An Early Morning Paddle – Cottage Living with Dani

We loaded up into the old green canoe, the gunnels scratched and dented from the many voyages and portages it had journeyed so far.  My children, with their faces sun-screened and smeared with haphazard smudges of dirt and white streaks, showed off their bright red and yellow life jackets as they piled into our steadfast boat. With paddles in hand, we set off.

Now, I could go on and on about my love for a good morning paddle. I could enlighten you with the soothing description of the magic and serenity that one experiences when out in the middle of the lake and the calmness the glistening water brings as you bob along only hearing the buzz of cicadas on the shoreline pines and the occasional haunting call of a sleek black loon. However, I can assure you that none of the above happened on this particular occasion.

The serenity of the moment was quickly replaced by the following: “Are we there yet? There’s a spider in the boat! Can I have a snack? It’s hot out here! Do worms like fish? My toe is itchy! Do muskies eat people? There is a dragonfly on your head! The spider is on your foot now!” 

I quickly attacked a spider with a paddle, assured my children that a muskie would much rather eat a frog, passed out containers of crackers, scratched the itchy baby toe and assured my young adventurers that we would, in fact, arrive at our destination, and the paddle across the lake would be worth it. 

As the barrage of dialogue continued, we journeyed onward and arrived at our destination; a large granite slab that jutted out from the water. It was the perfect spot to jump from rocks into the deep waters, to picnic, to look for bugs, to find wildflowers growing in the many crevices of the rock face and to spend hours and hours of a perfect lazy summer day exploring. 

The splashing happy kids and their giggling voices carrying across the water definitely made the trip worth it, and as we loaded back into the canoe to head home, I did a double check for spiders.

By Danielle McNelly, Nortech Windows, Doors & Sunrooms
www.nortechwindows.com