Summer Memories ~ Lake of Bays
Boating (Part Two)
The first year we stayed at our new cottage, we had 14’
runabout boat with a 10 hp engine. Eventually, that year my dad purchased a new
Shepherd outboard boat with a 50 hp Johnson motor. It was a magnificent classic
wooden runabout outboard boat, made in Niagara-on-the-Lake by Shepherd Boat
Works. I was allowed to drive, and loved every minute behind the wheel. We had
the boat for a number of years, until a nasty storm stripped it away from our
boat dock and carried it away to the rock of a nearby island. We (I) were
devastated. I felt that I had lost my best friend. For me it was my “life-line”
to my summer “freedom”. Not only did it give me peace of mind, but it
transported me through the waters on my slalom ski.
For sometime, I felt a great loss, no boat to explore the
lake with, no slalom skiing and no summer fun!
I think that my father must have experienced the same melancholy. After
all, the boat was his pride and joy. I believe he enjoyed boating as much as I
did.
(Continued in Part Three)
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