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When Do We Get To Try Fishing, Frank?

The bad news, Frank puts a big hole in his boat. It’s totaled and no boat for the spring trip. The good news, Frank gets a great deal on a new/used boat with low hours and we’ll have it for the fall trip.Day one - Due to the low water level at Ed’s cottage for launching, everyone takes their boats to the public launch at the Cape. Easy in, we shoot over to Button Bay for the first cast from the new boat.

I look down through the slats in the floor board. "Ah, Frank, are we supposed to have that much water in the bottom of the boat?" "Oh, that’s not good"………… I think I’ll wait a few minutes before I reach for my pole.

Now, water is bubbling in around the inboard motor cover. Frank points the boat back to the Cape Vincent launch. I start to bail with the pee bucket. I’m keeping up with the water; it’s not getting worse, but it’s not getting better. Frank, why is the water warm, almost hot??... "Da no".

Phew!! We make it and get the boat on the trailer. Yep, the boat water plug is in, a common occurrence……yeah, you know what I mean! So that isn’t the problem.

Let’s take it back to camp, it looks like a 3 or 4 beer job. Turns out to be a hose to the motor was disconnected. Damn new/used boats. Attach the hose, tighten it down, and we’re good to go for tomorrow.Day two - Quite overcast but at least we’re dry. No luck at Button Bay, so let’s go to the next spot in front of Bay Field. Quite rapidly all land disappears and we can only see about ten feet around us. Heavy fog has set in. If Frank had only followed my expertise pointing.

We set off slowly for the launch. Soon the depth gage shows we are in the big shipping channel. Now, that is a very scary place to be in the fog. If we hear a ship coming, I haven’t a clue which direction to go.

After a while the fog is slowly lifting and we can see a shadow of land. That’s got to be Cape Vincent! - nice driving Frank. You don’t think we could have been that lucky, do you?

All I can figure is we did a big backward J. We are northeast of Cape Vincent heading between Carlton Island and the mainland, directly for the featherbed shoals. I knew that because we suddenly were in one foot of water out in the middle of the St. Lawrence. In rapid order, I was in the water pulling the bow and Frank was in the water pushing from the stern. And of coarse, we couldn’t climb back into the boat until the water was up to our chest, to give the boat enough draft to get us out of there.

Back at the boat launch, kiss the ground, kiss the tree, kiss the port-a-potty - well maybe not. As Scarlet would say….. "tomorrow is another day"!

Boat Partner that Day,

Wayne