Finally a success story!!  We spent last Saturday night at anchor (on the hook in fancy boat language) in Lake St Clair and it was AMAZING…with only a few minor issues to report.  😉

 

On our way out to the Bay we were nervous about depths because we’re just not used to navigating this new boat in our favorite boating locations.  We love shallow water for it’s warmth this time of year and because the kids love splashing around and being able to touch bottom while they’re playing.  However, we don’t love shallow water because we have a big boat now and props that we can’t raise in shallow water.  We were hoping to meet up with some friends who were already out in a certain spot, so we were motivated to get out there, but also a little nervous since our depth finder isn’t yet working while we wait for the electronics install to be finalized.  On the way out, we had plenty of discussion about the depths and what our navigation apps were telling us–should we keep going and hope for the best??  Or play it safe and go somewhere else??  Mike’s solution (always so practical!) was to stop every once in a while and stick a pole down in the water to see how deep it really was under the boat.  Our navigation apps told us we were in about 4 feet of water, yet his experiment showed us that we were actually in at least 8 feet of water.  It just didn’t make sense.  So…what to do, what to do?  We just kept on motoring easy and stopped a few more times to try the ole “pole in the water” depth-checking trick, and sure enough, we made it to our destination just fine.   Whew!

 

I didn’t take any pictures when we first got out to the Bay because I was too busy socializing, but it sure was nice to have all the kids in the water, going between boats, and splashing around playing.  It wasn’t long before our friends started packing up to head home and we were left on our own for the evening.  The Bay was so quiet and calm with only a few other boats left.  I wondered if we would be the only ones there for the night or if other boats would also stay over.  Mike used the grill for the first time, and we had a great dinner of grilled chicken, hot dogs, potato salad, and watermelon–a perfect summer meal.  The water was calm, the Bay was peaceful, the boat was content, and it was just about perfect.

 

Hayley and Tobin played quietly with cars and dinosaurs after dinner.  This kind of quiet cooperation doesn’t always happen with these kiddos, so I thoroughly enjoyed the peace.

The flybridge was a perfect place to enjoy my wine and do some research in preparation to head back to the Georgian Bay.  I have to admit, it was hard to focus on the book being surrounded by such beauty.  I didn’t get much planning done after all, but I sure enjoyed the sunset.

Colin kept me company up there, as well.  He is thrilled that it is “Summer Reading Program” season, and he is currently working on reading for 3 different contests.  This boy loves to read!!

Grandma Hays also enjoyed the peace and quiet.  It reminded her of many years spent at the family cottage not too far from here.

Two of these boats ended up staying the night, also.

We turned a movie on for the kids as they started getting sleepy and the adults enjoyed the view from the sundeck.  Gorgeous sunset.

Apparently, a beautiful, quiet sunset was too peaceful for Mike, however.  That guy is always up for an adventure, so around dusk he decided to put the dinghy in the water and take it for a spin.  I figured the quiet caused by the movie wouldn’t last too long, so I stayed behind to put kiddos to bed.  In hindsight, I’m glad I did because the fuel line on the dinghy came disconnected once it was good and dark out there, and Mike ended up rowing the whole way home, surrounded by gnats.  He was just thankful they weren’t mosquitoes, but it still looked pretty miserable to me, and he jumped in the lake as soon as the dinghy was secure.

 

The overnight was beautiful and peaceful (except for all that rowing and Colin falling out of bed, but better him than grandma…).  All the bugs that helped Mike row home should have been our first sign that bugs were going to be a problem on such a calm, humid night.  We woke up in the morning to find that thousands? millions? of gnats decided to join our boat overnight, mostly on the outside of the windows and screens but plenty found their way inside as well.  Mike soon realized that the bugs were going to be quite bothersome outside all day because they covered him every time he went out to take care of something, and of course the forecast called for 90* temps that day, so outside was going to be necessary.  I tried vacuuming them up, but it was clear they were not leaving.  We decided to ignore the bug problem because we felt pretty helpless on how to get rid of them.

I enjoyed watching some jet skis zoom around in the bay as I drank my coffee and tried to ignore the bugs getting squished into the carpet.  The kids had cereal and fruit at the kitchen table.  Grandma and I did some interior decorating.  And we were HOT.  It was 80* something by 10am or so with not much breeze at all and a forecasted high in the upper 90*s.  Mike attempted to clean bugs off the outside of the boat, and Hayley joined him on the lily pad when we were greeted by some excitement.

A sea plane flew over the bay, which is not unheard of, but still very exciting to see.  However, we were so surprised when the sea plane landed and cruised right over to our boat.  It pretty much drove right up to Hayley and gave us quite a show–made us wonder if they were coming to give us a secret message, but texting would be just so much easier.  I wondered if maybe he was trying to blow our bugs away??  Then, just as fast as it came, the sea plane cruised right by us and took off again, just behind the boat.  Everyone on our boat was thrilled with the show!  What a surprise!

 

 

Soon the Bay began to fill with boats and a typical summertime Sunday on Lake St Clair ensued…the only difference was this one was filled with tons of gnats.  Lots of boats, but more bugs.  So many bugs that they scared away two boats of friends from joining up with us throughout the day.  The bugs were a bummer.  And the heat was oppressive.  But it was still a fun day on the water.  We are looking forward to lots of days like this on the water, but hopefully way less bugs!!

 

 

A few updates:

We have HOT water!!  Yay Mike for troubleshooting that problem and fixing it with one new thermostat and just one flood during the process.

The invertor is working properly!!  Yay Mike for figuring that out, too.  However, now there is a problem with our electrical panel, but it should get looked at next week by an ELECTRICIAN.

We are anxious to get the renaming ceremony done (this is a thing–a post on this soon) and get the new name on the boat.  Hopefully soon.

Hopefully electronic upgrade/install will be complete early next week.  We need to learn how to use these new gadgets stat!!

Our house is in shambles.  Now that school is out, boxing up is in full swing.  9 days til we have to be on the boat full-time.  OhmygoodnessI’mfreakingoutaboutthiswehavealotofstuff…

Hopefully a post on this soon.

School’s out for summer!!  Woo Hoo!  #teacherlife