For sailors in the Milwaukee area, early January is a time when we often bundle up and road trip to Chicago for the boat show. But, of course, that’s not happening this year. For those who are missing the community and connection, we welcome them to the Milwaukee Bay Virtual Raft Up.

A raft up occurs when one boat anchors and others are tied to it, essentially creating a big raft. If you’ve sailed on Lake Michigan in the Milwaukee, Wisconsin area, or thought about it, or know people who have, or wanted to know them… then join us on our virtual raft! The program is free and open to anyone anywhere, no registration or sailing experience necessary.

Although some of the groups involved are membership-based, it is not a sales event. Each group will have its own breakout room within one Zoom link. Participants will only need to login once at www.virtualraftup.com and then can visit any room or rooms they’d like. The participating organizations are:
• Midwest Women’s Sailing Conference (anchoring the event)
• Friends of the Denis Sullivan
• MAST Racing
• McBoat
• Milwaukee Bay Women’s Sailing Organization
• Milwaukee Community Sailing Center
• Milwaukee Harbor Yacht Club
• Milwaukee Water Commons
• Milwaukee Yacht Club
• South Shore Yacht Club

We’ll have a “dockmaster” to help folks navigate the virtual waters. Participants can chat with friends, meet new people, learn about boating in Milwaukee Bay, and generally just hang out.