Red, White, and Buoy
From MemoryArchive
Who: Sara Wiley What: Red, White, and Buoy When: August 2005 Where: Wisconsin
It was the summer of 2005 and my family and I were on our yearly vacation to Door County, Wisconsin. For as long as I can remember my family and I would go every summer to Wisconsin and stay in my aunt’s cabin that was fortunately located next to Lake Michigan. That year I had brought my good friend, Kaitie Crile along with me.
One early evening thirty minutes after six o' clock, Kaitie and I were sitting on the beach contemplating what we were going to do next. I looked around and saw that the water was calm and we had at least two hours before it started to get dark. “Hey, I have an idea. Let’s go canoeing out to the two mile buoy and back, “ I suggested.
“Let’s do it! That would make an great story to tell people when we get back to Washington.” Kaitie said excitedly. It was decided. We were going to canoe out to the two mile buoy no matter what and no one was going to stop us. We went to go fetch out life jackets and paddles out of the dark, dusty shed. On our way from the shed to the beach we yelled to my parents, “We’re going on a canoe ride, be back before it gets dark.” Then we ran giddily to the beach where our canoe was conveniently sitting ready to go because of the previous canoe rides we had taken earlier that week. We got into the canoe and were ready to start our voyage out to the two mile buoy.
In the beginning of our canoe ride I could not help, but notice how unbelievably clear it was. It was as if we were just floating on air and looking down at a bunch of plants and fish floating around. For the first twenty minutes the water was very clear, but after that twenty minutes the water seemed to be getting a little darker and it was not as clear as it was when we first started our adventure.
Every five feet it seemed as if the water was getting darker. The current was getting more active making it harder for us to paddle. Looking down I said, “Wow, the water is really dark now. It’s almost black”
“Yeah I know,” said Kaitie and then laughed nervously.
“Oh well, we’ve made it this far we might as finish what we came to do,” I said. After I said that we kept on paddling. Our destination kept looking closer and closer. Then we noticed that the sun was going down, but we did not care. We were so close to the buoy that we didn’t want to go back then.
We were about twenty five feet away from the buoy. When we heard a motor boat getting louder and louder. I turned around and there was my dad, sister, and cousin coming to get us. “Sara! Kaitie! Stop paddling!” shouted everyone in the boat. When they said that we stopped paddling. Finally they were close to our canoe and said, “Here, I am going to hook the rope onto the the boat and we’ll pull you back,” explained my dad.
“But, dad can’t we just go and touch the buoy then go?” I pleaded.
“Okay fine, but after that we are going back to the cabin, “ my dad stated.
We started paddling and then sat there next to the buoy. We did it, after an hour and a half of paddling we were actually in front of our destination. Kaitie and I grinned at each other then touched the red and white bobbing buoy.
