drewstwos
Well-Known Member
Reflections 16.
Lake boating USA, with a plethora of pictures and some startling statistics.
Hi y’all, as they say.
Are you sitting comfortably….then I will begin. This is the tale of my recent visit to the States. The trip was in the nature of some business and a lot of pleasure. But first those startling statistics.
1. You could put the whole of the UK in the state of Indiana, which incidently was the state I was in. The population of that state is a mere 6 million, and us poor overcrowded Brits have 60 million, no wonder there is a lot of open space there,
2. But what do they use that space for? They grow corn and soya beans. Indiana is one of four states that do this, and on an annual basis they produce 5 billion bushels of corn, yes billion not million
3. Ah! What does a bushel of corn look like? It’s about the size of a wheelie bin, (so I am told, and I accept no responsibility for its accuracy!!). Can you just imagine that. All those wheelie bins laid end to end, or even side b y side. Think they’d reach the moon or maybe even further.
4. There is a saying that corn should be ‘Knee high by the fourth of July’. This year is was 6 ft by that date.
The corn is high
The flights were from the Isle of Man to Dublin, then to Newark to enter the USA and then another puddle jumper to Cincinatti, where we were to be met by a good friend. The trip in reverse to come home. There was a novel security screen in Dublin outbound; they had introduced USA immigration there before boarding the flight to the USA. This meant that if they were going to refuse entry, you just didn’t get there, which saved the trouble of sending you back whence you came. The Visa waiver was also done there rather than on the plane. After being fingerprinted electronically and photographed etc, I was OK to go.
Enough of that, don’t want to lose my audience, it’s the boaty bits that matter. Near the town of Brookville is a lake, one of many thousands scattered all over the land, and each one has its quota of boats, the majority of which are pontoons. As you will have already guessed, they are but two tubes with a pointy bit at the front and rear, over which is laid an oblong deck, and over that is built whatever takes your fancy. The one in question is 26 ft long by 10 ft wide, seats all round a helm position and a bimini over all. Very necessary as the usual temperature is a steady 90+ at that time of year, and rather humid. It was while I was there, The engine in this case a 35 hp outboard. They come in all sizes as will be seen in the several photos later on.
Capn Tom
Looking forward
The lake is a man made reservoir, and like that village in Wales, they drowned one here, It was called Fairfield, and now it is under 60 ft of water. The lake is about 15 miles long, but rather narrow, and has three marinas. During the construction someone came up with the need for a beach, so they trucked some sand in, many thousands of tons of the stuff…..nice yellow sand,,, and there being no tides, there it stays.
Beach
Our friends boat was moored out on a buoy, there pronounced booee..and to get there you just go into the little hut and ask to be taken out in the water taxi.
Taxi house
This is a free service 24 hours a day for the clientele that have moored boats there.
W
ater taxi
Getting back is a bit more tricky as you have to blast an air horn and they will eventually come and get you, though how they see who is calling amongst a large fleet is a bit daunting, but do it they do.
To digress a little.I’d like to point out that Tom and Marty are not rich, but their home is a wonderful place. 35 acres, 25 of which is woodland. The pix tell it all. In the evening we could sit on the verandah, with humming birds darting overhead to hover at the feeders, and watch as deer or a plump wild turkey strutted across the pasture stretching away below us,
Toms house 2
T
oms view 2
Toms house 35 acres
Toms view1
The day we were able to go boating was overcast when we set off. Arrived at the marina and were duly delivered to the boat.
The engine fired up and off we went.
L
eaving the marina
Not a lot of traffic as it was a weekday, and we made a leisurely journey cross the lake to see how the rich folk live. Our marina is middle of the road, but this one is another story.
Nearing the rich folk
It is a haunt for the corporate entertainment clique, must be cos these very big boats never leave harbour. Some, as you will see are decorated in weird fashion. Most have satellite dishes and the usual slides for the kids and the obligatory jet skis
Pic boat 1
Pic boat 2
This is
Pic boat 3
Pic boat 4
Getting rather
Pic boatb 5
Pic boat 6
ridiculous
Pic boat 7
Pic boat 8
Don’t you think
Pic boat 9
Pic boat 11
And if you need to have a look under the boat… no problem.
T
rouble no bother.
As we tootled along the echo sounder/fish finder was set to alarm at about 2ft of water under the boat, and it was always full of fish,,, millions of them, and nobody in sight with a rod. There were several grey herons doing just that though. There are dozens of little bays you can creep into, dead slow as there are many traps for the unwary in the shape of tree branches etc under the surface, just lurking there ready to grab either a propeller or even a swimmer.
But as we cruised on, then there was this ….. looking rather offended at being put in with such……company
Then there was this.
Eventually the day ended and we cruised slowly back to the po’h folks marina. The water taxi did find us too.
Pic I got a go too
More pontoon boats.
And yes,,,, even though we were 1000 miles from the nearest ocean, some years back someone introduced a pair of gulls. Their decendents are now well settled, and their habits never change.
Seagull poopery.
Personally I prefer the wind and the waves and the freedom to go where I please. The tang of the salt air, the slap and splash as the bow cuts through the water, to go close to towering cliffs, or follow a bright lane of moonlight as a night watch ticks the time away.
So I hope I have given you a short look at another version of lake boating as it is done in the USA. True there are the Great Lakes up north with hundreds of miles of open water that can and does get very very rough, and further south a lake that is 115 miles long down in Kentucky, but I think that what I have shown is a snapshot of small lake boating in general.
Waal, y’all take care out thar. Have a nice day.
Drew.
Lake boating USA, with a plethora of pictures and some startling statistics.
Hi y’all, as they say.
Are you sitting comfortably….then I will begin. This is the tale of my recent visit to the States. The trip was in the nature of some business and a lot of pleasure. But first those startling statistics.
1. You could put the whole of the UK in the state of Indiana, which incidently was the state I was in. The population of that state is a mere 6 million, and us poor overcrowded Brits have 60 million, no wonder there is a lot of open space there,
2. But what do they use that space for? They grow corn and soya beans. Indiana is one of four states that do this, and on an annual basis they produce 5 billion bushels of corn, yes billion not million
3. Ah! What does a bushel of corn look like? It’s about the size of a wheelie bin, (so I am told, and I accept no responsibility for its accuracy!!). Can you just imagine that. All those wheelie bins laid end to end, or even side b y side. Think they’d reach the moon or maybe even further.
4. There is a saying that corn should be ‘Knee high by the fourth of July’. This year is was 6 ft by that date.
The corn is high
The flights were from the Isle of Man to Dublin, then to Newark to enter the USA and then another puddle jumper to Cincinatti, where we were to be met by a good friend. The trip in reverse to come home. There was a novel security screen in Dublin outbound; they had introduced USA immigration there before boarding the flight to the USA. This meant that if they were going to refuse entry, you just didn’t get there, which saved the trouble of sending you back whence you came. The Visa waiver was also done there rather than on the plane. After being fingerprinted electronically and photographed etc, I was OK to go.
Enough of that, don’t want to lose my audience, it’s the boaty bits that matter. Near the town of Brookville is a lake, one of many thousands scattered all over the land, and each one has its quota of boats, the majority of which are pontoons. As you will have already guessed, they are but two tubes with a pointy bit at the front and rear, over which is laid an oblong deck, and over that is built whatever takes your fancy. The one in question is 26 ft long by 10 ft wide, seats all round a helm position and a bimini over all. Very necessary as the usual temperature is a steady 90+ at that time of year, and rather humid. It was while I was there, The engine in this case a 35 hp outboard. They come in all sizes as will be seen in the several photos later on.
Capn Tom
Looking forward
The lake is a man made reservoir, and like that village in Wales, they drowned one here, It was called Fairfield, and now it is under 60 ft of water. The lake is about 15 miles long, but rather narrow, and has three marinas. During the construction someone came up with the need for a beach, so they trucked some sand in, many thousands of tons of the stuff…..nice yellow sand,,, and there being no tides, there it stays.
Beach
Our friends boat was moored out on a buoy, there pronounced booee..and to get there you just go into the little hut and ask to be taken out in the water taxi.
Taxi house
This is a free service 24 hours a day for the clientele that have moored boats there.
W
Getting back is a bit more tricky as you have to blast an air horn and they will eventually come and get you, though how they see who is calling amongst a large fleet is a bit daunting, but do it they do.
To digress a little.I’d like to point out that Tom and Marty are not rich, but their home is a wonderful place. 35 acres, 25 of which is woodland. The pix tell it all. In the evening we could sit on the verandah, with humming birds darting overhead to hover at the feeders, and watch as deer or a plump wild turkey strutted across the pasture stretching away below us,
Toms house 2
T
Toms house 35 acres
Toms view1
The day we were able to go boating was overcast when we set off. Arrived at the marina and were duly delivered to the boat.
The engine fired up and off we went.
L
Not a lot of traffic as it was a weekday, and we made a leisurely journey cross the lake to see how the rich folk live. Our marina is middle of the road, but this one is another story.
Nearing the rich folk
It is a haunt for the corporate entertainment clique, must be cos these very big boats never leave harbour. Some, as you will see are decorated in weird fashion. Most have satellite dishes and the usual slides for the kids and the obligatory jet skis
Pic boat 1
Pic boat 2
This is
Pic boat 3
Pic boat 4
Getting rather
Pic boatb 5
Pic boat 6
ridiculous
Pic boat 7
Pic boat 8
Don’t you think
Pic boat 9
Pic boat 11
And if you need to have a look under the boat… no problem.
T
As we tootled along the echo sounder/fish finder was set to alarm at about 2ft of water under the boat, and it was always full of fish,,, millions of them, and nobody in sight with a rod. There were several grey herons doing just that though. There are dozens of little bays you can creep into, dead slow as there are many traps for the unwary in the shape of tree branches etc under the surface, just lurking there ready to grab either a propeller or even a swimmer.
But as we cruised on, then there was this ….. looking rather offended at being put in with such……company
Then there was this.
Eventually the day ended and we cruised slowly back to the po’h folks marina. The water taxi did find us too.
Pic I got a go too
More pontoon boats.
And yes,,,, even though we were 1000 miles from the nearest ocean, some years back someone introduced a pair of gulls. Their decendents are now well settled, and their habits never change.
Seagull poopery.
Personally I prefer the wind and the waves and the freedom to go where I please. The tang of the salt air, the slap and splash as the bow cuts through the water, to go close to towering cliffs, or follow a bright lane of moonlight as a night watch ticks the time away.
So I hope I have given you a short look at another version of lake boating as it is done in the USA. True there are the Great Lakes up north with hundreds of miles of open water that can and does get very very rough, and further south a lake that is 115 miles long down in Kentucky, but I think that what I have shown is a snapshot of small lake boating in general.
Waal, y’all take care out thar. Have a nice day.
Drew.
