Eight Point Lake, Pt. I

Comin' in hot. . . with kids and dogs.

How's it going, folks.

Today marks our second stint up at Eight Point Lake this year, and our first one since Memorial Day Weekend.  Unlike that visit, however - when we made a day trip out of it because the weather was abysmal - this time around we planned on staying up at the lakehouse for four or five days, so it honestly felt more like old times back when we used to rent that dinky, old cottage on the North side of the lake (from 2002 - 2019.)  Most of the time it was going to be just us Houghs (and my folks), but the Whites were coming up on Saturday (7/2) for most of the day.

The weather this weekend couldn't have been more ideal for spending each and every day on the lake - low/mid-80s, sunny (except for some overcast here and there later on in the weekend) - and, as such, we all got plenty of color by the time we were done.

Check it out, folks - the first installment (of many, I'm sure) chronicling the Houghs' 2022 excursions at Eight Point Lake.

Enjoy. 

Kris was adamant about dropping a few hundred bucks on this thing, and I gave her a hard time for it, too.  She wanted to contribute something to the cottage, seeing how we're not bringing up a boat of our own, and so she landed on this thing.  I think it's safe to say that we are not fitting this thing back in the box once it's deflated again.

This thing was massive, and had like six or seven inflation points (which, to its credit, were pretty fancy.)

Dad had an air pump set that he brought out for us, but finding the right nozzle to fit the ports was a little difficult at first.

Despite this thing's size - which was big enough to fit like ten adults (even though it says it can only hold six) - it inflated pretty damn fast, I was pleased.

So it comes with two separate areas to lounge in - one for lying down (sans cup holders, oddly enough), and another for sitting around an open-bottom middle (lined with mesh) that has plenty of cup holders.  Once it was fully inflated, Dad, Kris and I carried it over the sea wall (lake wall?) and dropped it in along the left side of our dock, over by the jet ski.

Almost immediately we realized this was a stupid idea:  the wind coming in from the West (and it was definitely windy today) kept smashing the raft into the side of the dock, so we decided to try mooring it at the end of the dock (between the two boat hoists, where the dock veers off perpendicular to the main run.)

Just look at all the fun I'm having. . .

Even at this spot, it continued to do the same thing - the wind kept smashing it up against the dock, but now against the boat propellers as well.  For as much money as we dropped on this thing, I really didn't want it popped on its maiden voyage.  Ultimately, we opted to tied it up in the main swimming area, where the docks and boats provided some, small protection against the open waves and wind, and nothing was on its eastern side to bash up against.

Dad brought some bungie-ish boat ties out so that we could attach it to the dock (the ends had loops instead of just open rope, so it wasn't floating away any time soon.)

After it was fully secured and ready for business, the girls gave it a test drive.

Samson and Abby.

The sun came out a little while later and we immediately realized that this was a really good purchase on our parts.

We would consequently spend the majority of the day on this raft.  Well worth every penny.

A couple hours later, the wind had picked up and it had become overcast again. We unfortunately had to take a break from bronzing. 

Kris chips away at her book. . . which I'm sure is nowhere near as cool as The Lord of the Rings.

Nana whips up some dinner for the girls (Alayna brought her friend, Ava, this time - she cycles through her friend group so that every one of them gets a turn at the cottage.)

Digesting food, waiting for the wind to lighten up a bit so that we can take the boat out for a cruise.

The sun was awesome for most of the day, but the wind - which was stronger than usual - kept us from doing a lot of boating throughout the day (hence our reliance on the new raft.)  Fortunately, as evening came on and sunset approached, the winds lessened enough so that Dad could get the pontoon out of the hoist.

The Cannonball, once again, chastising her grandfather on his playlist.

Kris loves her selfies. . .

Definitely got chillier as the evening went on - cruises like these require blankets and hoodies.

A kind of a 'meh' sunset over Eight Point - we definitely had a late start to our cruise this evening.

A low-key, but very relaxing, start to our second trip out to Eight Point Lake - stay tuned for tomorrow's episode. . .

- Brian