Tuesday, April 19, 2011

Have You Ever Ridden on a Duck?

Have you ever been to the Wisconsin Dells?  There are two parts to this vacation.  One can travel on  either a boat or a"DUCK" to see the actual Dells of the Wisconsin River.  Then there is the touristy stuff.  Both are fun and worthwhile.  But neither is an adventure!
About ten years ago, Bob and I thought going to the Dells would be fun.   Bob suggested, though, that instead of staying on strip,  we stay in a fishing resort in Poynette, Wisconsin.  (No, Bob does  not fish)  I figured this was one of those "six of one, half a dozen of the other" situations.   It was near enough to Lake Delton to get there in about twenty minutes, but far enough from there that we wouldn't be kept up at night with partyers.  Besides,  we wanted to visit Circus World Museum in Baraboo, so it wasn't like we just wanted to eat at Paul Bunyan's, ride the boat and the DUCK,
Not necessarily a Wisconsin "DUCK", but a "DUCK" nonetheless.
see Tommy Bartlett's show, and visit Ripley's Believe it or Not Museum.  We wanted to do other things, too!

When we got, there, Bob saw that next door to where we were (it was a lovely place, but by "resort", they mean we had a cabin with a bathroom, not some fancy schmancy place) staying was a boat rental place right on the river.   He thought renting a pontoon boat and exploring the river sounded like fun.  Again, I thought "six of one, have a dozen of the other".  (Really, wherever we go, that's where the party is at, so it doesn't really matter where we are...) So, on a five day trip to "the Dells" we were planning to spend one day in Baraboo, and one day on the river.

Well, we tell the owner of the boat rental place that we are newbies, and he shows us how to drive it.   Then we go for a lovely ride on the river and dock at a nice little restaurant.   We had a nice lunch, and decided it was time to head back so we could return the boat on time.

Well, it on the way back, the boat ends up getting stuck in sandbars, and we have to get out and push the boat out, then hop back in it.  That was all well and good when the water came up to our knees.   But at one point, the boat drifted away from us too quickly, and we had to swim a few hundred feet after it!   Now,  Bob and I tried climbing over the side as we had before, but there was too much boat sticking out of the water, so we swam along side of it for a while.   Then we tried getting in from the back, and that worked much better.  We got in the boat, I looked at Bob, and then I laughed and laughed and laughed.   I'm afraid we didn't take pictures of the event (after all, who could forget...) but the picture to the right reminds me of him when we got back in the boat that day.  Poor guy.  A proper wife would have been worried that he and I would catch a chill, but I couldn't get over how funny he looked!  Bob, bless him, was just glad I was taking things in stride.  Either that, or he was worried that I cracked up. I'm not sure which.
Afterwards things seemed to go rather smoothly, at least until we realized that nothing looked familiar.   It seems we went down the wrong branch!   Nothing to worry about though, as they connected just past where we were staying.   The owner of the shop was getting worried about his boat because it was almost closing time, and the weather had changed.  (Did I mention it had started to rain?  Woops.)   He saw us and towed us back in, while I laughed and laughed.
What was so funny?  Nothing really.  I was just filled with joy that everything worked out okay, and that Bob and I had faced our adventure working things out together and not griping at each other and bickering.  Love is not easily angered, and I was so glad to be sharing any and all adventures with Bob, whom I love so much, and loves me as well.  I hope they all turn out as well, with  us at the right destination when everything is all said and done.




This is being submitted to the One Word blog carnival at Peter Pollock's blog.  Today's One Word is adventure.
(I had thought this would make a good "Life is Funny" post, too, but my friend hasn't been hosting her blog carnival lately.)

9 comments:

katdish said...

I love that Bob and you turn something that could have been a horrible experience into an adventure with laughter and love.

Duane Scott said...

Helen,

This was an absolute riot!

I laughed right along with you.

-DS

Lisa notes... said...

Ha. Glad your adventure turned out well. And no, I have never ridden on a duck. Now maybe I will, maybe I won't. :-)

HisFireFly said...

Thanks for sharing your adventure. We went for a boat ride at the Dells, but not on a Duck.. always wanted to.. might get to yet, only God knows.

SarahBeeCreations said...

I'm smiling hugely! Love this story

a joyful noise said...

Being able to laugh at calamity is q wonderful attitude. You both made a decision to enjoy the day regardless. I can picture the boat owner worried about you being late, but I am glad he went looking for you and gave you a tow. Now that was a great adventure!

Anonymous said...

newbies :-) what a riot!

Glynn said...

Family adventures are the best kind of adventures. Once, when we were on vacation, I let my youngest talk me into doing a water park with him. Like the four-story water slide. And the "spider slide" -- a completely enclosed water slide that was also completely dark. Fortunately, I survived that adventure.

Peter P said...

I so wish I had been there!