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Last week, Terra and I got a wild hair and decided to try out our hand a boat ownership.  I am not entirely sure what possessed us to be mariners, but the desire to provide the kids with an activity that they would want to participate in, and would force us to spend lots of time together had a hand in this decision.

Now that we have owned it for a little over a week, this has the potential to fulfill those requirements, but I am still not positive that this was the best course of action - still the kids do seem to enjoy it, but it is a lot of work.




On Monday this week (the day before the 4th of July) we decided to try it out.  I am not one who likes crowds and using a boat typically happens when crowds of people are also doing the same thing.  We thought that by taking Monday off and heading out to the lake we might be able to avoid the crowded Saturday afternoon.  Not that we have any evidence of Saturday afternoons being crowded, we are just assuming they are.

Looking at a map a relative to Benson, there seem to be 4 different bodies of water capable of handling a boat capable of dragging children around behind it.  The four we found in order of proximity are:

1. Patagonia Lake (260 acres) - 1 hour drive
2. San Carlos Lake (19,500 acres) - 2.5 hour drive
3. Roosevelt Lake  (21,500 acres) - 3.5 hour drive
4. Elephant Butte Reservoir  (36,500 acres) - 4 hour drive



Patagonia Lake is on the smaller side.  Actually by the time the boat starts planning (quits riding through the water and actually comes out and starts riding on the top surface of the water) it is time to turn around and try again.  We may still try this out in the future, but decided to not try it on our first trip out.

San Carlos looks like it might be a good choice.  Some of Terra's friends told Terra that it is very sandy and salty.  Not that this is a real problem, but puts the mechanical propulsion system under more stress.

Roosevelt is a large body of water - actually the largest within the state of Arizona.  This lake is created by the Roosevelt Damn on the Salt River.

Elephant Butte is also a large body of water - I think the largest within the state of New Mexico.  It is formed by the Elephant Butte Damn on the Rio Grande River.



When we purchased the boat, I had a few requirements.  Terra also had a few.  The one we found in Phoenix seemed to meet all of the criteria.  I wanted it to be at least 20 feet long.  This one is 21.5 feet long.  I wanted a bigger engine than a 4-cylinder.  From my memory of Margie's boat (it was a long time ago, but still this is my recollection) is that it was a bit underpowered by a 4-cylinder engine.  This one has a Chevy 305 cubic inch (Wyatt would love it). Another criteria, it needs to have something to pull (this one came with the floating device seen here).  Needs to have an open bow (it does).  Needs to have a shade canopy (it does).

Now that we have used it the shade was probably one of the most important items on the list.  This one has seating for 9 or 1,350 pounds per the sticker inside of it.



We woke in the morning around 4:00am and had the wheels turning at 4:35.  We were on the water sometime around 8:00.  Terra had heard horror stories of people launching and docking boats and was a bit apprehensive of the process, but it went off without any difficulties (once we could get the engine started).  We pulled the boat out of the water around 3:30 pm and were home around 7:30.  We had to change a tire on the trailer on the way home as the tread was separating but we had a spare and it was no problem at all.



The biggest downside of owning this contraption is that it is one more engine and set of tires to maintain.  This is also the biggest problem with acquiring additional vehicles.  They are fun to play with occasionally, but they require copious amounts of time to keep them running.



I am learning much about the laws regulating boat ownership.  Getting the proper documentation in my name has been more challenging than I anticipated.  I just assumed that I could take the paperwork down to the DMV and pay a fee - then wallah, you're legal.  Not so.

You need to register the trailer through the DMV - easy.  Then you need to register the boat through the Arizona game and fish department.  You can go on to their website, but they don't have an on-line registration system.  You have two choices either mail or in person.  I called the local AGFD office (in phoenix) and asked them about it.  I also asked if the had another office closer and they said, yes we do... in Mesa.  I told the lady that's great I can either go to Phoenix or Phoenix, I think I will just mail it in.

Here we are a week later, I still have no idea if the boat is in my name or not.  I figured the tags are still good, so off we go.  I thought I would later check with the AGFD website and see if the registration comes back to me or the previous owner, but you cannot check that yourself.  Oh well.



I have heard that the state of Arizona has more boats per capita than any other state.  Not wanting to be part of this "problem" I did some research and here is what I learned:

from 2004 Census, Arizona population was 5,743,834.  The number of boats registered was 147,294.  That is 2.49% of the population own a boat.  Looking at a state like Wisconsin in the mid west, the population was 5,509,026 and the number of boats registered was 605,467 or 10.99% of the population have one.  Given those two numbers It easy to believe there are other states with greater than 2.5% boat ownership making Arizona not number one on a per capita basis.



Terra has on occasion remarked that my letters are more about things and hers are about people.  Given that this trip was people driven, I will have her finish the details.


Hi!  We had such a great time.  As Nathen
mentioned as our kids get older we were looking for a way to make more memories and think this will do the trick.  Our kiddos love water and they loved this boat.  We took a chance on getting the boat as our children have never been in one before.  But they love it.  In Arkansas, boats were everywhere, I think it put a little spark in our minds that we would one day like to own one.  We always chuckled to our selves, as the main type of boat in Arkansas was a Pontoon boat, and it was fondly named "The Party Barge".  I love oppertunities to make memories and I think we found a great memory maker.



Let's start at the top and tell you how everyone liked it.  Ethen, LOVED it. He loved playing in the towable, he loved swimming in the lake, but I think one of his very favorite things was learning to drive the boat.  He did great!  Cruising on the water is a lot easier then cruising on the pavement and he loved learning the ropes of driving.

Kyle, was probably our most adventurous.  He was always on the towable and always wanted to go.  Whenever we docked or stopped the boat even for a second - You would here a splash and you knew Kyle had just dove in for a quick swim.






Rachel, tried the towable with her brothers and it was a bit rough for her.  They crashed and she didn't want to get back in for a while.  But she loved to sit at the bow of the boat and have her hair blow in the wind.  She said she was "Moana".  But by the time we left she was back on the towable trying it again.  She loved to swim in the lake and she loved just riding in the boat.



Landen took a little warming up.  Last summer we
were swimming in Jim's daughter's pool, in Tucson.  I stepped out of the pool for few moments to change Janelle.
When I came back I learned that Landed had gone to the deep side of the pool and was drowning.  Luckily AJ and Karren came to his rescue quickly, and he walked away without harm.  And, thanks to AJ's quick thinking he got Landen right back in the pool and helped him eliminate
any fears.  But, still to this day, he is very cautious about the water.  He watched the water for awhile before he ventured in to take a try.  He loved the water and loved the fact that a life vest keeps you floating.

Sometimes water can be very scary, but with the proper safety equipment and safety procedures it can be a great deal of fun.


Janelle was so excited to be in the boat. She rode the towable several times and even crashed a few.  Yet, she still kept asking to get right back on.  I think the real testament that she loved the boat, was she fell asleep on the boat.  She crawled right up into my lap as I was driving it, and fell asleep.  I then placed her on the floor board of the boat and she snoozed for about an hour.  And then when she got up, the first thing she asked if she could go ride in the water with her dad.  We had a great time...The verdict is still out...
should we name it the Memory Maker? Or the Party Barge? Come try it out with us sometime!

Love-
Nathen & Terra
& towables : )





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