So far the summer weather has not been kind. Most days have been cold and rainy and my job as TV Producer has kept me busy during weekends that showed any sign of good sailing. The few times we did managed to get out, we took full advantage of the sights and sounds of summer.

I was able to take a few weeks off this summer and July was the only time available. Unfortunately summer was still rainy and cold most of the time. Regardless, we packed up the family and headed south down the lake to where all the BIG beaches are. The day we left was somewhat warm with a heavy wind from the northwest, allowing us to make great time and arrive at Lily Island by supper.

Waking the next morning we were greeted with overcast skies and a cold chill in the air. Although the weather did not look like it was going to cooperate, we decided to continue on and hope for the best. Approaching "Sandbar Beach" as we like to call it, the skies darkened and eventually opened up. We anchored at the beach and then sat below eating munchies and wondering what to do next.

Due to the amount of rain coming down, even if it stopped the sandy beaches would be nothing more than long stretches of mud. We decided the best thing to do would be to turn around and head closer to home. By this time the winds were strong from the east and the waves were starting to swell. Eventually the "3 Monkeys" was being tossed around like a cork as we headed north. The weather continued to get worse and as we recovered from one swell, another knocked us sideways and I was thrown across the cockpit onto the tiller... breaking it in half. We were only without steering for about 30 seconds while I quickly duct-taped a mop handle to the tiller to act as a crutch. Finally making it across the "Traverse", we traveled the rest of the day until we reached Cintiss Island later that evening. This seemed like the perfect harbor to protect against the strong easterly winds we had endured all day.

I was awaken early morning by the sound of the anchor alarm. This meant we were dragging anchor and had to do something right away. Unfortunately the wind had changed 180 degrees and was now pounding us from the west. After a short struggle we pulled up the anchor and headed to the east side of Crescent Island were we re-anchored and went back to sleep. All the early morning activity must have really taken its toll since we did not re-awake until almost 11am. After a quick breakfast the rain started again and we once again headed north towards home. As my wife and myself endured the elements above, the kids spent their time below watching movies and playing games, completely oblivious to the raging winds and water around them. We arrived back at our dock around supper time with the sun breaking through the clouds just long enough for us to unload some of the supplies we had hoped would keep us enjoying "fun in the sun" for an entire week.

After our last trip we decided to stay closer to home and only go for the weekend. We spent the day sailing to our friends camp. This allowed the kids to play with other kids their own age and have a lot more fun. My wife had also made an amazing sailing quilt that would make those cold nights a lot more comfortable.

My new tiller arrived from Rudy at D&R Marine and looks absolutely amazing. It is also much thicker than the original tiller so hopefully there will be no more "breaking incidents". My parents also surprised me with the gift of a new Main Sail, which also came from D&R Marine and was manufactured by Neil Pryde. I cannot believe the difference!! The boat sails so much smoother and no longer gets knocked over as easily in high winds. It's like the "3 Monkeys" was given a new engine!

It's already August and finally things are starting to warm up. We took a trip to Sultana Island where we enjoyed an afternoon of swimming and exploring. This is an amazing place to visit on Lake of the Woods and probably one of our favorite locations so close to home!