No Moon, Pitch Darkness, Dead Flashlight, LOST

[Molarbu]

I have to agree with Saxton. Night time boating has little to offer. Yeah it's different, but a bit dangerous. If you are just going to venture out a short distance....no problem. All the Marinas are closed at night. You can't do water sports either.

Take your wife on a date night on the boat sometime! You don't need a marina or water sports! We love floating, reading, swimming, catching dinner at a restaurant with a dock. Your pump you use to fill the tube also fills an air mattress and we float along, watch for shooting stars, listen to music, and do whatever else a married couple who aren't with their five kids want. Drive back in about 11, pay the baby sitter and talk about how much we love summer! You, my friend had a bad night with no light and gps problems. Maybe try it the same as I described with a little more preparation, your gps plotter, and a full moon. Watching the moon rise and listening to the water at night might just be the best thing the Surf Ninja has to offer!

[Afun]

^^^^ forget it my wife hates me

[kayakwv]

Night boating is serious business, and when you live on a Navigable River, with 24hr Barge traffic, the stakes can be deadly if you make a mistake. I like to try to get back to our dock before dark, and stay out of the Barge channels at night. But a couple times a year we stay out for a fireworks show or a band at the Riverfront point. In going home you can see the shore on both sides with good lighting for about half the way, but the second halfway home is pitch dark, and going 5mph sometimes seems too fast. Also, the low fog that sometimes settles on the river in the evening, makes spotlights worthless. So you just have to use your navigational lights, and let your eyes adjust. It can be peaceful, if you're not in a hurry, take it slow, and follow any other boats with a good distance between you.

[Cory]

When the sun goes down, we'll be groovin
When the sun goes down,we'll be feeling alright
When the sun sinks down over the water
Everything gets hotter when the sun goes down

[Afun]

^^^ Jim Morrison?

[Cory]

Kenny Chesney & Uncle Kracker (though it is possible he didn't write the original lyric)

Edited August 11, 2015 by Cory

[saxton15]

I've done plenty of nighttime boating in the past. Coming from cruisers, we have spent many nights anchored out at islands and doing some "rum runs" to the bar. But after a while, you hear of people hitting shoals from being just off their plotted course. Now, this all depends on where you boat. Maybe on your wide open lakes taking a slow well lit ride home isn't an issue. But where we are, there are plenty of unmarked shoals, islands and a lot of commercial boat traffic in the shipping channels. Having moved from cruisers to having a cottage on the river, we much prefer to be back in prior to dark. I'm not saying it isn't fun, just slightly riskier in our parts. Enough that there is no use in setting out in the dark.

On Sunday night we took a cruise with the family to a restaurant and had a great dinner on the docks. We managed to head home right at dusk and tie up as the sun hit the deck for the night.

Edited August 11, 2015 by saxton15

[justgary]

^^^^ forget it my wife hates me

We love you, Afun. Just go out alone and think of us.

[DarkSide]

Afun, i feel your pain. We took the surfer out for a night cruise. To the back of a lake i know VERY well. We went to the back to escape lights yup watch meteor showers. I thought i was prepared. Gps Chartplotter navigation, tower lights, i am good to go.

Meteors are great, but time to go home. Chartplotter, no GPS signal! Strike 1, so go to turn on tower lights, nope no lights, freaking new boats! Strike 2, pull out phones, yep no service! Ended up idling back using flashlights on phone to watch shoreline. Followed shoreline back to main bay!

Get back to main bay, navigation finds GPS and i have cell service...but now i don't need them. LOL.

Tower lights loose connector, now they work too, so more night trips are in my future.

Don't give up yet! Night trips can be AWESOME.

[Cory]

Nightswimming deserves a quiet night
I'm not sure all these people understand
It's not like years ago
The fear of getting caught
The recklessness in water
They cannot see me naked
These things they go away
Replaced by every day

Nightswimming,
remembering that night
September's coming soon
I'm pining for the moon
And what if there were two
Side by side in orbit around the fairest sun?
The bright tide forever drawn
Could not describe nightswimming

[Cory]

Afun, don't fear getting caught out at night. We don't have much time left this summer to enjoy nightswimming. September's coming soon!

[Afun]

^^^^ Jimi Hendrix

[Cory]

HaHaHa... REM

Oh ya, Gary may give you permission to think of him when you are out nightswimming, but I'd prefer I wasn't on your mind.

Edited August 12, 2015 by Cory

[Afun]

Cory your Deep...with those songs...I like Radio Free Europe from them

[Afun]

Let's not take this off topic...Bamaboners will hunt us down

[Cory]

Afun, if you get really lost next time, just play this song...

I work on the 39th floor of a skyscrapper in downtown Seattle. I have this song permanently queued up for when the "BIG ONE" (earthquake) hits.

[Afun]

^^^ you work in Seattle...Cool...you drink good coffee everyday

[Cory]

^^^ you work in Seattle...Cool...you drink good coffee everyday

I've got IV lines that plug straight into Starbuck's roastery down the street. We all do.

[Afun]

I thought being in Seattle...Starbucks would be the last place you drink coffee

[Cory]

I like their dark oily espresso roast. Besides, they are on every corner and in my building. Very convenient.

[Afun]

I like their dark oily espresso roast. Besides, they are on every corner and in my building. Very convenient.

You should try the Cuban Coffee we make...it's amazing....we use Bustelo

[Cory]

I've never heard of Bustelo. I'll have to try it some day...

Our Office ditched the commercial espresso machine we had cause no one liked the coffee beans the company forced on us with the machine rental. I've recently started using this little device:

http://www.amazon.com/Aeropress-Coffee-and-Espresso-Maker/dp/B0047BIWSK/ref=sr_1_1?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1439340126&sr=1-1&keywords=aeropress

and we order either Starbuck's espresso beans (from downstairs) or I quite like this stuff from Eastern WA:

http://www.bluestarcoffeeroasters.com/product-category/coffee/ (I like their espresso and HWY 20 roasts)

[Afun]

A special way of making...Norrismike now drinks it...but he drinks too much of it

[wakeboarder3780]

Glad you slowed down and got home safe.

There was a boat crash on Mountain Island Lake on July 4, 1:00AM (ok July 5) the boat hit some rocks that are well known and not underwater. Killed two of the four on board and shortened the boat by 2 feet. The guy lived in my neighborhood.

Take it easy if you get caught out in poor visibility no matter the cause.

You don't know a guy named jack on that lake do you? Goes by the handle MILWaterJack on the nautique forums? I was able to meet up with him and Jeff from planet nautique on lake norman once. Nice guy, into board sports and in your area. Just thought I'd throw that out there.

[Lance B. Johnson]

Afun- very interested in this. Just find a kit like the one you posted? That's all I need?