Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

This morning I was preparing the boat for the next week, in Summit County (Lake Dillon).
We park the boat in the driveway, with the camper on - it keeps pine needles, and Mother Natures little critters out of the boat.

So there I was at 06:00 this morning, taking down the camper...at 33 degrees farenheit.
That canvas is a little stuff, just a hair above freezing!!!

The boating season is drawing to a close real soon here.

Winter sucks an I am not falling for mother natures tricks this year I am not putting mine away till I see white stuff or the water is to low!

Oh, we've already had snow in the high country.
Lake Dillon, where we'll be for the next week or so, is just below 9,000 feet above sea level, and has 14,000 foot peaks to the southwest and to the east (Quandry Peak, Grays Peak, Torrey's Peak), within 10-20 miles.
We're talking about the ten-mile range on the west (Breckenridge Ski Area, and Copper Mountain), The Front Range on the east (Keystone, A-Basin and Loveland ski areas).
To get to and from, we go through the Eisenhower tunnel - elevation over 11,000 feet.

captainjack wrote:Winter sucks an I am not falling for mother natures tricks this year I am not putting mine away till I see white stuff or the water is to low!

Me too!

Actually, Im looking to set a personal record for boating season this year. Because of the mild winter I was able to put the boat in on April 7th (normally its end april or beginning of may) and I'd like to hold off putting her away until mid-November (normally end of october)

That would give me a touch under 8 months of boating in Western PA.... not to shabby

We'll see!

captainjack wrote:Winter sucks an I am not falling for mother natures tricks this year I am not putting mine away till I see white stuff or the water is to low!

I agree, I get depressed when the weather begins to change. Don't get me wrong, Fall is a beautiful time of year but it's what comes after Fall that I can't stand. I always try to get out on it during the autumn foliage but it ends up being too cool and no one in the family wants to go. This Fall I'm going to get out there even if I have to tie them up and drag them out there. Lol I will admit that it sucks cleaning it when it gets cold though.

In 2011 on March 31st, when I took delivery of the Benny, the air and water temps were the same: 41 degrees. It was a cool ride for the 17 miles I had to go to get the boat home.
In 2012 on March 30th, the water temp was 65 and the air temp was 83. We were boating in March as opposed to late April, early May. But then the heat wave hit and we didn't get the boat out hardly at all for much of July and a good part of August.
Today here at LOTO it is currently 55 and rainy. I am NOT complaining about the rain--we are down almost 20 inches from June of 2011.
With the drought stressing so many trees, I don't think we'll have much of a fall color spectacular. I don't care if it rains every other day for the next month.

bassn386 wrote:we are down almost 20 inches from June of 2011.

Zowie!!! We only get about 15 inches a year! Sure when it snows we can get feet, but the moisture content is surprisingly low. A foot of snow will often only be a half inch of moisture.

Well I started 4/21 this year which is 1 week later than normal for me due to a Buffett concert this year I am debating on my scouring cleaning job waiting till may I make a lot of messes spring fishing so I always end up rescouring before the wife starts boating in may. As for elevation u live in a beautiful area that I wouldn't fit in (shorter boating season) theses AZ an FL boys got something figured out. I am already dreading sitting at my desk looking at ron burgandy's pics in jan! Global Warming is sounding like a good thing! Extended boating seasons!

Not to rub it in, but I will probably boat until mid November, then start up again in March. however the lakes down South arent nearly as pretty as the ones in the high country. I love vacationing in Mountain country but can't even imagine how to prepare for the winters up there.

I'll play it by ear. Usually it's warm until late November here, but the marina wants us out by Oct. 31, but they are flexible on that. Accuweather is claiming we will have a tough winter this year. They also said that last year We had the warmest winter in decades. I'm ready for snow regardless.

There is one reason why we moved from Breckenridge, CO.(for 29 years) to Havasu, AZ. We boat year round here in Havasu, today was around 104 with the water temp. about 82,,,,,,,,BURRRRRRRRR!!! Why would you go to Dillon Res. when you could go to Pueblo Res.?

BobG wrote:Oh, we've already had snow in the high country.
Lake Dillon, where we'll be for the next week or so, is just below 9,000 feet above sea level, and has 14,000 foot peaks to the southwest and to the east (Quandry Peak, Grays Peak, Torrey's Peak), within 10-20 miles.
We're talking about the ten-mile range on the west (Breckenridge Ski Area, and Copper Mountain), The Front Range on the east (Keystone, A-Basin and Loveland ski areas).
To get to and from, we go through the Eisenhower tunnel - elevation over 11,000 feet.

Sorry to split hairs but Loveland Ski Area would be the only one considered on the front range since it is the only one you mentioned that is east of the continental divide. Gullstone, I mean Keystone, and A-Basin are west of the continental divide.

Living in Louisiana sucks in the summer... miserable hot... BUT..... fall and winters are mild... Probably will be able to take the toon out til at least the end of october, maybe longer.... Once it gets down in the 50 and 60;s... that's too cold for the wife to be out on the water.... man next month should be great... october is ususally in the high 70's to mid 80;s.... great boating weather...

It's all Low Country Boating around this neck of the woods. Lots of swampland and peat bog. It just helps the frost settle in all the better
Had our first light freeze already as well.
All you Southern Boys and Girls-be thankfull for your twice as long season. Us guys with the blue fingers get jealous sometimes.

I can't complain about most winters up here, which are usually mild. Then there was the winter from hell, 2010 I'd rather have the occasional bad winter than hot as hell April-Sept, but that's just me. We were down in Fort Myers, Fl. last year the first week of May and it was already brutal hot, most of the locals stayed inside.