Many of us in the local boating population have boat moorings in Oyster Bay Harbor. A mooring offers not only a convenient place to store the boat when not in use, but it can also be like hanging out on one's own little island. Our boats and the moorings they are attached to become like our second homes. Attached to each mooring is a boat that has not only a unique maritime history, but also unique ties to the families that own them.

The boat mooring area is like a community within the entire local boating population. Sometimes while hanging out on the mooring a fellow boater might stop by to chew the fat just as one would chat with a neighbor on land. After years and years of having a boat mooring, particularly in the same spot, the boats on the moorings near you become your neighbors on the water. Sometimes you never learn the proper names of the boat owners, but many of us get to know each other's boats from seeing them year after year.

As we head back to our mooring from a day traversing on the water it is comforting to recognize familiar boats and boat names as you try to maneuver the maze of boats. It is also a real treat when someone else takes notice of your boat. There may be times when something does not look right about your boat and your fellow mooring neighbor follows up on it. It is like having extra security on the water.

On days with great weather we might not always have the energy or time to take the boat out, so many times just sitting on the boat attached to the mooring will do. During the daytime reading the paper, having a drink, finishing a chapter in a sensational book, or just taking a nap while at the mooring can be quite relaxing. Especially after a day of fishing, waterskiing, or sailing it can also be very gratifying to tie up to the mooring to just unwind.

At night watching the sunsets from the mooring field is magnificent. Every sunset or nightfall is like a different picture being painted. On the clear nights stargazing can be amazing too.

One can even have an all day affair on a boat mooring. Last weekend my husband and I brought lunch out to the sailboat. We got organized, ate our meal, and were about to take a quick sail around Oyster Bay Harbor. Instead, we wound up listening to music, reading the Sunday newspapers, and taking naps. As dinner time was nearing, my parents radioed for us to come over to their boat in another part of the mooring field. We had dinner and cocktails on their boat.

When dinner was about finished, my cousins radioed from their mooring a few boat lengths away and invited us to come watch the sunset with them. We even had enough cookies to share with everyone for dessert. Throughout the whole day of boating we never had to turn on the engine.

For more information about boating, environmental matters, and other water-related activities throughout the Oyster Bay area you can email the author at Jaime.VanDyke@gmail.com or reach her at 946-9464.