The Dixie

Yesterday I went up to the lake to visit. We all went up to another lake where this paddle boat was. It's name is the Dixie. It is the oldest running paddle boat in the state, built in 1929. It was pretty neat. On the lower deck were tables and chairs to eat popcorn you could purchase from a little stand they had inside. When it was time for the boat to leave, we got on, and took a seat up on the top.
As we walked up, in front of the captain's wheel was this nice plaque. I got a big chuckle out of it. The boat was brought here by a Swedish man, who has died, and now his son and wife run the business. It runs every hour in the summer and the ride takes about 50 minutes. It was fun to see all of the people run out of their cottages and wave as it goes by. And if the kids wave and yell, he blows the steam horn. There was a lot of waving going on! Every now and then, he would tell a bit of history about an area on the lake. One was an old hotel that used to be there where Al Capone and some of his boys would come and spend some time. Another a cottage where Dillinger spent summers. One house on an island was surrounded by trees. The story was the man's dream was to have a tree house, but he was afraid of heights. He built his house with a tree going through the roof. Next best thing! I didn't get a picture of that, I only had my phone camera and it was too far to get a good picture.

As we cruised around the lake, you could see old cottages, next to the new big fancy ones. People would buy two lots, tear the old cottages down, and build a big house. I enjoyed the old cottages and their charm a lot more than the new fancy homes. I pictured generations of families spending endless hours in the summer, playing and growing up, grandparents sitting in lawn chairs, and fading away for their children to take that spot, and making room for another generation to come up.

It was a great excursion and will do it again soon. Next time I won't forget my camera.