[onewhippedpuppy]

It’s definitely a love/hate thing. My wife has a big family but only one of her sisters plus husband and kids come with us consistently, and they freaking love it. Also a couple of other families that come out with us. Otherwise most people are pretty meh about the entire experience. We’ve also had quite a few people come with us that we won’t be inviting back, you have to be a certain personality to come boating.

If you’re willing to invest time in keeping your boat clean, protected from the sun and weather, and keep up on maintenance then it’s a pretty easy hobby. Unfortunately most people neglect maintenance and park their boat in the yard with a tarp thrown over the top, and then complain about how their boat is covered in mold and won’t run. Each year I spend a solid two days doing maintenance and detailing in the spring, and each morning before we go out I spend 1-2 hours cleaning and getting ready for the day. I also now keep our boat on a lift at a marina, which has greatly improved my boating experience.