It was perfect weather – sunny with temperatures in the upper 50’s, no wind, and not a cloud in the sky.
It was a little past 4PM when I started the engine on the Official Weekend Pundit Lake Winnipesaukee Runabout - aka The Boat - letting it warm up as I waited for my son and his girlfriend to arrive. The engine burbled quietly as I stowed the gear I’d brought onboard, making sure it wouldn’t be in the way. Fenders were removed and stowed, the mooring lines were prepped to be cast off, and then BeezleBub and his girlfriend arrived.
Once they were ready, lines were cast off, the throttle set to reverse, and we slowly backed away from the dock. Once clear, the throttle was set forward and the wheel turned to port, swinging the bow towards the channel that would lead out onto the main body of the lake.
It was quiet as we slowly made our way down the channel, the burble of the water being stirred by the prop and the low rumble of the engine being the only sound.
Once we cleared the channel and were outside the No Wake Zone I throttled up and the boat surged forward, slowly rising, then riding on top of the water as the engine RPMs wound up.
The water was smooth, with barely a ripple to be seen. Once on plane I trimmed the boat to raise the bow a little and the speed picked up. We cruised, heading east towards Alton Bay, the sun lowering towards the horizon behind us.
The breeze coming over the bow, caused by our passage over the lake, was cool. While not chilling, it did hold hints of the coming winter.
We came to the mouth of Alton Bay and changed course to the north, heading towards Wolfeboro for a while until we cleared the east end of Rattlesnake Island and turned west. Our course took us north of the island, well within a part of the lake called The Broads, the widest part of Lake Winnipesaukee.
The setting sun now sat just off our port bow, dipping above and below the hilltops as we headed back to home port.
Approaching Locke’s Island we turned south and entered into the cove where our town docks awaited. Rather than returning to our dock, we headed there instead. As we approached we maneuvered between two of the docks and finally tied up on the starboard side dock. This had been the last time out on the boat this year.
It was time to pull it out of the water and get it ready to store for the upcoming winter. Our boating season was done, ending weeks earlier than usual.
BeezleBub retrieved his truck and the boat trailer, backing the trailer down the ramp and into the water. The boat was untied from the dock and maneuvered to the boat trailer, the winch attached to the bow eye, and the winch cranked to pull the boat into position on the trailer. A few moments later BeezleBub pulled the trailer up the ramp, we secured the stern of the boat to the trailer, and then were on our way away from the lake.
Another summer has faded away. Another boat has been pulled from the water until next spring. All that remains are our memories of our time on the lake, and photos and videos taken during our excursions out on the water. They will have to suffice until we’re back out on the water next spring.
