Tuesday
morning Judy awoke wrapped in Phil’s arms.
They were naked under the sheets and a couple of thin blankets. It had gotten a little chilly during the
night on Fourth Lake. She turned towards
him and kissed him gently on his lips.
He opened his eyes and smiled.
“Good
morning, Judy.”
“I love you,
my darling. Sleep well?”
“Wonderfully! And you?”
She kissed
him again and again and again. They
fooled around in bed for several more minutes before Judy said she was
hungry. They both got up and together they
fixed a breakfast of orange juice, scrambled eggs, link sausages, toast with
strawberry preserves, and coffee with cream and sugar. Judy showered first and then dressed in a
tank top, a pair of tight-fitting shorts, and sneakers. While Phil was taking his shower, Judy left
the cottage to sit by the lake. Almost
as soon as she had settled in to her chair to enjoy the view on this sunny day,
Joe Williams came up behind her.
“Excuse me,
Judy. Good morning. Is everything OK?”
“Oh, good
morning, Joe. Sure, everything is
wonderful.”
“I hope you
don’t mind my mentioning it, but yesterday it sounded like there might be a
problem.”
“What are
you talking about?”
“Well, you and
your husband were in the water talking loudly and then you got up and kind of
ran into the cottage.”
“Oh, that
was nothing. You needn’t concern
yourself.”
“That’s
great. But, like I said, if there’s anything
you need, you just ask and I can take care of it.”
Joe walked
away and returned to his cottage while Judy noticed his loose-fitting t-shirt
and black Speedo swim trunks. At first, she
felt embarrassed that someone had witnessed their quarrel. Then, she thought how sweet it was for him to
be so concerned about her. Finally, she started
wondering if Joe was suggesting something more than just being a friendly
neighbor. He was a good-looking young
man, tall and slender. Judy started to
fantasize a little. She snapped out of
it when she saw her husband coming out of their cottage.
“Hey, Judy, I
have a great idea. Let’s go canoeing on
the lake. Yesterday, I noticed a store
in town which claimed to be New York State’s number one canoe dealer. I think it’s called Mountain Man Outdoor Supply. What do you say? Why don’t we go over there and talk to them?”
Judy was
stunned at first, never having been in a canoe.
She believed the same to be true for Phil. However, it sounded thrilling, just the two
of them out on the lake, like Hawkeye
with his pioneer woman.
“Okay,
darling. Let’s go for it.”
So the two
of them walked over to the store Phil was referring to. They rented their necessary supplies and
received a one-hour lesson in canoe operations and safety. The woman there recommended a sixteen-foot
long Mad River canoe, which, thankfully, weighed only about 60 lbs. Their paddles were of very different lengths
because of the dramatic difference in their respective heights. The woman told them that the correct paddle,
standing on its blade tip, should reach to about the level of your mouth. Judy marveled at her paddle with its
squared-off blade, seemingly extra long shaft and t-shaped grip.
Even though
both Judy and Phil were good swimmers, the woman strongly recommended they take
life jackets with them out on Fourth Lake.
In case of an accident, they would provide both warmth and
buoyancy. Technically, it was New York
State law that they have them in the canoe.
It was up to them whether they would wear them or not.
While at the
store, Phil and Judy heard more unpleasant news about Watergate on a radio that
was playing there. The House Judiciary
Committee, by a vote of 21-17, passed its third article of impeachment against
the president: “President Nixon failed
to produce, without any lawful cause or excuse, papers and other things, as
directed by duly authorized subpoenas issued by the Judiciary Committee of the
House of Representatives, thereby willfully disobeying such subpoenas.”
Phil claimed
it was bogus. He believed a president could
always find a good reason not to answer a subpoena from some congressional
committee.
Two
additional articles, accusing President Nixon of illegally concealing the
bombing of Cambodia and of committing tax fraud, were defeated. Floor debate on the three approved articles was
scheduled to begin in about two weeks, in mid-August, 1974.
Another
store employee transported their canoe by truck over to the parking lot
adjacent to Inlet’s Arrowhead Park from where Judy and Phil could carry it to
the water’s edge. As instructed, with
Judy in the front (bow) on the right side and Phil in the back (stern) on the
left, they each held on to their respective deck plates as they carried the
canoe until they gently placed it into Fourth Lake. Before entering it themselves, they placed
their provisions inside, especially their picnic lunch and their two life
jackets. Finally, Judy entered first in
the bow and then Phil in the stern. As
they had been instructed, they were both in a kneeling position with their back
sides resting against the edge of their seats and their knees flexed as wide as
possible. With their paddles in the
water, they shoved off heading west from Inlet.
Phil and
Judy had learned to paddle on opposite sides of the canoe and to rotate their
bodies as much as possible. They used
the forward stroke which meant keeping the paddles in a vertical position while
doing a sweep motion, then pushing down the grip hand until the entire paddle
is in the water and finally lifting it out of the water when it reached their
hips. Both having come from athletic
backgrounds, the two of them took to this new sport like the ducks that were
swimming nearby. Judy especially noticed
that the canoe was light enough to be carried, yet it could support a tremendous
amount of weight in the water without sinking.
It was
exciting for both of them as they powered their canoe smoothly through the clear,
blue water. From this new perspective,
Fourth Lake and its environs looked majestic.
Contemplating their new adventure, she laughed nervously as Phil tried
to remain calm.
“How are you
doing, Judy?”
“Great! I hope you know what you’re doing.”
“Weren’t you
paying attention during our class?”
“That was
then. This is now.”
“Well,
you’re in front, so you’re in charge.”
So, where’s
this church we’re supposed to be heading to?”
“On the
north side of the lake, on our right, probably about a mile or two up. The guy at the store said we can’t miss it.”
“Say, what’s
that over there on the left? I see a
whole bunch of kids swimming in the lake.”
“It must be
a summer camp. There are a bunch of them
in this part of the Adirondacks.”
Off in the
distance, emanating from the site of the camp they noticed, Judy and Phil could
hear children singing, “We welcome you to
Eagle Cove, we’re mighty glad you’re here...”
Later on,
they noticed, plum in the middle of the lake, an island, called Dollar Island,
since it resembled a silver dollar. They
had been told at the store that it was privately owned and contained a rather
large house. They couldn’t see any sign
of life on the island.
The more
Judy paddled, the more tired she felt.
She couldn’t as yet see the church.
They had been told it was a ways off on the opposite side of Fourth
Lake, but now the trip seemed to be longer than when they were talking about it
at the store. She looked at the
shoreline, about a half-mile away, and could notice an occasional house or an
inn or a restaurant right at the shore with a dock to accomodate boats. Other than those, all she could see at the
water’s edge were trees. There was no sandy
beach like on Long Island. Finally, Judy
saw the tall, white building in the distance they had been looking for.
It took Phil
and Judy another thirty minutes and all their strength and energy to finally
arrive at the church on the lake. Upon
reaching a grassy area nearby, they experienced a sense of exhilaration that
they had accomplished such a feat on their own with no prior experience. They were not kids, but they proved they still
had vitality. When they climbed out of
their canoe, they gave each other a broad smile and a well-deserved kiss as
good shipmates should.
Judy had
made some roast beef sandwiches on kaiser rolls with muenster cheese, tomatoes,
and mayonaisse for their picnic lunch.
She had also packed a couple of Macintosh apples and a bottle of Riesling
imported German wine. They each devoured
the food with ravenous appetites. After
lunch, Phil sat on the ground with his back against one of the many trees
nearby, with Judy next to him, her head resting on his shoulder. He pulled her close. They looked back toward the long distance
from where they had come. It was too bad
that Dollar Island blocked their view of Inlet.
They slowly regained their second wind for the return trip.
When they
finally arrived back at Arrowhead Park, Phil called Mountain Man Outdoor Supply
on a payphone for someone to come pick up their rented supplies. As Phil waited by the canoe, Judy walked back
to the cottage as she couldn’t wait to take a nap before making dinner.
Fifteen
minutes later, after the man from the store had retrieved everything, Phil also
started walking back to their cottage.
As he passed the food store, he decided to stop there and pick up a
six-pack of beer and some potato chips, peanuts and maybe, if they had any,
some pre-packaged dip. When he arrived
at the check-out counter, May was eagerly awaiting him.
“How are you
doing, handsome? Did you lose the wife?”
“Excuse me?”
“Don’t mind
me. I’m just fooling with you a little.”
“Okay.”
“My name’s
May. Where are you from?”
“New York
City.”
“I
figured. Big difference between here and
there.”
“You been
there?”
“No, but
I’ve seen it in the movies. I’d love to
go for a visit. I’m originally from
Syracuse. Ever been there?”
“Yeah, about
twenty years ago, I played in a basketball game against the Orangemen. I think we lost.”
“No
kidding? You were some hot-shot ball
player?”
“I was all
right. Played three years at Penn.”
“I’m
impressed. I’ll bet you could still do
good, one-on-one. You enjoying Fourth Lake?”
“Yeah! It’s beautiful. We went on a canoe trip today, went over by
that church on the other side of the lake.
By the way, we passed Dollar Island and noticed a big house on it. Anybody there now?”
“It’s owned
by some rich people from Rochester. They
usually spend about a month there every summer.
They left a week ago. Won’t be
back until next year. I know because I
helped deliver the groceries over there.”
“Thanks! Good bye.”
“I hope I
see you again real soon, handsome.”
When Phil
arrived at the cottage, he found Judy fast asleep on their bed. As he put the beer and the other stuff away,
he reminded himself to tell Judy what he learned about Dollar Island. Phil knew she would be interested. He also knew that Judy would be too exhausted
and sore to make love again tonight.
