Everett to take us to dinner. We all had a good time.

After dinner, Everett and Helen took us to their log cabin that they have just finished redoing. The cabin was moved by dismantling and numbering each log, then

reconstructing it by the numbers at its new location. The mortar has an elastic ingredient in it that causes it to expand and contract with the weather. The cabin is really

nicely done and is in such a peaceful pretty setting. It is definitely a wonderful get away, a place to go and relax.

The next day, Thursday, with much reluctance we said good-bye to Alice and Howard. She is an excellent packer, but they had bought so much cheese, it was a challenge,

even for her. Howard is a retired Continental airplane pilot, so they fly on stand-by. They were hopeful of getting on the first plane because she was going to Belize the next

morning. She called from the airport to say that security had made her unpack her whole bag because of the cheese! She was in the process of repacking it when she

called. They cannot check their luggage when they fly stand-by, so they don’t have a lot of options. They did make the plane, cheese and all, but it was a little difficult! We

certainly enjoyed their visit.

On Friday, Everett, Helen, Kerry, Barb and their three children came to see the boat. We spent the afternoon, visiting over a glass of wine and eating the positively

outstanding black peppercorn cheese that had won first place and been auctioned off We then went to dinner in Two Rivers at Kurtz’s. It was excellent also. We enjoyed the

Henning family so much. What nice people and how kind they were to us! We hope to see them again when they come to Houston.

We have another reminder of the Henning Cheese Factory. My maiden name was Holstein, as my father used to say, “just like the cow”. In our home, I have a small

Holstein cow collection. Phil surprised me with a darling Holstein from the cheese factory. They carry a few gifts and I had seen this cow and loved it.

Over the week-end, we rested, had lunch with a couple, Jeff and Deb, who have completed the Loop. They shared a lot of knowledge about the river system, which was of

great interest to us. Our plan is to take the boat to Milwaukee and then to Chicago to enter the river system. We would like to get the boat to the Kentucky Lakes area to store

it for the winter.

The weather was, for us, so nice. It was not hot in the day-time and cool at night. Many days there was a very heavy or thick fog that would settle in over the marina, as well

inland. Sometimes we could not even see the Marina Lounge from our boat which was just at the end of our pier. It made for some interesting pictures, especially of the S.

S. Badger.

On Monday, August 17th, my long time friend, Joyce, of thirty years or so came from Milwaukee for the day. She had not met Phil, so I was glad to get to introduce them. We

had a great day, visiting and went to lunch at Beerenstein’s. As she was preparing to go home, a heavy fog rolled in and Phil, who had been watching the weather,

suggested she spend the night with us because the fog extended to Milwaukee. She stayed and we had so much fun. Weather was lousy, foggy and rainy, so we ordered

pizza. After breakfast the next morning, the fog had cleared and we said good-bye, looking forward to our stay in Milwaukee.

Later that morning, Phil’s son, Jeff and his wife, Schelli, and their two daughters, Nikole, 20, and Cloie, 9, arrived. We were so excited to see them. They are the first of our

family to visit us on the Loop, so we were thrilled. We told Jeff that he was definitely the favorite kid! Cloie wanted to go fishing and our friend, Bernie, across the dock, is a

charter fisherman, amongst many other things. He also fishes because he loves it. He and his daughter, Christine, asked Phil, Jeff and Cloie to go out with him that

afternoon at 5:00. We watched them leave and Nikole, Schelli, and I went to dinner at the Harborside Inn. We had great steaks and enjoyed visiting. The fisher people were

back about 9:00, victorious! Cloie, with a little help from her dad, caught a salmon, Jeff caught one and Christine caught a really big one. Phil caught two, but lost them at

the boat because they couldn’t get the net under them quickly enough. All in all, it was a good trip.

The next day, we went, once again, to the cheese factory. This time we were there only 21/2 hours! Kerry came out of the processing area and told us about the cheese

making process and answered questions. He took us all on a tour of the back storage areas and the refrigerator. We thought we knew it all from previous visits, but learned

so much from this visit!

That evening, we took Bernie, his daughter, Christine, and his friend, Kiz, to dinner at Luigi’s, a very good Italian restaurant which Phil and I had discovered in Manitowoc.

The food is excellent and we had a good time.

Jeff helped his Dad install the new radar for our boat, which was so nice of him and so helpful. Thursday morning, they left early for Chicago. We enjoyed their visit so

much. We hated for them to leave.

On Friday, August 21st, we ran errands and even went to the Ruhr-West Art Museum in Manitowoc. The Ruhr-West Mansion is the entrance of the museum and a beautiful

old home. Built as the residence of Joseph and Mary Vilas between 1891-1893 at a cost of $35,000, the house had thirteen bedrooms. In 1910, Rahr Malting Company

president Reinhardt Rahr purchased the estate for his family, who lived there until 1941, when his widow donated the house to the City of Manitowoc for use as a museum

and civic center. It has some outstanding exhibits, including the Simon Schwartz Collection of Chinese Ivories, representing more than three hundred years of ivory carving.

The parlor has been restored to its 1910 appearance. The Museum was between exhibits when we were there, but their permanent exhibits, as well as the mansion were

worth the visit.

We went back to the boat and finished installing the radar, straightened the boat, inside and outside, and got it ready to move. The weather looked good for the next day and

we hoped to go south.

MILWAUKEE ~ AUGUST 22 –AUGUST 31

At 7:00, we left the dock, keeping our fingers crossed for smooth water on Lake Michigan. We enjoyed our stay in Manitowoc very much. We planned to go to Sheboygan or

Port Washington. We had the wind at our back and we were going faster than we usually travel, doing 9 ½ to 10 mph, while only running at 1700 rpms. We were making

great time and the water was smooth. We passed Sheboygan, then Port Washington, and continued on to Milwaukee. It was 80 miles and we did not think we would go

that far, but it was easy. It got a little rough as we entered Milwaukee Harbor, but it was only for a short time. We planned to stay at the South Shore Yacht Club. The harbor

master was waiting for us to help us get tied up. The Yacht Club is very nice and its members are so friendly. It was a pleasure, staying there, except that the inner harbor

where the club is located is, at times, a little rocky and rolly.

We had dinner with our friends, Ken and Joyce, and Ken very graciously let us take his car back to Manitowoc on Monday to pick up our van and bring it back. Another day,

Phil and I went to the Milwaukee Art Museum, which is a fascinating building and was named “Best Design of 2001” by Time Magazine. It was designed by the architect,

Santiago Calatrava. It has wings above it that open and close. The wingspan is comparable to that of a Boeing 747-400, but it has two ultrasonic wind sensors that

automatically close the wings if the wind speed reaches 23 mph. This keeps the museum on the ground! It really is a beautiful building with exhibits that are very well done,

some interactive. The following photos show the museum building and its wings at various stages of their closing, as well as a wide range of exhibits. Note the sculpture

of the janitor, leaning against the wall.

We visited with some fellow Loopers, Joe and Punk (his wife) on their boat, close to the museum.

The weather in Milwaukee has been unseasonably cool and rainy. The locals are afraid their autumn has begun. Every day we have been seeing and hearing geese, flying

south.

Shortly before we left the South Shore Yacht Club, there was a sailboat race and hardly souls these sailors from Michigan are! The wind was howling in excess of 20 miles

per hour and the temperature was in the fifties. Some dressed in shorts and sweatshirts, some in wet-suits and foul weather gear. We had the heat on in our boat! We

agreed they were better “men” than we!

We have found out that the Illinois River, just south of Chicago, is closed. Asian carp by the thousands have made their way up the river system and are trying to get into the

cooler water in the Great Lakes. They are very detrimental to the eco-structure of the Great Lakes. For additional details, click on any of the following links:

Jumping Carp in the Illinois River, Part 1

Asian Carp in the Illinois River, Part 2

The Corp. of Engineers has an electric barrier on the bottom of the river. They are experimenting with upping the voltage and because of this, have closed the river to

recreational vessels. Only steel hull boats are allowed to pass. Some pleasure boaters are disconnecting all power sources in their boats and having their boats towed

through the area. The cost is apparently $600.00 cash. Phil has been reading all the Great Loop list serve posts, regarding the river situation. He has read hundreds of e-

mails. There is so much discussion and very little definitive information from the Corp. of Engineers or from the Coast Guard. Everyone is upset about it. It is a serious

problem. The carp cannot be allowed to go further up river and yet, by closing the Illinois River, the passage-way down the rivers to the Gulf is blocked. There are many,

many Loopers, as well as boaters who winter in Florida, who depend on being able to make their way down beginning in September. There is a rumor that they “might”

open it the middle of September, but we cannot wait that long because we would not have time to get down the rivers to where we need to leave the boat for the winter. They

do not have heated indoor storage that we know about south of Chicago, so the boat must be winterized and left in the water. This includes putting a heater in the engine

room, as well as one in the main cabin, and a dehumidifier in the kitchen sink. We would have to get it far enough south so that there would not be a prolonged, hard freeze

in the area. That said, after many days of agonizing over what we were going to do, we have decided to take the Harmony back to Muskegon, Michigan, and put her in heated

storage for the winter. We want to be home in mid to late September.

On Sunday night, we went to Ken and Joyce’s for dinner. When we got back to the marina, the gate was locked! We realized we should have gotten a key… It was about 10:

45. We called Joyce, but her phone went immediately to message which I did not leave, so we went downtown to the Hilton on the River and spent the night. It felt really

odd, checking in and going immediately to the room with no luggage and no toothbrush!

If the weather forecast stayed the same, the next day would be our last day in Milwaukee and I wanted to go to the Pabst Mansion. The Flemish Renaissance Revival home

was built in 1889-92 by Captain Frederick Pabst of Pabst Beer.

No cost was spared. The house was wired for electricity, then very new, plumbed for nine bathrooms and had a state-of-the-art heating system which could regulate the

heat in the mansion with 16 thermostats. The brewery originally was named Best Brewery, after the man who began it. Captain Pabst became his partner and good friend.

Eventually, the brewery was renamed, but in all their crests and insignia, there is always a “B” hidden in the design. The house is lovely with the bottom floor already totally

restored, the second floor almost finished and the third still being used for offices before the restoration on it begins. They have most of the original furniture, which was

either in the mansion or has since been donated back to the mansion. After the deaths of Captain (1904) and Mrs. (1906) Pabst, the heirs to the estate put the Pabst

Mansion up for sale. In 1908, the Archdiocese of Milwaukee bought it to be used as the residence of the Archbishop. For 67 years, five Archbishops and numerous priests

and sisters called the former Pabst Mansion home. Then in 1975, for the second time in history, the mansion was put up for sale. It was purchased by a man who owned a

business next to it and planned to demolish the house and make a parking lot. (One of the lines in a current popular Country-Western song says “They paved Paradise and

put up a parking lot”…) In 1978, due to hard work, a benefactor and some grants, enough money was raised to buy and preserve the Pabst Mansion. It is a beautiful home

and we recommend the tour to anyone interested in history. On our way back to the boat, we drove through the Historic Third Ward again and stopped at the Coquette Café

for a drink. We decided to have dinner and called Ken and Joyce to join us for dinner one more time! They did and we had a great time. It is a very good French restaurant.

We have enjoyed our stay in Milwaukee. It is an interesting and pretty city. It seems very easy to drive around in and the traffic has not been heavy at all. Most especially, it

has been such fun to be with Joyce and Ken again. We have felt most welcome at the South Shore Yacht Club. The members have gone out of their way to welcome us and

visit with us.

Manitowoc, Friends, Family, and Milwaukee- August 3-31, 2009

Harmony Log 2009

These "dead-heads" (submerged logs) were found and retrieved from the inner harbor of Manitowoc. They were supplied by the river that empties into
the harbor. Dead Heads represent one of the major hazards to propellors and rudders. They can cause significant and costly damage.

Kurt explaining the process of making "cheese wheels or rounds

Here is waxed cheese rounds 50 to 100 lbs and it is aging in a cooler

We visited the warehouse and storage facility where the cheese awaits
shipment