Maybe not the best, but most memorable. The day that really set the hook, hard.
I had a Wellcraft Nova 210xl that I had brought back from the brink of death. New power, new rigging... (you know me) and she was back in the game.
That first year I kept her at a dock at my yacht club. One morning I got up about 6am and headed to the boat. Nobody was out. It was quiet and calm. Just the birds and the breeze. The sun wasn't quite up. I washed her down and did my boatmans checklist. Started her up, let her warm up and untied my lines. Just me. Slipped away from the dock and away I went. Idle'd out the Ottawa River and swung to SB and then brought her up on plane. The water was flat. A couple of geese swooped down low and paced me, just off my port. Nobody was around... anywhere. The day was just getting light.
I ran downtown and looked around and then started back north up the river. Not a soul out anywhere. It was just me, the boat, the birds and God.
As I ran north the sun started coming up on my SB. The engine was purring, the guages were happy, the boat was running perfectly, the weather was just right, I was absolutely alone. And absolutely at one with my world. Completely in the zone.
I remember suddenly screaming "Thank you God" to the sky.
That was some years ago, but it created a real love for solo boating in me. There have been many "going to church out on the lake" moments since then.
