William's Boat Entry - the Backstory

 So, I am a guest blogger and have been relegated to give some background on how this forced family fun came to pass.

This is not the Cogswells’ first boat trip.  Twenty years ago to the month, I took a much smaller boat with no electronics, very little planning, ample Budweiser, and Toastchee crackers on a similar but slightly more aggressive trip north to the St. Lawrence Seaway.  From there, we went down and through the Great Lakes, into the Chicago Canal and Illinois River, down the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico, then cut through Florida’s Lake Okeechobee to the Atlantic before heading back north up the east coast back to Charleston. 

It was a memorable trip as Lucile and I met on the first leg.  I had friends switching out along the way to do different sections. Chandler Collins had the first leg with me. She and I went to Sewanee together, and she grew up with Lucile. She introduced Lucile and me in New York where Lucile was living at the time. We hit it off the first night and rearranged plans to spend more time together. After four days in NYC, Lucile joined Chandler and me on our visit to my sister’s house in Sag Harbor. We then made plans to spend 4^th of July together in Harbor Springs, MI, where her parents have a summer house.

My old friend Jonathan was with me at this point. After a long push through Canada to the Great Lakes in a very small boat and a hilarious detour in Rogers City due to weather (thanks for the van ride, random teenagers), he and I spent a week with her family. I knew Lucile and I would work well when he had to head home, and she decided to join me on the Mississippi River leg.  Still not clear what her parents thought of the whole kidnapping, but no reports were filed.  Two weeks later, she was safely dropped off in St. Louis, and six months later we were engaged. 

Suffice it to say that we had some adventures, many of which I have told embellished versions of ever since.  Lucile sticks closer to the truth, but regardless, Mason and Meade have heard every iteration. When the idea of a repeat was introduced two years ago, everyone was in. 

To date, this has been a great family experience.  We have been up close and personal with some of the best of what America has to offer - in both the obvious and the most obscure places.  We have educated one another in subjects ranging from AC current, the French and Indian War, navy showers, SnapChat (still don’t get it), fishing lures, Jane Austin, and yes- Takis.  We have laughed more than we have yelled, but there is usually a healthy dose of both in any given day.    

Many thanks to Camp Councilor Lucile for making this a reality and keeping it fun.