To yacht or not . . . that is not a question you need ask twice.

By Traci Rork
Miss Informed

(4.9.09)

Everything is better on a boat. I have to say that after extensive research on lakes, ponds and oceans, I’ve concluded that life in general improves when you’re on a vessel ~ preferably one on the water, not sitting on a trailor.

The real thrill of boating is achieved when you take off with the wind in your face and the sun in your eyes. (From my research I can also conclude that the thrill quickly fades if alarms start going off, water starts seeping in, the weather changes drastically or a swarm of bugs attack).

But whether you’re going fishing, camping, island hopping, kayaking or yachting, it’s a ritual to be relished and the details should be devoured. This past weekend we joined a bunch of other boats loaded with happy people at a nearby island. Yes, it’s April, but temperatures are already scorching, the water is 83 degrees and while it might not be the case elsewhere in America, for us….Summer has arrived!

Locals have the luxury of being surrounded by water throughout the year, but come summertime - boats, water, beaches ….they all become mandatory for our survival and our sanity. Collecting ice, water, fruit, adult beverages, Super Soakers, hats, sunscreen, Dion’s chicken and friends becomes a weekend tradition and one not to be taken for granted.

Since I’ve lived in Key West for the past 5 years, I’ve grown accustomed to the warm, crystal blue waters of the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. I’ve had many sunset sails, fishing excursions that took us nearly to Cuba and the Bahamas, camping trips, parasailing adventures, jet ski tours….. and I recommend all of them and then some.

I also recommend exploring Lake Sherwood in Topeka, Kans., where I grew up tubing and skiing in the muddy waters every summer. Or canoeing through rivers in Arkansas or Colorado. It doesn’t matter where you are, it just seems that everything is better on a boat . . .It’s impossible not to laugh while tubing……except immediately following a wipe-out or while desperately trying to avoid one.
It’s impossible not to look peaceful on boat . . . Unless the Dion’s chicken grease coats the boat and causes one to tumble.
And finally, it’s impossible to take a dip in the ocean and not feel refreshed….unless you didn’t notice your friend threw a chum bag over the side and you were swimming with dead fish.

But generally, it’s all in good fun and the memories made are worth retelling because . . . Well, because everything is better on a boat.

I’m quite aware of the fact that many people have lived in Key West for years and never been out on the water. That is a tragedy of the worst degree and something we should all want to change. To see the islands from the outside in is sinfully satisfying . . . You can finally remove yourself from the chaos and soak in the quietness of the Keys from a boat. Or you can get rowdy with friends and take over an island with Bocce and beer and savor the times when the water and sky seamlessly meet and float your days away.

So if you have a boat, share it. If you need one, dare it to happen. Just do something! It’s everyone’s civic duty to take advantage of the paradise found offshore. It is up to us to appreciate the sparkling seas and the sandy white islands while the rest of the country struggles to shake off the snow.
The sand is hot, the beer is not and the islands are ours for the taking.

Here are a few quotes about boats to soak in:

“There is nothing - absolutely nothing - half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.” Kenneth Graham.

“Should you find yourself in a chronically leaking boat, energy devoted to changing vessels is likely to be more productive than energy devoted to patching leaks.” Warren Buffett.

“I was proud of the waves I had made, but wondered how many boats I was supposed to rock.” Phil Donahue.

“Fortune brings in some boats that are not steered.” William Shakespeare.

“Only the guy who isn’t rowing has time to rock the boat.” Jean-Paul Sartre.

“A lot of people ask me if I were shipwrecked and could only have one book, what would it be? I always say ‘How to Build a Boat’.” Stephen Wright.