pirate's cove

yesterday was about as perfect a day as it gets around here. from morning to evening the weather did not disappoint. we left the greater sacramento area early and headed to the bay area to make a day of it in celebration of our son's upcoming birthday. we had decided to visit our old hometown where there is a wonderful lake with vast spaces for hiking, bicycling and boating. our plan was to go out in a couple of boats for a while and then hike a bit, after which we would picnic and open presents.
originally we had planned to take rowboats, but as we walked down to the dock i spotted these little electric motor trollers. (that is rowboat types fitted with small power motors, not people who act rudely on the internet) with minimal effort we were able to switch to these and were off. good thing too, because as they weren't going to let our entire crew into one boat, my wife and i would have had quite a workout, which isn't a bad thing, but the little trollers enabled us to extend our range and cover a lot more of the lake.
while our little guys were understandably nervous in this new water environment, our older sea-scouts were loving it. and as we headed away from the boat house toward open water the spirit of adventure began to grip us all. however, these were terribly slow motors that moved along at barely more than a drift. no matter. for our guys we were now true mariners fording the expanse. explorers in the league of magellan and leif ericson.
my oldest stood up to take a pose on the bow, placing his hand above his brow to quell the sun's rays, that he might be the first to spot any new land, and thus having the privilege to give it new name. we navigated our way around a little island and into a strait. then headed for a point, beyond which lay a beautifully shaded inlet. back here it was dead quiet except for a swan and his companions. being back there reminded me of my own exploring as a lad in a red aluminum canoe with my best chum. we would pack our gear and head off for hours, rowing among the reeds and mapping those territories by naming them after ourselves of course.
as we continued our little voyage i was reminded how powerful those memories are. imagination is what ultimately sparks the fuel of adventure. what is it then that we believe we will find when we go, if we choose to go at all?