That. Damned. Boat. ™

Today, after yet another dance class, we packed up and towed That Damned Boat™ to the marina. We wanted to get it into the water so that next weekend, when we arrive late in the evening, we won't have to deal with getting the boat launched before heading over to the cottage. Cleverrrrrr.

The trip went without incident although I can confess to a bit of anxiety about dragging the boat around on a trailer. It's not something the Captain has a lot of experience doing, so the opportunity exists for things to go horribly awry. The worst of our trouble appeared to be the weather. It was overcast and drizzling lightly the whole way there.

As we arrived at Marvin's (a.k.a. Wood Duck Marina), there was another fellow attempting to launch his pontoon so we pulled up and waited a short while. The Captain took this opportunity to put the bilge plug into the boat (very important to avoid promptly sinking once in the water), to remove the straps, and to disconnect the electrical from the trailer (very important to keep things from going ZZZzzzztttzzzzot).

Soon he was able to back up the truck (unlike this doofus)

He then launched the boat into the water.

At about this time he realized he had no rope tied to the boat yet, and it was quickly heading adrift.

Heehee. These are the times when I'm most grateful for my camera. Please note everyone standing around watching and not helping.

With the boat tied up, he hopped in to start it up. It turned over a few times, and then did nothing. So he cranked it and cranked it and cranked it to no avail. Rather than incur the wrath of an angry captain (you don't have to watch many pirate movies to learn that angry captains lead to walking the plank!) the kids and I skedaddled into the truck to hide out from the rain. Ah yes, the rain, that was it; hiding from the rain.

He decided his recently charged battery was now dead, so he went to ask Marvin for a loaner. Marvin came out to help him out, and he got the boat started straight away much to the Captain's immense frustration. But wait! It died again! Even Marvin the Marvelous couldn't get it going.
That. Damned. BOAT™.

After some soggy troubleshooting in the unceasing drizzle, they concluded that a black bit had snapped off the pick-up unit of the gas tank, and was blocking the flow of gas in the fuel line.(ah, of course! That was my first guess. *boggle*) With instructions to head to Harris Boat Works to buy a new 'bit', we hopped in the truck, deposited the trailer at the VERY overcrowded lot, and toodled over to Gores Landing. Fortunately there were lots of signs showing where to go. I had a rough idea where we needed to be, but was light on specifics about which street, etc.

At Harris, the Captain was quoted $51 for a new pick up unit, or $70-$90 for a new gas can. Urg. He elected to buy a used gas can (make that two) for $30 ea. We had planned to get a new tank anyway as ours leaks a bit when sloshing around in the car, so it just made sense to buy another gas can.

Gas cans in hand (or, I guess, "in truck", as it just so happened) we drove back around to the other side of the lake to give the new pick up unit a whirl.

The boat started right away. I made the Captain shut it off and restart it 3 times before I'd head to the island with him. I didn't want to find out too late that his starting the boat was a one-time streak of good luck!

Again, the boat started without issue, so we donned our PFDs, loaded up, and headed out into the grey drizzle.

The lake was a little bit rough coming around the island (though not very) but the crossing was brief, and within minutes we were docked at the cottage! We unloaded all of our junk, except for the paddles which I stupidly forgot in the truck, and spent a bit of time unpacking and making beds. After a little while, we packed back up, started the boat, and zoomed back to shore.

It was brief, but it was our first trip to the cottage this year as a family. HOORAY!

Critters

Life is stirring on the island. The following critters were spotted by the captain and Handy Dad.

This is a turkey vulture. They're about as attractive as their name suggests.

Though when I think "vulture" I always picture this guy in my head:

And this furry little fellow is a muskrat. I'd say he's about as big as a soccer ball, wouldn't you? You better not gnaw on my fuel line, muskrat or I'll brain you with an oar!!

Water, Water everwhere and not a drop to drink!

When we had the cottage inspected, the inspector (◄That's Mike) informed us that the bladder in our water tank was ruptured and the tank itself was undersized (read: needs to be replaced).

We picked up a spanky-new bigger one at the Despot that winter, and it languished all last summer under the cottage because at first we didn't have the right connector bits, and then later because installing it would've meant disconnecting the water (!? - ya, I'm not sure how that's a valid reason either. Sometimes it's better not to think too hard about it.)

But at long last, it's installed! It's Big! It's Blue! The increased capacity means the pump will have to run less frequently, extending the life of the pump. Hopefully the water pressure will also improve now that the bladder in the tank is whole.

Once the water was hooked up, they realized the shower faucet was left on, so they had to run and turn that off. The water all headed down the drain, though, even though there was no grout yet on the floor tiles, so that tells me I'm an awesome shower-floor-slope-builder lady. There's also a leak from somewhere under the bathroom that they didn't have a chance to troubleshoot yet because.....

There was a bigger problem in Peaky. At some point the water supply for the Sheeter-to-nowhere in Peaky came apart. Once the water was turned back on, the bunky began to flood. By the time they realized, the floor was soaked.

They've since capped off that pipe into the bunky and installed a spigot on the end of the supply line until there's time for a more permanent fix. Of course the captain didn't photograph the wet floor. That would've been too interesting to look at and we didn't want to be responsible for any heart palpitations.

I still need to pound my head against the idea of some sort of pre-filter before the pump. Lake water isn't the cleanest, and any debris in the water will plug up faucets and, oh, say, things like shower heads. I really don't want to have to continually remove them and clean them out. I'm sure it's also not very good for the hot water tank to be full of all that guck and sediment.

So, if you know of something, or have suggestions, I'm all ears!

Water, Water everwhere and not a drop to drink!

When we had the cottage inspected, the inspector (◄That's Mike) informed us that the bladder in our water tank was ruptured and the tank itself was undersized (read: needs to be replaced).



We picked up a spanky-new bigger one at the Despot that winter, and it languished all last summer under the cottage because at first we didn't have the right connector bits, and then later because installing it would've meant disconnecting the water (!? - ya, I'm not sure how that's a valid reason either. Sometimes it's better not to think too hard about it.)

But at long last, it's installed! It's Big! It's Blue! The increased capacity means the pump will have to run less frequently, extending the life of the pump. Hopefully the water pressure will also improve now that the bladder in the tank is whole.



Once the water was hooked up, they realized the shower faucet was left on, so they had to run and turn that off. The water all headed down the drain, though, even though there was no grout yet on the floor tiles, so that tells me I'm an awesome shower-floor-slope-builder lady. There's also a leak from somewhere under the bathroom that they didn't have a chance to troubleshoot yet because.....

There was a bigger problem in Peaky. At some point the water supply for the Sheeter-to-nowhere in Peaky came apart. Once the water was turned back on, the bunky began to flood. By the time they realized, the floor was soaked.

They've since capped off that pipe into the bunky and installed a spigot on the end of the supply line until there's time for a more permanent fix. Of course the captain didn't photograph the wet floor. That would've been too interesting to look at and we didn't want to be responsible for any heart palpitations.



I still need to pound my head against the idea of some sort of pre-filter before the pump. Lake water isn't the cleanest, and any debris in the water will plug up faucets and, oh, say, things like shower heads. I really don't want to have to continually remove them and clean them out. I'm sure it's also not very good for the hot water tank to be full of all that guck and sediment.



So, if you know of something, or have suggestions, I'm all ears!

Buddies

This isn't just a boat on the lake.

This boat heralds the arrival of Nathan, the very best thing about the cottage, as far as the kids are concerned.

Without the princess there, the wee lad had Nathan's undivided attention for the entire day, and he couldn't be happier.

They found an old fishing bob and pretended it was a bomb.

They tossed a stick back and forth between the two docks, but then the stick broke.

The wee lad changed into his swimsuit (!? it really wasn't that warm - the lake is only 59º) and  they shot each other with the water-squirter thingers that I bought this winter.

They tried to jump over the large flooded swamp and sang up to their knees in guck. Oh, wait. That was just the wee lad. Good thing there was a change of clothes!

They played with the whizbang I bought for a dollar (purely because I had so much fun playing with the same - albeit better-made - thing when I was a kid).

In short, they picked up right where they left off.

My fears were not unfounded

We were very fortunate that our cottage escaped major damage in the recent wind storm that struck the lake. Others were not as fortunate. In addition to our neighbour's docks that went walkabout, there were trees down around the island.

This is a poplar tree from up by our firepit. It was already dead, so no big loss, and we were lucky that it fell away from the buildings.

This other cottage was not as lucky. Their boat house took a beating when a big tree fell on it. I hope they can repair the damage without too much effort.

From what I've heard, the north shore of the lake got hit much harder than the island did.

Dock, 2011

On a gorgeous Spring Saturday, the good men of The Lodge headed out to install our docks.

While the water was cold, apparently the temperatures were lovely and their always attractive hip-waders kept them dry (except for the captain who managed to fall into the lake. Bwahahahahahaha! *sniff* *wipe* Oh, I wish I had been there with my camera! At least he had the good sense to leave his cell phone on the deck. *ahem*)

The docks went in with ease, according to reports, and they had extra time to putter around attending to other cottage chores like connecting the water and emptying the poo hole.

Gosh the lake looks lovely. *contented sigh*

And that fella in the hip-waders is looking pretty fine, himself!

I can't wait to get back there. We're planning a day trip on Saturday (arg with the dance schedule conflicts already! arg arg arg) even though they're calling for rain. We need to launch our own boat, transport some more items, and do some spring cleaning before settling in for the summer.

Happy clap!