For the longest time I used the excuse that my kids weren't great swimmers to change the subject about Acquiring a lakefront Cottage. My Wife and Daughter were for it, my Son and I are city folk with minimal grass to cut. Well something changed, my daughter lobbied hard, and I kinda liked the idea since we rented a place on Georgian Bay last summer. I do like water skiing and do it every summer since 87' with the same friends from College days. It's getting hard to do and we mostly eat (and booze of course) during our annual weekend.
. A friend phoned me last month and said I told him I was interested in a cottage last year and the neighbours place was for sale. I saw it, did not like it much and started looking at other cottages. My daughter got in on the act and started sending me MLS listings of beautiful cottages (Near her friends) .
Kicked some tires, saw a couple on one outing then saw one I liked online... went to visit it (on an island) and when we arrived with the real estate agent, I helped dock the boat and my reading glasses promptly fell in the water and went down to the bottom.
I took a walk behind the place and the forest was spectacular. Big trees you can walk amongst . I liked that. Had to go swimming to get my glasses and you can imagine Canadian waters in May are not very inviting. Some decisions happen very quickly....this is one of them. So we got the place. Dock, boat house, house, shed.
A friend I met working on a Lancaster bomber restoration knows boats like he knows the bombers of WW2 . He is encyclopedic, so I trust every word he says about boats. He said "get a 14 foot aluminum utility boat" You will use it to to haul lumber, garbage, etc. You'll always need one of those. I liked that idea a lot. OK, boat purchase is on. I went on Kijiji (Bigger than CL in Canada) and started looking. Found one near an area I was planning on weekending near and went to see it.
It was junk, backed out. On my way home I stopped at a friend's cottage and remembered he had a great boat he never used, because he is a kayak nutcase (with 6 of them). So, now I got my first boat. I was actually the last guy to drive it 23 years ago. It is a Canadian made Springbok from about 1971. Robust boat that is for sure. Powering it is an 18HP Evinrude Fastwin of the same vintage. It had a bad water impeller the time I drove it, so hopefully it can be put back on the road. With some polish this boat is gonna be good.
A day goes by and the real estate agent says the owners are selling their boats, perhaps you might be interested. They would ideally like to sell them all at once.... for a pretty good price. .
. A friend phoned me last month and said I told him I was interested in a cottage last year and the neighbours place was for sale. I saw it, did not like it much and started looking at other cottages. My daughter got in on the act and started sending me MLS listings of beautiful cottages (Near her friends) .
Kicked some tires, saw a couple on one outing then saw one I liked online... went to visit it (on an island) and when we arrived with the real estate agent, I helped dock the boat and my reading glasses promptly fell in the water and went down to the bottom.
I took a walk behind the place and the forest was spectacular. Big trees you can walk amongst . I liked that. Had to go swimming to get my glasses and you can imagine Canadian waters in May are not very inviting. Some decisions happen very quickly....this is one of them. So we got the place. Dock, boat house, house, shed.
A friend I met working on a Lancaster bomber restoration knows boats like he knows the bombers of WW2 . He is encyclopedic, so I trust every word he says about boats. He said "get a 14 foot aluminum utility boat" You will use it to to haul lumber, garbage, etc. You'll always need one of those. I liked that idea a lot. OK, boat purchase is on. I went on Kijiji (Bigger than CL in Canada) and started looking. Found one near an area I was planning on weekending near and went to see it.
It was junk, backed out. On my way home I stopped at a friend's cottage and remembered he had a great boat he never used, because he is a kayak nutcase (with 6 of them). So, now I got my first boat. I was actually the last guy to drive it 23 years ago. It is a Canadian made Springbok from about 1971. Robust boat that is for sure. Powering it is an 18HP Evinrude Fastwin of the same vintage. It had a bad water impeller the time I drove it, so hopefully it can be put back on the road. With some polish this boat is gonna be good.
A day goes by and the real estate agent says the owners are selling their boats, perhaps you might be interested. They would ideally like to sell them all at once.... for a pretty good price. .
- So, I said let's talk... Gulp. Now I have a fleet. Since I didn't haggle, they threw in the lot. All the tools in the shed, equipment, log splitter, power washer, 4 1 ton hoists...Paddle boat (Which I hate) canoe, Hobie Cat 16 catamaran, 90 HP Edgewater runabout, and this beast , a 5.7 litre Volvo Penta Cobalt 226.
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- I never thought of myself owning such a boat, but sign here and it's yours. So I am missing the one thing I wanted (well two things) a ski boat and a Kayak.
- The Cobalt could pull ten skiers, but probably at $100 an hour in fuel and a huge wake. The 90 HP Tohatsu will probably do that pretty well, so I guess I do have a ski boat. And my friend with the excess of kayaks made me an offer I can't refuse on a pair of old town Cayugas. So from zero to 8 watercraft in a week. Life is way way more complicated now. 13 more spark plugs to change. Lot's of gas to buy just to get there. Looking forward to life on an island though and especially the forest out back. being on an island means way less Bears....or a very hungry Bear if one happens to be there.
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Congrats on the new purchase. I refuse to buy a boat, knowing that it is an acronym for "bust out another thousand". I'll stick to friends and family with boats. I do want to build a wooden kayak though, but I'll save that for my midlife crisis.