Every morning at a quarter to nine one of us walks to the end of the jetty and looks at the lake for five minutes. It decides the whole day.
The water
Flat and dark means the wind has not woken up. Small ripples in lines mean a breeze you will feel on a board. White tops on the far shore mean we send you to the sheltered bays.
The trees
The tops of the pines on the island move before the water does. If they sway, the wind will be on the lake within the hour.
The sky
High thin cloud in the morning often means wind by the afternoon. Towering cloud over the forest means thunder, and everyone off the water.
The lake is calmest before ten and after six. If you can only come once, come early.
What we tell you
Which bays to paddle, when to turn round and where to land if the wind gets up. It is on the map we give you, in pencil, every morning.
