SE Michigan Iceboating
When the season ends on Baseline Lake and the last boats are tucked away for the winter, another kind of sailing begins—iceboating!
I recently joined MSC members Carey Jones and Doug Merchant for an exciting weekend of iceboating on Cavanaugh Lake, just west of Chelsea. In SE Michigan the iceboating season can be brief. The combination of freezing cold and snow-free ice is rare, so we jumped at the chance when the conditions allowed.
We rigged the DN class iceboats in a biting wind, the temperature just 10 F. Carey’s boat, built in the 1970’s is made of varnished pine and plywood. Doug’s boat is newer and uses mostly composite materials: both are little rocket ships. Capable of sailing four times the speed of the wind, they often exceed 50 mph. The boats ride on three long skates (called runners) honed to a sharp edge, and are steered by a tiller connected to the bow.
It has been years since I sailed an iceboat. I lay in the cockpit (similar to piloting a luge) and hauled in the mainsheet. The boat leapt forward like a race horse out of the gate. With almost zero friction, the acceleration was instant. Inches below me the frozen lake flashed by in a dizzying blur. The wind, like an Arctic gale, howled around my helmet, and the runners thundered over the dark ice. Squinting through frozen tears I watched the opposite shore approach with alarming speed. I turned in a wide arc, tacked around a few ice shanties and ran back up to the starting point.
Whooping and hollering we chased across the frozen lake all afternoon, exchanging high fives and big smiles when we came in to warm up.
Club member Evie Henry joined us the next day. New to iceboating she was soon racing across the lake like a seasoned pro. The fundamentals of sailing still apply, it’s the breathtaking speed and the -20 F. wind chills that are different.
We were fortunate to get in a third day of good ice before the temperature climbed into the thirties and the surface began to soften. It was time to wrap it up, and we hoped for favorable conditions that would allow us to sail again in the short southern Michigan season.
Iceboating is a terrific way to spend a cold winter day on the water— water that’s just a little more solid than we’re used to. If you get a chance to sail an iceboat—go! The thrilling memories will last a lifetime.
