I bought a 13 1/2 foot Whaler a few years ago. The magic number is 13.5' because the limit to legally tie up to the dingy docks at Catalina is 14 feet. We take the big boat, Merrymaid, about once a month but we take the Whaler, Sadie Maru, out two, or more, times a week.
I originally named the dink Kline Nixe pronounced Klina Nixa, German for little mermaid. Little Mermaid because Merrymaid is the original term in Middle English which morphed into Mermaid.
Because my Golden Retriever Sadie considers the dingy her boat, I considered Sadie Maru more apt. Whenever she seems to disappear and I start looking for her, I invariably find her sitting in "her" boat waiting for her boat-ride.
Yesterday, I took her for a boat-ride in Alamitos Bay and it was a beautiful day. It was hot and sunny and the two of us were at one with the water. Just me and the water dog. Nice.
