Messing about in boats

[Harriet]

There is a quote from Wind in the Willows to the effect that there is nothing quite so grand as "messing about" in boats. Here is a boat that has a long history of fishing and messing about in rivers and lakes in this area, fully restored and looking like new... It predates the huge and fast bass fishing boats of today, but sometimes the good stuff can't be enjoyed at great speed.

1977 Boston Whaler and original 35HP Evinrude outboard

boat.jpg (17 KiB) Viewed 239 times

[Tony]

There is nothing I would rather be doing than "messing about" in boats".
I especially love that first cool run of the day at speed, fingers numb, face frozen, with a blanket of fog resting gently on the slightly rippled waters surface as it disapears beneath you in a blurrrrr.
Cool little whaler! Is this yours?

[Peterthecactusguy]

cool boat. My ancestors used to build ships in Maine and captain them around the world. I don't sail much, and have never properly been taught, however I have taken control of a sail boat for around half an hour. I was pretty good at tacking and the captain forgot about me for awhile. I didnt slam into anything, and I kept the course fairly straight... (It was on the Chesapeake Bay) so maybe some of that sailing rubbed off on me. Whatever the case I love boats, but I live far away from most water, the closest to me is Lake Pleasant..
it's deep and scary for me tho... 252 feet at the docks... (FYI yes I know the ocean is deeper than that in many places, but .. Where I have been in the ocean wasn't more than 20-50 feet deep, and I don't like deep water over my head very much!)

[cactushobbyman]

When I had my business in San Jose, CA, my shop landlord use to rebuild vintage Chriscraft runabout. I agree, they don't build them like they use to.

[Harriet]

The Whaler is my sister's boat. She was the original owner in 1977 and has just in the last few months found it and restored it. It is kinda cool because there are so many happy memories attached to that particular boat that only having the "real McCoy" can evoke.

I no longer have a boat, but when my husband and I first married we had a sweet 27' Sloop, we skipped the motor boat thing for deep water sailing. We ended up having kids, so the boat had to go. It ended up being sunk during a hurricane in Mobile Bay, Alabama.

The sailing thing is a tradition in my family too. One branch of my Dad's family were originally sailors/merchants who settled in Charleston, SC in 1690 or so... But most recently my Dad and Mother had sloops ... from the time I was a teenager until my Dad died. There was always the chance for some great sailing in the Gulf of Mexico, and going to the Bahamas when we kept the boat on the East coast.

As a teenager my family had a 16' runabout that predated the big boats. It was great for waterskiing, and fishing, and exploring, and for getting the attention of teenage boys...

[Peterthecactusguy]

Harriet, well the ocean is an interesting place. Yes I know it's deep but the boats are bigger on the ocean and I feel safer there. Basically my ancestors built ships out of wood. When sailing was no longer the preferred method they went into other industries. Steamers really did revolutionize the industry. Cargo could be moved much more quickly and somewhat safely. Sailing however is interesting. I just sorta live in the middle of Central AZ and so I am pretty far from water. In any case that is a neat little boat. It might not be big, of fast, but it looks like fun

[Tony]

I have always had a major attraction to water and what lives there, being a boat owner was a main goal from as far back as I can remember, which these days is about an hour and a half.
Now my major concern its just keeping the aging thing afloat, she's 16 years old now.

I have a very poor memory (No surprise there) but I have one memory from when I was about 4 that sticks with me to this day. I was with my grandfather on his boat at a local lake fishing and something big tried to pull me over the side. I lost that first fish and will be looking for it for the rest of my life. My uncle in Pa. still owned that old boat up until a few years ago, but its gone now.
Ill see if i can dig up some old faded images.

Got to go sailing once on a little hobbie cat. Major rush! I had never gone so fast, so quickly, so quietly before. No vibration or exhaust noise, just whoosh and your on the other side of the bay, 10 feet in the air trying to turn and not flip over before hitting the bank.

The surroundings look beautiful there, Is that a saltwater bay or is that fresh water?

[Harriet]

The whaler is on a small (fresh water) lake that leads into the St. Johns river. If you go north far enough you can get to the Atlantic from that dock.

There is nothing like sailing, every type of boat gives a different sensation, one of the common things is the quiet sense of flying across the water. I used to love sailing out in the Gulf with no noise other than wind, waves and the porpoise sounding in the bow wake as they flew along beside us.

I'll see if I can dig up some boat pictures to share. I would love to see pictures of other boats posted here!