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The girls had their second boat ride today and they were much better. They even walked off the boat, basically unaided. They needed a little encouragement but, I think, they were just glad to be back on terra firma. They did get splashed a bit, as did I, and spent a bit of time shivering but, I think, they sort of enjoyed it. As Mirinda said, they do prefer being with us, regardless of the vehicle.
We had waited for mid-afternoon, when the weather was supposed to be grey but calm. And it sort of was as predicted. Mirinda wanted to circumnavigate Öbolandet. Jolly Roger had taken her under the bridge and around the island last week and she wanted to repeat the journey with the girls and me. And so she did.
All was calm and warm as we passed by the boathouses of the wealthy, observed by robot mowers, trimming unnaturally green lawns. Except for the birds, the robot mowers were the only signs of life. There were no other boats out on the water and no sign of humans on the shore.
Actually, that is not completely true. As we passed beneath the bridge, there was a fisherman who gave us a smile. When I think about it, he was probably smiling at the dogs.
We discussed the lack of the boating crowd, wondering if it was due to the weather. Then I realised that it was around 4pm on a Tuesday and, possibly, most of the watery set were at work. Mind you, it could have been the weather. There may have been more than just us if the sun had been shining down.
In essence, though, it felt like we were alone in the archipelago. And, as we moved beyond Öbolandet, the waves started getting a bit choppy as the wind picked up. We were no longer sheltered by the big island and the mainland. That was when the dogs, and I, got a bit wet.
Actually, the girls dried off as we headed back to the dock whereas, my bum remained wet all the way home.
Like before, we sat at the dock for fika after Mirinda showed how much her parking skills have improved. She slid in between the floats and up to the dock like a professional. She even used our new boat hook to remove the forest worth of weeds around the screw.
Having fika while docked makes such a lovely end to our boating. Long may it continue.
Well, until we reach the end of the season and have to lift the boat out of the water.
