funny thing, it was 2 o'clock before I noticed!

A little earlier the owner's son, Timmy, and 'a friend' came by and asked if we wouldn't mind taking them out on the babyliner for a boat ride. Noticing the perfect weather, I decided we needed to take both boats out! Just as we were prepping to leave, some dock friends, Joey & Chris, and some of THEIR friends showed up to take mom & dad's Bennington out. They cleaned up their mess from the prior ride, got everything loaded up and while warming up the boat, guess who shows up? Mom & dad! Normally they all gang up together on the 'toon, but mom & dad came out for a day alone on their boat, and didn't tell anyone. So we left, mom & dad left, and Joey's crew were left to do their boating in their 18' Crown...

We get out a ways and throw out the anchor. The admiral stays behind while I take Timmy & friend out for a scoot. Before we took off I finally got my first shots of our boat on the hook!

This one is the admiral waving.....




to Joey and the gang...




...who decided they needed a bigger boat! So while they tied up to our boat, me & my guests went out for a 20 minute blast. While the weather was perfect, the water was pretty bumpy. But young kids are fearless, and the hard water at WOT only made them (and me) smile! (If I'd taken the admiral on that ride, we'd be in court tomorrow! )

Took a pic of the houseboat from way out. A big lake will shrink up even the biggest boats...




When we got back, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves! This boat makes a great high-dive!









The slide got plenty used, one of Chris's kids took pics but I haven't seen those yet. Wasn't long before an impromptu BBQ broke out!






A good time was had by all! We decided to pull up stakes about 7:30, it's getting late and it was a bit windy now. Joey and his friend took his boat while everyone else stayed with us. We pull away, and about 30 seconds later I notice the babyliner is floating aimlessly in the lake, no longer attached to the houseboat! So we turn around to fetch it. Someone had moved the tow rope and it ended up staddling the ladder bracket, which just cut the rope. Timmy and I decide to just tie it up sideways with mooring whips because we were going to have to stop and do that anyway before entering the harbor. While we're doing that, the admiral's phone rings. Joey didn't make it back, he ran out of gas!

No such thing as a perfect day? No biggie, we'll just pull him up alongside and gas him from the toy tank. But--the wind is blowing, I'm 1/4 mile away going 3 mph and the wind is pushing Joey closer to the marshy shore. So, me & Timmy untie the babyliner to go get him and pull him away from the shore, and I give the reins to the admiral so she can idle the big boat out a bit farther.

Me & Timmy going to fetch...




The stranded boys.




Only problem was, by the time we got us all back to the big boat, which had been neutral for awhile, the wind had pushed IT too close to the shore, so we didn't have time to gas up Joey, and and to head back out into open water. Tow, tow, tow your boat...;)




We finally got Joey gassed up, everything else went fine...by far the best day of the season so far!

FR:

That's too much work.

Nope, just makes the adventure more adventurous and you have more stories and interesting pics.

Good Job FR. Congrats on getting everybody out for a great day on the water.

Great Story.

YEAH for the FR gang!!! Sounds like a near perfect day of adventure!! Glad to hear that you all enjoyed yourselves dispite the running out of gas deal!!
Let's hope that you have a few more of those great days!!

LBS

'bout time you get to enjoy boating more than just the living part.
Nice to see that big blue boat out in the lake.

Now! That's what I'm talking about! Looks like a great day. Bet its great to have that big ol' houseboat with all the food and fixin's for a supper on the lake

Sounds like you all had a great time FR.

It always seems as though the best times are had when nothing is planned ahead of time.

It sure sounds like a great day to me!

Great story and pix. And here I wasted Saturday and Sunday working, didn't sell a single car, might as well have been having fun on the water.

Great story.

Thanks.

So let me get this straight. Your house floats and has a slide on the back.

Just kidding. I've seen your pics from last year with even bigger crowds on board.

But a Babyliner towing a Crownie, that's so wrong.

Semper Fi 75

Can you tell the lady in the pink with white trim bikini that the tag was sticking out of the bottom of her suit? Oh and ask her if she can face the camera, smile, and move a lot closer?!