Ok so where did I end yesterday....Oh yea, the long weekend in August. Ok so I had to return back to work on the Monday (Civic Holiday)and found out that I would only be doing *my* job for one more day and then I would be in training for three weeks. Classes start at 7am. Crap, that means I have to get up at 5am!! *GaSp* Regardless, I have been able to arise on time and have not been late at all.
So the second weekend of August is Poker Run Weekend and we had made plans to slip on down to Ktown just to see the big, loud, gas-guzzling boats. That morning I had promised to help out at a book sale for the radio station I work at. The night before I did my radio show after a one week holiday and man was I tripping over my tongue! Oh well, its not like I'm getting paid for this...And its suppose to be a NO PRESSURE NO STRESS activity. We had a HUGE pile of books and the majority of them were grabbed up by the many customers that stopped by that morning. I didn't do a lot but I tried to help. The woman who was running cash said I was helpful so I am satisfied with that.
Even though I had to hand back my favourite camera at work, I have still been using my poor little damaged Nikon 3200. The battery hatch is broken and I am currently holding them in with a red elastic. It looks tacky but it works. Peter Trueman was doing his Saturday morning show so I took the opportunity to take a few pictures of him and Terry Culbert (Program Director at CJAI) and Peter as they kept us informed.
And here is Terry with the 'outdoor' microphone and Tom the station manager.
After I caught the 11 back home, we got packed up and hit the waterways over to the backbeach of Amherst Island. Billy jumped out and wiped down the boat while I sat in the sun and read. Then we decided to drive slowly around the back side of the island as it was calm and we had yet to travel all the way around yet this season. When we got down to the foot, we found it was still calm so we carried on to Kingston. It was KAZOO as there were boats of all sizes and types EVERYWHERE. I couldn't believe that there was a sailboat regatta happening at the same time as the poker run and they were very close together. There were many other boats just observing, so it made for a very cluttered waterway. We went around the backside of Cedar Island and threw the anchor for the last 30 minutes of the poker run. The finish line was right in front of us so we did managed to see the last 25 or so boats cross it. As we went to leave, it was another traffic jam as we heard the Wolfe Islander honk its horn as it tried to leave the dock. At the same time a dozen poker run boats were traveling right into the path of not only the ferry, but the island star cruise boat. (My brother just happened to be cooking on this particular trip so he can confirm the traffic jam) There were a group of blowboaters (sailboats) trying to come into Confederation Basin at the same time as the very LOUD poker run boats. We just floated for awhile till it was safe to cross. I couldn't believe even the ferry was packed with people that day:
We went over to the cottage afterwards for dinner and then came home to pack up for a long trip to Main Ducks Island the next day. If you know where the Lennox Generating Station is just West of Bath, you just travel 32 miles due South (by water) and you will find these islands that are uninhabited and have been the wreck of many a ship over the last few hundred years. The rum runners used to stay there till 'the coast was clear' when they were transporting their wares from point A to point B. Believe it or not, I have read quite a few books about this place over the years. The lake has always been a main source of interest to me. We followed Roger, Roberta & Jim and tried to get behind them as the waves were beating our little boat quite badly once we were way out in the big lake. That didn't work so well as I was beginning to feel kind of woozy when we got there almost an hour later. But what a treat that place is. Here is a shot as we entered the small bay where the only dock is.
The guys got out for a walk to take some pictures of the ruins of a small shack that a friend of theirs burned down last year in an attempt to send up an SOS as his two other friends were drowning in the high waves in their kayaks. Roberta wanted to go for a swim in that little bay till I spotted a baby water snake. So once the guys got back from their stroll, we traveled over to another small cove for a swim and a bite to eat. As usual, Billy made us all some Cajun chicken wraps which were very much appreciated.
Here is a picture I took there that I call Natures Steps:
The ride back took longer as the wind had picked up quite a bit. So our three hour tour was more like a 4.5 hour cruise:) I was very happy to be back around the gap and convinced Billy to make a side trip over to Stella Bay just for the hell of it. We traveled a bit further to snoop around Popular Dell. This place is always good for a lovely summer picture:
We went to the cottage for dinner and then back home to get ready for an early workday on Monday.
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