Of family and boats

I think we all have a vision of what our most perfect day would be.  My vision usually involves some combination of my family, a beautiful summer day, the ocean (or some other salty body of water), and some form of watery entertainment.  It is frequently snorkeling, often kayaking, and now , of course, it is often sailing.


Last weekend very nearly matched my idea of the perfect day.  My grandmother, who originally bought the land in Shallotte, even came down for a four-day weekend.  I haven't seen her so happy in ages.  I never realized that she just might love it down there as much as I do.  She told us how she and my grandfather used to tour the waters of the Shallotte River in a little gator boat and how much she loved it.  We weren't able to take her out in our boat but she did get the grand tour of Kozmik and got to enjoy some evening breezes on our last day at Greg and Susan's at the Shallotte River Inlet.

Three generations.

Granny Peg at the helm.

On Saturday we got to do a little sailing on our friend Lola's Freedom 30, Suvarov.  The Myrtle Beach Yacht Club, where she has a slip, was hosting a "race" that day.  We came in dead last.  But it was a beautiful day on the water with some great people so we were fairly unconcerned by that.  Although Lola, who was a bit nervous about racing in the beginning, is now thirsting for a winning victory.  I think it brought out the competitor in her once she saw it wasn't going to be like the America's Cup.  And I finally got to see some of the stuff I've been reading about for so long put into action!  Points of sail, luffing, uncontrolled jib, jib sheet, mainsheet, telltales...it all makes a little more sense now.  I'm learning bit by bit and even got to steer a little.

At the helm of Suvarov.

A fellow racer.

Happy to be on the water.

Sailing 101.

We also had to move Kozmik Kaos to a new location on this trip and, as luck would have it, Lola found us the perfect spot further up the Shallotte River.  It's at a crane and welding place that used to be a boatyard and it's owned by some really nice people.  My mother's name is Jean Smith.  The owner's name is Gene Smith.  When I introduced them he said, "When people see us they always think of cleanliness.  They say, 'Hi, Gene!'"  He's not only funny but also pretty brilliant and an inventor.  He invented a medical apparatus to help people that take care of bedridden patients.  You sure do get to meet some cool people when you have a boat.  Gene the inventor met us Sunday morning to guide us up the river and we had a really beautiful and peaceful trip upriver to her new home.  She is now made fast to a non-floating dock.  On one side is the welding place and on the other is the beautiful Shallotte River, a winding ribbon of water and grass that is full of life.

Kozmik Kaos wending her way up the Shallotte River.

My aunt Kay, who has just retired to Shallotte after many years working overseas in various countries, just bought an inflatable kayak.  I don't think I've mentioned my kayaking affliction here.  I haven't gotten to do nearly as much of it as I'd like but I LOVE to kayak.  My favorite two places I've kayaked are Big Pine Key, in the Florida Keys, and the Intracoastal Waterway at Wrightsville Beach, NC.  I have been nagging Brian about how much I want a kayak to carry on the boat and we are on the hunt for a nice inflatable for ourselves.  We find ourselves drawn to the Hanauma two-person kayak.  Those see-through windows would be fantastic in the tropics!  I could hardly contain my excitement when Kay told me she had ordered a kayak.  After it arrived we took it out to the public launching place near downtown Shallotte.  Kay, Brian and I took turns paddling around in it.  Brian, who had never been in a kayak before and was a tad nervous, took to it like a pro.  Kay then paddled from the launching area down to our new dock where my grandmother waited so nervously you would have thought we were on the Congo.


The next day we all had a little coffee and breakfast on Kozmik and Kay, Brian and I did a little more paddling in the river.  I inspected the bottom of the boat, which is threatening to grow into a full-fledged reef.  We have to do some scraping pronto or we'll be finding Nemo in places we don't want to see him.



Tina kayaking on the Shallotte River.



A slightly more relaxed version of kayaking.