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Houseboat Adventure

Wayne Gray

Entry posted by Wayne Gray

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We’re now on the road, headed back from our house-boating vacation.

The first thing we did was load everything onboard, then we got a crash course on not crashing the boat.  After our thirty-minute briefing, we pulled away from the dock and onto the open water of Shasta Lake.

Our only goal was to have a good time.  To that end, we tooled along on the beautiful and sunny lake until we found a safe, secluded little inlet.

We docked by motoring slowly forward and gently kissing the shore.  Then a couple of us jumped out and pounded a pair of long metal stakes firmly into the clay and rock, then we roped off to the stakes.

Once safely moored, it was party-time.  We drank, prepared food, swam, kayaked, and floated on various devices.  This pattern held for three days, and all was great.

Last night was our final one on the boat.  We found a new spot, and I noticed that our stakes were moving a bit.  We did our best with the rocky shore, and at last we went to bed.

I woke at 2 a.m. because the boat was rocking side to side kinda hard.  There was a massive thunderstorm over us, and wind, water, lightning and great peals of thunder all served to announce the inclement weather.  I got up, and one stake had pulled completely free of the shore.  We were drifting toward the rocks, sideways.

We go rushing out.  My buddy, Craig had the freed metal spike and a hammer.  “God, this is so dumb!” He yelled, and jumped into the water while lightning streaked across the sky overhead.  I agreed, and jumped in to help.

While I’m pulling as hard as I can on the mooring rope to straighten the boat, Craig hammers away.  Finally, the spike is in and I’ve managed to turn the watercraft enough to avoid catastrophe.  We wrap the rope to the spike.

At last, dripping wet and scraped from the rocks, we wearily reentered the boat.  After a toweling off and some first-aid we went to bed.  Luckily there were no more such events.

The late-night unexpectedness was exciting, and we all still had fun.  If nothing else, I’ll never forget this trip.

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rickproehl

rickproehl 11,876

Posted

Wayne I’m glad you had fun and enjoyed your house boat trip.

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Wayne Gray

Wayne Gray 41,787

Posted

10 minutes ago, rickproehl said:

Wayne I’m glad you had fun and enjoyed your house boat trip.

Thanks, rick.  It was absolutely a great time.  I recommend it to everybody.

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Thorn Wilde

Thorn Wilde 27,002

Posted

Glad you had fun! And glad you're safe, that thunderstorm sounds kind of scary.

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Wayne Gray

Wayne Gray 41,787

Posted

1 hour ago, Thorn Wilde said:

Glad you had fun! And glad you're safe, that thunderstorm sounds kind of scary.

Thanks, Thorn.  It was a fantastic time.  The storm was wild.  It didn’t last long, but it certainly left an impression.

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Reader1810

Reader1810 52,196

Posted (edited)

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Sounds like quite an adventure that final night. And, now that you can look back on it, it was kinda fun, wasn’t it? And, it makes for a great tale to tell, right?  ;)

Edited by Reader1810
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Wayne Gray

Wayne Gray 41,787

Posted

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14 minutes ago, Reader1810 said:

Sounds like quite an adventure that final night. And, now that you can look back on it, it was kinda fun, wasn’t it? And, it makes for a great tale to tell, right?  ;)

The people who went along on the trip are already asking when the next one will be.  So, I think our late night dip into the lake was not too harmful to the overall experience.  We took to calling that place where we were moored "Thunder Cove of Death".  Though, no death happened, we know it was hungry for it.  What's truly hilarious is the next day we saw someone else moored there.  After about an hour, we heard a panicked voice.  "Hey!  One of the lines came loose!"  We all cackled as they scrambled around trying to get a new mooring established.  It was nice to know that it wasn't just us.

Thanks, Reader.  Yes, it was a great time.

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rickproehl

rickproehl 11,876

Posted (edited)

3 hours ago, Wayne Gray said:

The people who went along on the trip are already asking when the next one will be.  So, I think our late night dip into the lake was not too harmful to the overall experience.  We took to calling that place where we were moored "Thunder Cove of Death".  Though, no death happened, we know it was hungry for it.  What's truly hilarious is the next day we saw someone else moored there.  After about an hour, we heard a panicked voice.  "Hey!  One of the lines came loose!"  We all cackled as they scrambled around trying to get a new mooring established.  It was nice to know that it wasn't just us.

Thanks, Reader.  Yes, it was a great time.

Do we see this adventure in a future story? I’m sure not silverwolf. You could title the story “As the houseboat floats”  we go until we need to stop for cider” then we let the good times roll. Each stop a new adventure. 

Edited by rickproehl
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Mikiesboy

Mikiesboy 143,938

Posted

As the Houseboat Floats ... great soap opera title.  

You had a great adventure!  I'm glad you had a nice vacation. xo

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Wayne Gray

Wayne Gray 41,787

Posted

7 minutes ago, Mikiesboy said:

As the Houseboat Floats ... great soap opera title.  

You had a great adventure!  I'm glad you had a nice vacation. xo

Thanks, tim.  It was a great time, and mostly relaxing.  That end bit was just there to ensure the experience was stamped in our minds.

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Fae Briona

Fae Briona 7,374

Posted

Glad all of you had a great time.

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Wayne Gray

Wayne Gray 41,787

Posted

3 minutes ago, Fae Briona said:

Glad all of you had a great time.

Thanks, Fae.  Me too.  It was grand, and we're already planning next year's trip.

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