Vacation

The boys have, of course, been on vacation for about seven weeks. But during this summer, as is ordinarily the case, Karen only gets two long stretches to spend with them while they are off school. Her second one is coming to a close, and we've managed to have some fun, with one trip we always take, and something we've never done before.

The first was our annual (and sometimes twice annual) trip to Lower Falls on the Swift River, near Conway, New Hampshire. Karen and the boys like swimming in the cold water, and I like watching them from someplace warm and dry. We didn't get to go last year, because they were renovating the recreation area and had it closed all summer.

So, what do we think of the new version? Well, not so much, really. There are fewer trees, and so less shade, and it feels more tourist-oriented than it did before. Not only that, but with all the money they spent, the place still has pit toilets.

But the river itself is the same, so we'll continue coming back.

Now, on to the thing we've never done before. Tired of the boys retreating into their rooms to play games and watch videos on their computers, Karen decided it was time to have an event with some other families. She was watching some video herself, on building boats, when she came across some cardboard boat regattas. And an idea was born (and gestated very quickly).

We put out the word. We didn't get a lot of response, because it was all done with very short notice, but we did manage to get six boys to build four boats out of nothing but cardboard (from refrigerator boxes), duct tape, and zip ties. The boats were built on the beach, in less than an hour and a half. Each was built to have one pilot.

I paddled out in the kayak, set two buoys (plastic bottles weighed down by other plastic bottles full of rocks and water), and waited to start the race and makes sure everyone stayed safe.

When the whistle blew, the boys were off. Daniel took an early lead, and much to my surprise, his boat continued to float, and Daniel continued to paddle like a pro. That surprised me because Daniel has only piloted kayaks before, and the boys were only allowed single paddles (to prevent anyone getting bonked). But he switched his paddle from side to side, rounded both buoys, and made it almost to shore before capsizing, which was probably on purpose, just for fun.

Meanwhile, behind him, William was floundering a bit. His boat, which he built with his friend Nathan, stayed afloat, but sagged in the middle, leaving William struggling to paddle, or in fact to even see, as the prow of his boat came up past his face. But he managed a distant second.

The other two boats didn't fare so well, more because of bad luck that bad construction. William's friend Tom made it just around the first buoy when his foot went through the bottom of the boat, scuttling his vessel and forcing him to drag his creation to shore.

Our young friend Jackson, son of one of my theater friends, helped build a boat piloted by his even younger friend Ethan. Unfortunately, although their design was good, Ethan doesn't have a lot of experience with boats, and he tipped and took on water coming off the beach. Still, he made it to the first buoy, and valiantly attempted to save his ship and bring it ashore. Unfortunately, like all the boats, it ultimately ended up as a sodden pile of cardboard.

I was amazed that these creations floated at all. We had a wonderful time, so much so that we are planning a much bigger version of the regatta, probably as a charity event, next year. Sure beats sitting in front of a computer screen.