After You - Lake Harriet

We were going to go out yesterday, but by the time the family dust settled the rain had begun. And today we were going to take the boat to the milk carton boat races put on by the Minneapolis Aquatennial, but logistics would have none of that. Lake Calhoun has a great ramp but crap parking, and given the activities of the festival we weren't very confident we'd find a place to park the car and the trailer combined.

So we headed to Lake Harriet, sure we could get good trailer parking. Turned out there was "old people music" in the park, so parking the trailer was a trick. But we managed. Popped the boat in the water easier than ever and tied up to the docks to prep the boat.

Lily and Grandpa guard the boat while I help Jill get the parking sorted. Walking from the lot to the dock I heard at least three "oh look at that boat!" comments -- all positive. But it was surely an indication of how the day was going to go. For someone who doesn't like talking to strangers, I sure do a lot of things to attract them.
We headed out onto the lake with the kids and Mother In Law on board. Lake Harriet is a round lake with no interesting outlets, inlets, bays, or bridges. So I spent most of my time trying to figure out which part of the circle had the least sailboats.

I knew there was talk of a lake monster on Lake Harriet, and had seen something on the other end of the lake a few days ago from shore. So I headed toward the typical "lake monster hangout" and warned the passengers to keep a sharp eye for monsters.


Eli sights something off the bow. You can just barely make out the "Nessie" type profile near the shore ahead!

As it happens the Minneapolis "Lake Creature" is a friendly one. We kept a bit of a distance, and I told the kids we could NOT land on it and explore it. Just in case.

Grandma Judy had a ride on the boat and was very patient. :)
After I dropped everyone off at the dock I motored out just off the swimming beach the kids were swimming at. I dropped anchor and headed in the cabin. This photo is from the cabin just before I laid down for a short bit. I also took the opportunity to post some pictures to Facebook. Nice! A very successful day. Taking her out of the water was as easy as dropping her in. Jill even did some trailer maneuvering!

I do so love my boat!