Member Profile: Manotick & 1000 Island Chapter’s Linda Hamilton

Boating is in my blood. I have been on the water since I was eight years old, when dad bought our first family boat and a tent. Boat number two, our 18 ½-foot Weymouth cruiser, (yes, a cruiser, and Mom, Dad and three kids slept aboard), meant that every summer we’d spend family vacation time cruising to and in the 1000 Islands. 

Sassy Jody at the top of Chaffey’s Loc.

Dad bought boat number three, a 25-foot Chris-Craft, when I was about 10. Following that came a 27-foot Chris. After that, dad somehow lost interest, but mom did not, so she bought a 30-foot Chris instead of a backyard pool. She said she wanted to keep the family together, and that she did!

As our family grew, the boats did as well. When our second child came along 30-feet was too small so a 35-foot was next. 

Fun times aboard with our Grandsons.

The 35-foot 1963 Chris-Craft Cavalier, was already named Sassy Jody when Mom acquired it in 1981. Our maiden voyage was from Keswick, Ontario to our home port on the Big Rideau Lake. The boat had been kept under cover and was only taken out on sunny days, so what a surprise when it started to rain – non-stop. We put in a call to our marina and tarps were delivered to Kingston where we sat until the rain stopped. (Successful winter works projects were planned to stop the leaks. That was a sharp learning curve!)

In the years that followed, we had some great vacations, often cruising to the 1000 Islands, where another part of the family would meet us and board to spend their vacation. It took quite a lot of planning! Mom happily boated until 4 months before she died at 94. 

For many years my husband and I spent summer vacations cruising with our two children, and often Mom. While in university our daughter lived aboard the boat during the summer and worked at the marina. We had to often call her to let her know where she would find her berth as we moved about. More than once she was met after work by Zodiac. 

Sassy Jody winters in Aylings’ Boat Yard in Merrickville, Ontario and summers on the Big Rideau Lake at Len’s cove Marina, Portland Ontario. My husband and I now, with kids grown, spend almost all summer aboard. Our son is our ‘in-house’ mechanic who works hard alongside his dad, to keep the old engines running, logging many hours of bilge time. Spring time is spent at Aylings boat yard where the three of us, sand, paint and varnish.

Family Breakfast on the Dock on MacDonald Island.

From that first winter that Dad owned a boat until today my family has been involved with the Canadian Power and Sail Squadrons (CPS). Dad took a winter boating course and my mom, sister, brother and I also took courses, and our husbands did as well. My sister and I volunteered,  following the lead of mom and dad, locally and then at the district and national levels. My sister, my husband and I are active all year volunteering. The benefits and educational opportunities through CPS are immense including courses such as Advanced Piloting, which I’ve taken, and Celestial Navigation, which my husband enjoyed and is instructed by my sister’s husband.

For many years I had thought about joining the Antique and Classic Boat Society but mistakenly assumed that it was really just for ‘show condition’ wooden runabouts and really pristine cruisers. Our boat is well loved, and gets lots of sleep aboard time. I thought that it would not be good enough. However, almost two years ago, I decided that we should join and we are now part of with the Manotick Chapter and the 1000 Islands Chapter. 

So close to the Tall Ships in Brockville!

This past September we had one of our best boating trips when we were invited by the Manotick Chapter to be a part of the Tall Ships event in Brockville Ontario. That was followed by the International Show and ACBS Annual Meeting, hosted by the 1000 Islands Chapter. It was a perfect opportunity to not only go to our first big show, but cruise there and find out more what ACBS is about. 

In Brockville it was exciting to be docked so close to Tall Ships – a kind of ‘pinch me – am I really here?’ feeling. In Alex Bay, we took part as a static display but didn’t know if the judging would be for us. (A couple of judges said that we should have entered as they had never been aboard a 35-foot Cavalier before and asked to see it.) We so enjoyed the event and had an amazing time, meeting interesting new people. It was great to become a part of a new community of boaters. One of the best parts though was that our son and daughter joined us a few times while we were in the Islands. Our lives are filled with exceptional boating memories.