There’s a local lakeside restaurant in town which features several events during the year and one we attended last year, the Treasure Hunt, over Labor Day holiday, was so much fun we decided we wanted to do it again this year. To add to the fun, my best friend from college years and all these years for that matter, came out to visit for six days so was able to join us.
The closest airport is about two
hours away so Marc returned with Paulette in the evening hours after her 4 o’clock
arrival. After dinner, we were able to gather outside under the rope lights,
start the fire in the new fire pit and enjoy another glass of wine as we caught
up. It was a magical evening and I was well pleased with the area I had made,
with the lake disappearing in the background darkness.
We had quite a few plans which
were unfortunately foiled by much higher-than-normal temps for this time of
year but the weather for the Treasure Hunt was perfect. There was a total of 14
boats competing, with the idea being that spread across the chain of three
lakes, there are hidden eight booties of treasure gems hung on a board with a
boat number. You are to find the treasures (in bars, on islands, on private
docks), take them from the board and at the end turn yours in. Last year we
only managed to find three, but this year with the help of eagle-eyed Paulette,
we ended up with seven out of the eight, a great haul! Part of the fun is also
dressing participants and your boat in costume, which we haven’t done, but the
best prizes are for the costumes. Finding the gems earns you a draw from the
bags with no good prizes—in our case, a squeaky dog toy which we’ll proudly
hang on our pontoon somewhere.
It was Marc & I’s anniversary and the next day Paulette’s birthday, so we enjoyed good food and the camaraderie of having known each other for so many years. I gifted Paulette with the last one of my mother’s quilts and it brought tears to her eyes. Mom would love knowing Paulette has it. Paulette’s visit drew to a close; I dropped her back at the airport and then went on home to attend to the laundry, yard chores and mowing. It was a relief even after a couple of days to return to the woods, the peace and quiet and my spot of heaven.
