Boating in New England

New England summers are predictably short with unpredictable weather. When it’s good it’s great, but when it’s bad it’s terrible!! The life of a boater is subject to much angst when dependent on the weather, whether it is rain, storms or winds. This year, the La Niña winds, our leftovers from El Niño in California, have wreaked a little havoc for our boaters causing some rough rides for those willing to give it a go. Lucky for us, we have wonderful, generous friends with boats who invite us out on the water on some of the better days. Sometimes, we all even go out together!

We had a boat years ago and loved boating life. We had a lot of flexibility with our schedules at that time so we could go out mid-week or whenever the weather was good. We were that friend with a boat. We kept our boat in Marshfield and loved to venture south. We would go to Duxbury Bay to let the kids tube, to Plymouth Harbor and tie up at the Mayflower so the kids could run up to Water St. and grab ice creams, the area across from the Fairview Inn to pull our 4 lobster traps, or venture through Stellwagen Bank to see what sealife we could find or drive over to Provincetown and moore up so we could run up to the Portuguese Bakery and grab rabanadas for breakfast. One day was so perfect in Stellwagen that we saw whales, dolphins, a large sea turtle, a blue shark and a giant basking shark. Of course, we have no pictures to post of this adventure as this was before the time of digital pictures. The only pictures we have are in an album up in the attic somewhere. Once I changed from 3 12-hr shifts to a Monday-Friday 9-5 role, we didn’t get to go out as much. We gave up our own boat once the motor needed major work.

Robbie and Paula have their boat in Marina Bay in Quincy, MA. When we go out with them, we often head to Boston Harbor and drive around by Boston Light, the Harbor Islands or go into the Charles River (a personal favorite). We have tied up in Boston for dinner at The Reel House in East Boston, and The Barking Crab and Legal Seafood in the Seaport area with Robbie and Paula. Last week we did a sunset cruise in the harbor which was fun. We ate lobster rolls in the boat as we watched the sunset. Such a gorgeous night.

One accidental yet perfect day with Robbie and Paula was when we went to Brown’s Bank, a sandbar off Plymouth beach. We anchored the boat in an area we deemed safe. Unfortunately, we miscalculated the run-out moon tide and ended up high and dry. We had to wait for the incoming tide to get floating again. We entertained ourselves just fine by searching for sand dollars and sea clams. We rode home under a beautiful full moon and watched the green phosphorescence in the waves beside the boat. Robbie and Paula’s kids still think of that as one of their best adventures.

Carol and John also keep their boat in Quincy, but at a different Marina – Captain’s Cove. We have hit a few destinations with Carol and John, such as tying up at World’s End in Hingham, docking in Hull, Scituate or Boston and grabbing a bite at a restaurant. We have been to Jake’s in Hull, TK O’Malley’s in Scituate, The Barking Crab and The Lookout at Envoy in Boston.

Steve and Debbie keep their boat at their cottage in Center Ossipee, NH. This year they switched from a bow rider to a pontoon boat. We have been appreciating the lake with them and their family for 30 years. We enjoy relaxing days on the water bopping around from one beachy spot to another or going out for a sunset cruise.

A favorite picture is one I took up here from the boat– a panoramic that started with the sunset on one side and the gorgeous full, super-moon rise on the other. Here we are surrounded by gorgeous mountain landscapes, bald eagles and peaceful nature all around.

We only get one chance at life on this planet, so it is important to surround yourself with great people to enjoy it with. Otherwise, life will pass you by. Make memories with people every chance you get, because at some point, that is all that is left. Enjoy it while you can!

With the most sincere gratitude to our beautiful friends,

Until next time!

Patti and Jim