Memories of the Summer of 2006

[Chris Exley]

So, we closed to cottage last week. Turned off the water, put plastic on porch. So, I thought that, since life moves so fast, and we don't always take the time to remember the good times, I would start a thread on your memories of the Summer 2006.

We spent only 2 weeks there this year, and sometimes 3 kids (2 of them teenagers) and 2 parents in a 2 bedroom can get on your nerves after 10 days or so, but this year was fantastic. One of the best vacations ever.

Highlights were:
Family time, no fights between the kids.
Playing board games.
Using the new boat to fish and tube.
Fireworks in Wolfeboro on July 4th.
Seeing old friends.
Swimming.
My 6 year old helping me build a new swim float.
Watching the Great Blue Heron take off and land almost every day.
Listening to the loons from the porch.
Eating Ice Cream at the Bailey Bubble.
Visiting Moultenborough Country store.
Family time.

Please feel free to share yours.

[jkjoshuatree]

-Taking the kids (8 of them) out to the middle of the lake at midnight, shutting off the lights (I know this isn't the best move, but...), and watching the expressions on their faces as they noticed all the stars in the night sky.

-Introducing several friends to the sand bar in Braun Bay and several others to Sally's Gut.

-Jumping off the pilings at the mail dock (on Bear island) with the kids.

-Watching my son catch our version of "Walter" not once, but twice. Obviously, our Walter isn't very bright.

-Showing the younger adults (I'm 33, most of them are 20 or 21) how to kneeboard the "right" way.

-Sitting on the Adirondack chairs at Church Landing in the morning, watching the kids run back and forth from the lake to the pool.

-Sitting on the Adirondack chairs at Lago enjoying a cocktail at dusk.

-Jumping into the lake the first time this season.

-Letting the kids push me in with all my clothes on.

-Hanging out with my son at the Pot Hole, catching frogs and jumping off the rocks just before a massive thunder storm broke.


These are just a few. I'm sure I'll be back with more in the days to come. Great idea for a thread!!

[Aquadeziac]

- Introducing friends and relatives to the boating life where you leave your watch and cellphone at the dock and learn how to tell time by where you see the Mt Washington

- Cooking up steaks on the grille while anchored at our favorite swimming spot

- Having my grandson as a riding partner on a day of jetskiing

- Showing someone the best way to "go out for ice cream" is by boat

- Sitting in a chair at the dock sipping a drink thinking "doesn't everyone live like this?"

- Being asked "When can we do this again?"

[coley]

As a one week renter (house and boat in Wolfeboro) the "annual" memories are:
-not getting in a car for a week and doing everything by boat
-listening to the kids (18,16 and 9 are their ages) tell their stories all year long about the week at the lake
-using the charcoal grill for a week instead of a gas one at home
-the pursuit of Billy Bass from the dock
-the sadness of having to turn in the boat keys at Goodhue Hawkins and then walking back to the rental cottage, knowing that another year has gone by but creating a set of memories for the kids forever

[Alton Bay Resident]

Although we love living up at the lake in the summer… for us it was the worst, sorry to rain on this parade…..

- lake water high and unable to get out of Parker Marine for the vast majority of the summer
- couldn’t find enough good boating days to expend all of my vacation days
- dog with kennel cough for 3 weeks everynight keeping us awake
- cat with stones that came close to checking out and had to have $$$ operation and follow up care at the cottage

However, we are already looking forward to next year and based upon this year will enjoy (hopefully) next that much more…..

[tricia1218]

We have had great memories every year up at the lake.
-a neice lost her 1st tooth at the lake and also learned how to ride a 2 wheel bike on a few visits. this year she tried waterskiing for the 1st time.
-1st ride on a boat for younger neice, also her 1st swim in the big water (this is not our little beach but at a sand bar on the big lake) and her 1st time seeing the fireworks at Midnight on the 4th of july.

[Felix]

Alton Bay Resident, sorry your summer wasn't great. We've had a couple of those. My mom still talks about a summer that was very rainy and being trapped in a cottage with six kids, two cats and no tv. She can laugh now.

This summer I will remember, having dinner at the beach and watching the sunset. Falling asleep to the sound of the loons. Peppermint stick ice cream from the Bubble. Watching the kids become great friends with the new summer kids next door.

Although we miss the summer, we are praying for snow!

[Weirs guy]

I'll always remember this summer as the year my family tried on 2 separate occasions to explain to our visitors why it was so cool to stop and watch the Mount go by, and they just didn't get it. My son finally told his cousin that "they just wouldn't understand...."

[joann721]

We are weekend residents of Meredith:

- Leaving the adult children (who still live with us - home !)
- Weekends with company sharing with friends the experience of a weekend at the lake - now they understand why we leave the kids at home
- Weekends with NO COMPANY !!!
- My husband, teaching our son how to drive the boat, and our son actually listening !!!
- Saturday afternoons at the Naswa
- Sunday mornings in the hammock
- My husbands surprise 50th birthday party, that was at our house, and a complete surprise - he hasnt gotten over it yet !
- The sadness of not enough boat days - 19ft crownline you had to be selective & this wasnt the summer for it
- Riding the Harley thru the mountains, it was a perfect summer for that
- Saturday night campfires
- Having a spontaneous tailgate dinners with all the people on our street on a beautiful Saturday night - now a monthly tradition
- Getting my 80 year old parents to finally come to the lake - God smiled on us - it was a perfect boat day !!
- The Sandwich Fair
- The Yankees Losing !!! (sorry but it was a highlight)
- Girls weekend with a very patient husband
- The Crab Cakes at Kevins
- The Lobsta Rolls at Peppers

I thought I was gonna be okay this winter but I miss camp already !!!

[ghfromaltonbay]

The 2006 season started earlier than usual for me (March instead of May) with a great air boat ride over the ice and open water to Rattlesnake Island and watching "On Golden Pond" with DRH, Quilt Lady, Island Sib and IG.

Opening the camp over Memorial Day weekend by myself. This was a bummer year for my parents. Both were in the hospital June - August and missed the whole season at the lake. Oh well, like the Red Sox, there's always next year!

Early bird specials at the William Tell.

Napping on the beach.

Lobstah rolls and hugs at Peppers.

Finishing up the season with Island Sib's surprise birthday party at Pepper's and a great "Happy Trails" party at Sandy Point. This is the first time in 20 years that I can remember sitting on the beach and even going in for a quick swim on Oct. 9th. What a great way to finish off the season.

[LadyJane]

memories of summer '06: (nice topic)
I returned to the lakes region as I must, but tried going back to Newfound Lake this time. We had gone there as a family in the 70's and 80's.
I finally found Sculptured Rocks...wow, and had no film in the camera.
I noticed many places that were familiar, and saw many more that have changed, including Merrills Cottages in E. Hebron, where we used to stay.
I remembered our family vacations.....but everything has changed.....
I divorced my first husband ( a good thing to do)
my precious son died at age 21. He absolutely loved the trips to the lakes region, he had a deep appreciation of the beauty of this area, his imitation of loons was eery, he had great skill in the art of fishing . His last trip during his illness (leukemia) was to Lake Winnipesaukee, ( Center Harbour area).
Although I stayed at Newfound this summer, I was pulled back to Lake Winni, Meredith area...went there to shop, swim, walk,dine, etc.
When I come back up in a few weeks, I will go directly to the Lake Winnipesaukee communities.
If it ain't broke , don't fix it.

[MJM]

~ Getting caught in the rain on the boat, and all the kids laughing at the stinging drops.
~ Watching a 13 yr old face gradually change from worried to confident while learning to drive the new Whaler.
~ Seeing our devoted Golden sitting guard at the end of the dock, watching everyone ski, and being ready to help if needed (she really doesn't know she's a dog).
~ After so many great experiences all Summer (fireworks by boat, Bubble by boat, Stonedam Island hiking, etc. etc. etc.), having my 10 year old say "Daddy, it's sad that everyone doesn't get to do all the things we get to do on the Lake."

[sawyers_point_girl]

Great idea for a post!

Here are my favorite moments of summer '06:

- Hubby building the new campfire....1st time ever w/ one!
- Of course the making of the s'mores that comes along w/ a campfire
- The addition of the hammock (lots of relaxing here!)
- Trying for the 5th? season to try to drop a ski...still can't do it!
- Hubby being able to drop a ski for 1st time....grrrr....
- Spring cleaning, going to the nursery to pick out plants for the upcoming season - there is nothing like opening up the house! Such a great feeling!
- Drinks out on the dock at Garwood's
- Ice cream down at the Bubble
- Setting off fireworks from the dock, younger brother in charge, hence there were some close calls for the spectators (ie me and my friends...)
- Pissing off neighbors w/ loud parties (oops!)
- Meeting the new neighbors next door after the house being empty for years!
- And the list goes on and on.....

Can't wait till next season!!

[Russtic]

Only a one week rental in Wolfeboro, but so many great memories, mostly simple things....
-Actually one week before vacation - playing a game with my 9 year old where we take turns naming all the things we're looking forward to at the lake. The anticipation is almost as good as the real thing.
-Seeing the lake from Castle in the Clouds.
-Jumping off the raft with the kids, and floating around with not a care in the world.
-Seeing the kids enjoy themselves and thinking back to earlier years and realizing how much they've grown.
-Cramming the family into the front seat for the girls' first drive-in movie (mine, too, at 43).
-Relaxing on the screened porch nestled in the pines.
-A nice dinner on the back deck at Garwoods with a great sunset, and the waitress running half-way down Main Street to deliver a forgotten sweater.
-The incredible brass quintet from Maine at the bandstand.
-Ice cream sundaes at Morrissey's. Picturing my dad working the soda fountain there when he was in college in the early 50's.
-Quiet kayaking in the early morning on Winter Harbor, enjoying all the cottages and dreaming about owning one.
-In the other extreme, riding the fast mail boat Blue Ghost II and seeing the lake in a much different way.
-My family dancing together on the Mount cruise.
Can't wait til next year!

[LIforrelaxin]

Well After loosing both My brother and Father both 3 years ago, what I will remember most about this summer is returning to the lake and being able to enjoy it. For three years the memories where just to strong of all the times with them. But this year came in with a bang, I started my own projects instead of finishing ones I had started with them. And as I worked in the yard openned the views back up I rememebered the peacefullness that comes with being at the lake. So now sure I will be sad thinking back on the old times, but now I have started to make the new memories.....

-- the look on everyones face when I showed up with a new boat
-- the look on my nieces face when she went tubing for the first time in 3 years
-- the smile on everyones face as we took boat rides this summer making new memories with the new boat.
-- the feeling of accomplishment as I finished painting the camp
-- sitting looking out through the freshly limbed trees at the view
-- and the biggest memmory of for this summer was the feeling that finally things where harmony again, the sarrow from the passing of two important family memebers, was finally evened out by the watching and participating in the enjoyment with the ones still left.....

[Dave R]

This thread is great. Needs pictures though. I challenge folks to post photos that go with their memories. I'll be the first...

Campfires

Sitting around the fire enjoying an adult beverage while my oldest entertained us with the flute or violin.

Sandbars




Swimming, sunning, grilling, rafting, it's all good...

Scenic RR


Misty mornings and chilly evening cruises



Awesome meals by boat

Triple lobsters at Sandy Point

Lazy Summer days


Sunset and evening cruises



Road trips to other bodies of water

Pulling out in Center Harbor


CT. River overnight get together



Tubing and sailing on Highland Lake in ME



Songo river lock and overnight on the sandbar on Sebago


Out on the ocean

What a great Summer!

[SIKSUKR]

Wow Dave!!Your pictures really sum up what's great about boating at the lake.For this skier who's looking forward to ski season,you got me jonesing for summer again.Great job!!!!

[jkjoshuatree]

Great Idea...all the memories are incredibly heart-warming. But pictures are definitely the icing on the cake.

[Blue Thunder]

Fantastic pictures Dave!! Did you enjoy Sebago, the Locks, Brandy Pond, and Long Lake? It's nice to see someone from Winnipesaukee come over and enjoy our lake.

Blue Thunder

[Dave R]

Originally Posted by Blue Thunder

Fantastic pictures Dave!! Did you enjoy Sebago, the Locks, Brandy Pond, and Long Lake? It's nice to see someone from Winnipesaukee come over and enjoy our lake.

Blue Thunder

Thanks!

Yes, we did enjoy the Sebago/Songo/Brandy/Long trip, very much. We get out on Long Lake a couple of times a year (it's fun to go to Rick's Cafe on the causeway by boat) and go down the river into Sebago at least once per year. This year, we were able to get another Winnipesuakee boating family to pull out for the weeknd and join us on the trip.

It's so nice to be able to legally sleep on the hook and it's just terrible that NH has chosen to strip that experience away from folks. I love Winnipesaukee and always will, but it's got a bit of a snob factor that's missing in the Maine Lakes Region.

If anyone here likes going through Sally's Gut, you'll love the Songo River that connects Long Lake/Brandy Pond with Sebago Lake. It's like Sally's Gut x 50 and has a swing bridge and a lock to navigate. The river and lakes are well marked and one can make a wonderful day or weekend out of exploring that particular waterway. PM me if you want any details.

We've been going to Bridgton ME since 1989, but we stay on Highland Lake for the most part. We have some property up that way and intend to retire there. It's amazingly laid back and relaxing. Headed there for the weekend, as a matter of fact...

[Dave R]

Originally Posted by Blue Thunder

Fantastic pictures Dave!! Did you enjoy Sebago, the Locks, Brandy Pond, and Long Lake? It's nice to see someone from Winnipesaukee come over and enjoy our lake.

Blue Thunder

Were you, by chance, on Winnipesaukee during bike week 2006? Your handle looks familiar...

[SIKSUKR]

Dave,I'm curious having not boated in Maine I'm wondering how different the marker system is from ours.Can you explain?

[Dave R]

Originally Posted by SIKSUKR

Dave,I'm curious having not boated in Maine I'm wondering how different the marker system is from ours.Can you explain?

It's simpler. You have the standard red, right, return on the rivers and channels, and simple "danger" markers for pretty much everything else. If there's just one, you don't go between it and shore. If there's more than one, you don't go between any. A chart is still a necessity (for me anyway), but it's simpler than trying to remember the NH method. "No wakes" and such are similar to NH.

[SIKSUKR]

Thanks very much.

[Island Life]

I have plenty of memories from Summer '06. Here are a few:

Watching for shooting stars with the cousins, lounging on the rubber rafts, the island's 1st annual pancake extravaganza, playing cards night after night with three generations, the dark walks home by flashlight after the card games, screaming when a bird flew into my neck one night during one of those walks, fires on the beach, slow boat rides home by moonlight, teaching the kids how to drive the boat, good old-fashioned fun at the Weirs, coffee on the dock in the morning, watching my kids take to kayaking, the sound of the water slapping the shore right outside my bedroom window, the latter half of August - cold and rainy outside but warm and toasty inside with the woodstove, some comfy chairs and a few good books.

And one picture sums up the spirit of our summer:

[CKB]

Summers at the lake are the BEST! Dave R...after seeing your pictures, I am now counting the days til Spring!!
We are weekenders in Tuftonboro (30 years now) and have seen our children and now grandchildren enjoy every minute of the time they spend there. We are adding a loft to the cottage to accommodate all our "overnighters" so the highlight of this summer was finding a contractor to do the job!

[JL Girl]

After reading all the memories you have, some of them making me smile, some making pause in shared sadness, each memory of yours similar to mine for 2006 and over the years at the "Lake" (and now I'm fortunate to live here year round)...beginning to increasingly remind me of an unrhymed poem I wrote here at the lake in the summer of 1999. Hope you don't think I'm too presumptuous including it here in this thoughtful thread Chris Exley started.

THE WINNIPESAUKEE

Day falls over the Winnipesaukee
The plaintive sounds of loons
Calling back and forth
The water still, the mist hovering
Just above the water but not touching it
The promise of a day unencumbered
By oppressive humidity and sun
The wind rustles through the pines,
The water softly lapping against the shore
The boat pulls against the wharf
Rhythmically slapping the lake like
Some ancient Indian cadence
It all reminds us of our childhood camp
Which isn’t there anymore
Except in cousins’ stories, “Remember when…?”

It’s afternoon on the Winnipesaukee
The loons are tucked away,
Far from the noise of modern craft,
Each boat in some race
To be the noisiest, fastest, sleekest vessel on the lake
We laugh in delight as the Marine Patrol appears
And makes them chug away in some sedentary parade
“Serves them right” we mutter and resume our reading
Tucked into Adirondack chairs at water’s edge
A soft breeze plays with our hair, gently lulling us into a lakeside nap,
Our books by now forgotten. Some drop to the ground,
Their owners’ hands lingering on the covers.
Others rest on snoring faces and only one is still half-grasped
By hands and reclining on its owner’s chest.
The afternoon deepens and later,
The increased rumble of passing boats stirs us all awake.

Dusk falls over the Winnipesaukee
We’re warm and full of vegetable garden abundance,
Gathered on the porch to sit in semi-darkness,
Watching for each evolving stage of a lakeside sunset
Like some magnificent scene being painted just for us.
A chill descends and we pull on sweaters, reluctant
To let the evening go. We settle into our chairs
And survey the darkening sky. Our laughter bubbles up in delight
As we recount humorous anecdotes about our many years at “Camp”.
The younger children and the older adults withdraw inside,
Boredom for the one and the warmth of the fireplace drawing the other.
The cousins stay on and the stories shift to the daring adventures of our youth.
We relive those timeless moments and then fall still, lost in memory
And the realization that even this gathering is just another moment
To tuck away and remember in the fall.

[Blue Thunder]

Originally Posted by Dave R

Were you, by chance, on Winnipesaukee during bike week 2006? Your handle looks familiar...

Dave,
Nope, not me. I bought my current boat at Melvin Village Marina but that's the only time my "bottom" saw the water. Although I've been to Winnipesaukee many, many times over the years, I have the wonderful opportunity of Island Life on Sebago. Thanks for your wonderful remarks about Sebago. It is truly just as wonderful as Winnipesaukee, in fact, Island Girl used to vacation here in the mid '80's.

Blue Thunder

[gtxrider]

1. A BIG HUG from Pepper and oh yes a LOBSTER ROLL

2. Watching the boys wake board and knee board using the SEADOO. (they did not need me to drive they are growing up

3. Being alone in the cottage, not much fun.

Here's hoping next summer will be better and the whole family will be at the lake.