It really strikes me as odd, that people stop using their boats during the winter months. What gives? We’ve had our Ranger 27 since December and we’ve been out there, using it every week and having a great time! I can’t imagine what the summer holds for us. Plus, the Winter Rendezvous was in February, and it couldn’t have been more fun. This video of our Gig Harbortrip is just more proof that year-round boating in the Pacific Northwest makes sense. In fact, it’s a great time!
Gig Harbor is a beautiful little bay with a lot of activity going on. We tied up at the Tides Tavern, which has beautiful new docks, and explored the area from there. The Tides Tavern and I go way back to when I did my student teaching in the area. Frankly, I don’t know of a more comfortable, friendly, lively place to hang with old friends and to meet new ones. The Tide’s atmosphere is real and comes from a family that has owned the tavern for generations. The staff has been there forever, and the great old, wooden building is simply one of the best pieces of real estate on Puget Sound. Imagine, hanging out on your boat, listening to live music coming from the deck and the staff coming to your boat to take your order for amazing food and drinks. It just doesn’t get better than that in my book. It was great to be joined by my old and dear friends from Aqua Quip, who were the very first official sponsors of The Boat Guy.
The Gig Harbor BoatShop has the same authenticity as the Tides. It’s the real deal, the birthplace of an iconic, beautiful, utilitarian sailboat– The Thunderbird. The people of Gig Harbor, local businesses, town leadership, and an amazing group of volunteers worked very hard to save a beautiful, historic building that is a major part of Gig Harbor’s maritime legacy. But, they didn’t just save the building. The business inside continues to build and repair these amazing wooden boats. It still brings people and families together to work and learn side-by-side, keeping the ancient art of wooden boat-building alive and well.
There is something magical that happens when people build boats together near the water. Relationships between friends and family members are built with the same strength as the boats they create. Frankly, a historical place, like Gig Harbor BoatShop, that continues to build relationships and beautiful boats is irreplaceable. I’m grateful to everyone who worked so hard to make it happen. And, when the work day is done, it’s a short walk to the Tides Tavern for food, beverage, music, and community. Does it get any better than that? Not in my book.
The trip from Elliott Bay to Gig Harbor, and back again, was spectacular. You get such a different perspective from the water, seeing places and cool little communities that you can’t see any other way. Plus, it is always so peaceful out there with the water to yourself. There are millions of people crowded on top of each other on land. But, you don’t have to leave the area to find peace and solitude. You just have to float.
