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For us, houseboating opened up an entirely different world of family vacationing. We could sail as long as we wanted or dock in a secluded cove. We could study the geology by hugging the shoreline or hiking the land. We could swim--or build sand castles on the beach. For the children, boredom here was as alien a concept as homework.
Early one morning my wife and I awoke to find all three girls gone. Alarmed, we rushed to the forward deck and quickly spotted them on the beach in their pajamas, each holding a bucket. "We're looking for lizards. Wanna help?" Soon there were five of us on the beach in pajamas.
As it turned out, we did become a houseboating statistic: we all want to go back.