A Random day on the water...

Friday, May 18, 2012

Storm front coming

Trixie and Beaux

Tommy and I have been wanting to take the dogs out on our pontoon boat for some time now. We decided to wait until the middle of the week hoping that the waterway would be less crowded. There is an island in the inter coastal here in Palm Beach County, called Peanut Island. It is a vast, crowded, partying hot spot. The island offers camping, snorkeling, exploring, JFK's bunker from the Cold War, amongst other things. It is a very nice place to spend the day and there are water taxis from the local marina who will bring you to and from.

On weekends there can be in excess of 200 boaters out having fun in the sun. They tie together, drink, dance, play beer pong in the water and generally stay out there from 10 am until dark. 

Beaux surfing

Fun in the Sun

Sire's find

Hang Ten

It is mostly made up of a younger crowd which bewilders me on how they can afford these $100k plus boats and the fuel to run them. Regardless of that, It is a good time. Most of the time. It is safeguarded by Marine Patrol so the altercations are kept to a minimum.

We choose Tuesday to venture out. Mainly, because it is the start of  the rainy season here, and almost every afternoon thunderstorms come in from the East. Tuesdays forecast was clear. Cloudy, but clear of participation. We watched the tide table and waited until it was low with the water starting to come back in. That is when the color is most turquoise. The most beautiful. The color you see in all the photographs of South Florida. The reason why our beaches are so incredibly beautiful.

Munion Island

Let me out

Paddle Boarding

We entered the water around noon. Trixie, my daughter Kaitlyn's, Pomeranian had never been on a boat before. We were extremely nervous she would panic and jump overboard. She did not. She mirrored Sire, our Rottweiler, and Beaux, our Silky Terrier.

We pulled up to a sand bar and beached ourselves on the outskirts of Peanut Island. Sire of course, was the first one off the boat. He loves, loves, loves the water! All we need to do is  throw a ball and he entertains himself with it for hours. Splashing around and losing it under his belly just to spin around, find it again, and pounce once more until it disappears again. He is very funny to watch. He exhausts himself. Although being 8 years old, he act like a puppy.

Beaux was next out. He had only been out with us one time before. He adores the water. He follows Tommy everywhere and anywhere but runs and plays like the puppy he is.

Trixie was put down gently off  the boat. Her paws getting wet from the inch of water on the sandbar. She seemed okay, and starting chasing Beaux. They are best friends and play all day long together at home. (She doesn't live with us full time, but we try to kidnap her as ofter as possible.)After running for a few moments Trixie hit the water where it touched her belly - she froze! She had no idea what to do. I was right there calling her to come, telling her it was okay but she would not move an inch. Not even her head to look over at me. She was frozen in time! It was extremely funny. Beaux tried to coax her to play and yet she still would not move. After what seemed, to her I'm sure, was 2 full days of sheer terror, she pulled together all her inhibitions and took a leap of faith and stepped forward.

someone having a bad day!

Awesome choice of names

End of day, storm coming in

It was the funniest thing to watch her reaction. Once she realized she could still touch the bottom and feel the sand beneath her feet, she took off like a bat out of hell....she was in full force. It was awesome! She and Beaux had the time of their lives.

The most enjoyment of it all was the fact that we were the only boat out on the sandbar which made the entire playing area theirs and very low stress.

As we were walking around with the dogs and the tide starting coming in, Sire found a starfish. A beautiful, bright orange, very big, starfish. They all curiously examined it, we took some pictures and let it be. They also ran across several hermit crabs which they instinctively knew to leave alone.

After about an hour the tide was rushing in at a pace that the little guys could not keep up with. They were becoming exhausted. We loaded them back on the boat and headed north to Munion Island.

Munion Island is a privately owned island in the middle of the ICW (inter-coastal waterway). It was originally bought to house a private retreat but because of bureaucracy it was never permitted electricity or water to be run from the mainland. It now is a local hangout for people with dogs to run.

Once again, we were alone -  on an island that was entirely the dogs to explore. It was amazing to see them just run and play and sniff and jump at sea creatures snapping at them as they stepped on them. There were Puffer fish, crabs, a stingray, starfish, little baby fishes and lots and lots of shells.

While we were there two women who were paddle boarding washed up on shore. We chatted with them for a while being inquisitive and wanting to do this ourselves. The said it was fairly easy, but going back to the mainland against the wind would be challenging. We hope to try this in the very near future.

Somewhere around 3:30 - 4:00 the clouds starting to become ominous. We decided to head back. The dogs were worn out and we enjoyed our day with them. Once home they all received a very unwelcoming bath and and treat after which they simultaneously  collapsed and napped for over and hour.

The day ended with a loud thunderous storm which has us all sleeping like babies.

summer storms

Thanks so much for reading...and let the summer blogs begin!!!