Dad and Mom sailing on Indian Lake. 1970s.

Dad (James “Gene” Rier) and Mom (Louise Johnson Rier) loved to sail on the Sailfish. When I was small, Dad built a sailboat they both enjoyed on Indian Lake.

Dad sailing with my brother David in the Bucks Harbor Race, 1981. This is one of my favorite photos of Dad. Now that’s a happy face!

As kids, my brothers and I spent many hours on the Sailfish, and we continued to sail as adults.

Me sailing on Indian Lake about 2006.

My son, Jason, sailing on the Sunfish, summer 2018.

This year, as in other years, the Passamaquoddy Yacht Club taught children ages 10 to 17 the basics of sailing. Wonderful to see!

Me completing the boat captain course in Rockland, Maine. 2012. Now that’s a happy face!

Related post:

Growing Up in the 50s and 60s, We Knew How To Have Fun!

 

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Mom’s Record of Trout Caught in Indian Lake, Whiting, ME. 1976 – 1979

Indian Lake Trout Record “Birch Point” USA. 

The record begins in September, 1976.

Mom wrote: “1976 was a great summer for trout.” She decided to keep a record of all the fish caught from the Rier wharf, their size, and time of day.

• Rare “sock” fish (15″ trout) caught at 9:30 AM on September 11.

• 13 1/2″ trout caught at 3:00 PM on September 12th.

1977

May Total Catch: 21 trout, including one 7″ trout caught by my daughter Monica on May 24th. She was 7 years old.

June Total Catch:  6 trout, including four 8 1/2 – 9 1/2′ caught by my nephews, Matt and Bob, ages nine and eight.

July Total Catch: 60 trout, including one 9 1/2″ trout caught by my nephew Matt.

August Total Catch: 31 trout, including six (9 1/2″ to 10 1/4″) caught by me.

September Total Catch: 13 trout

1977 Total Catch: 131 trout.

1978

May Total Catch: 7 trout

June Total Catch: 12 trout, including two 9″ trout caught by me on June 18. On June 29th, two 8″ trout were caught by me and my daughter Monica, and one 9″ trout was caught by my son Jacob, age two!

July Total Catch: 13 trout

August Total Catch: 22 trout, including a 10 1/2′ trout caught by my niece Jessica, age seven. Monica caught 3 trout (8/12′ – 10 1/2″). My son Eric (age six) caught one 8″ trout.

September Total Catch: 19 trout

1978 Total Catch: 73 trout. Mom wrote 71. She’s usually right 🙂

1979

May Total Catch: 3 trout

June Total Catch: 6 trout, including 10 1/2″ trout caught by Jessica, and a 9 1/2″ trout caught by Eric.

July Total Catch: 27 trout, including a 10 3/4″ trout caught by Eric.

August Total Catch: 19 trout, including a 10 1/2″ trout caught by Eric. On the 25th, Mom caught a 17 1/2″ trout after 5:30PM Mass. She writes: “Wow! Wow! Wow!”

September Total Catch: 23 trout. On the 17th, Ray McWaters visited, caught a 11 1/4″ trout and left with his fish and rolls. Three fish (11 1/4″ to 12″) were deemed “fat” in the August catch.

1979 Total Catch: 78 trout

“All in all a good season “

The record book for 1976 through 1979 can be viewed here.

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To Be Continued. Mom recorded all fish caught from the Rier wharf through 1992.

Me and Muriel Watts

my second mother. I’ve known Muriel all my life. She and her husband Phil and their son, David, were always in my life. Phil is gone now, my Mom and Dad gone too, but my memories of our two families together are vivid.

Every summer, our families lived at Indian Lake in Whiting, Maine. We swam, we sailed, we fished, we spent hours/days boating. We started water sports on a surfboard behind the family boat. The first time Dad took me out on the surfboard, I was four or five. Soon after take off, Dad lost his grip on me and I slid between and under his legs into the water.  I remember my surprise to see Dad’s legs fly by. When David and I were eight years old, we learned to water ski. We had to keep up with my older brothers. Soon we were slalom skiing.

David and I explored the woods, tented out, and built a tree house with my brothers, David and Jimmy. It was a fine treehouse on the point, with a porch and a great view out over the lake toward the island. The Watts’ lived in the next cove over. When David and I wanted to get together, we went outside and called like loons. It was the signal that breakfast was over and it was time to hit the lake. On rainy days, there were card games and puzzles. There was no phone and no TV. It was a glorious time in our lives.

In the Spring of 2018, I visited Muriel at Avita of Stroudwater, in Westbrook close to Portland, with David’s wife Kate. Muriel has Alzheimer’s disease but her memories of life long ago are as vivid as mine. We talked about all of our antics and fun at the lake. In the photo of us together, I was talking about the old photos of Mom and her before they were married, out on a picnic with the Border Patrol guys. She grinned and said, “We girls were trying to get away with some fun without our parents knowing!” We cracked up laughing. Precious moments.

Mom, far left, Muriel on the right. They were picking cranberries with the Border Patrol guys some time in the late 1930s, or early 1940s.

I have so many photos of our families at Indian Lake. I shall have to pull them out of storage under my eves and scan.

But, for now, if you want to see the fun we had on Indian Lake, watch the old 8mm movies: Growing Up in the 50s and 60s, We Knew How To Have Fun!  

Update:

Muriel passed April 10, 2019. She will be forever missed but lives on in my heart.

Ancestor Break Sunday. A Passing Otter.

I was outside on a porch break, so lovely in the Spring. I forgot to take my camera. The otter came in close and dove under the wharf. I waited nearly motionless for him or her to come up. Minutes went by. Suddenly the otter slithered up on the wharf to bask in the sun and feast on a fish head as big as my fist. Moments like this, one cannot capture except in memory. The otter stayed a good 20 to 30 minutes on the wharf. I got this shot later in the afternoon. He was swimming fast so the shot isn’t great. But, it was another beautiful day lakeside enjoying the wonders of nature!

Growing Up in the 50s and 60s, We Knew How To Have Fun!

Every summer from the year I was born, my family lived and played on Indian Lake in Whiting, Maine. We were “upta camp” as mainah’s say.  We spent most days in or on the water swimming, boating, fishing, or sailing, only coming out to refuel on Mom’s lunches and dinners. The first time Dad took me out on the surfboard, I was four or five. Soon after take off, Dad lost his grip on me and I slid between and under his legs into the water.  I remember my surprise to see Dad’s legs fly by. By the age of eight, I learned to water ski; I had to keep up with my elder brothers, David and Jimmy, and their friends. In this video of multiple 8mm movies, I am the wild child, most often in the yellow bathing cap. For the life of me, I cannot understand how my parents let us (no – encouraged us) to do all these antics. They were having fun too!