My Very Expensive Boat Ride (How I Killed My iPhone)

I’m currently near the end of a week-long vacation with my wife and kids at Fripp Island, off the coast of South Carolina.  We visited here last Christmas, and from that visit we hoped to come back and try out the beach in the summertime.  It’s been a fantastic vacation – the island is a nature preserve, and we’ve frequently seen deer, racoons, and even alligators (one was over 6 feet long) in close proximity to the house where we’re staying.

Yesterday we decided to rent a 17′ Carolina Skiff to navigate the marshes and make our way out to an uninhabited island to look for shells.  This was pretty adventurous for us, since I’ve never driven a motorized boat by myself, our destination was an hour away from the marina at full throttle, and Keri and my shared lack of navigational sense.  There was a sense of anticipation and excitement – even from the kids.

Without a doubt, the boat ride was a highlight of the trip, especially since we came across several groups of dolphins swimming near our boat.  It was one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen.

Then, in the middle of our beautiful and adventurous day, I did a very silly thing.  I put my iPhone into my swimsuit pocket to have it ready for taking photos.  I knew when I did it that it was a bad idea, but I did it anyway.

Just for the record, you should never put a cell phone in your swimsuit pocket.  The odds are against you.

When we found the island beach we were looking for, I jumped out of the boat to carry the kids to shore and keep the boat pushed out far enough that it didn’t get stuck with the falling tide.  It wasn’t till about 20 minutes later, when we were all back in the boat, that I reached for my iPhone and realized that I had created a very expensive paperweight and an even more expensive boat ride.

Concluding Thoughts:

  1. Even with the submersion and death of my iPhone, it was still worth the great memory my family created on the ocean yesterday.  There was much more to the story, including Keri having to drive the boat at a moment’s notice two different times and my 4-year-old daughter simultaneously screaming at her that she couldn’t do it.
  2. Just before the boat ride, I emailed a few photos to my email account so that I’d have them for a blog post.  Otherwise, I would have lost most of our photos from the trip.
  3. I miss my iPhone tremendously.  It’s been less than 24 hours, but any time I think about needing a map, checking email, or taking a photo, my heart is stabbed with grief.
  4. Rumor has it that the new iPhone will be announced in just a few days.  Perfect timing!

5 thoughts on “My Very Expensive Boat Ride (How I Killed My iPhone)

  1. sorry kyle-your last sentence sold you out. You did it on purpose to get the upgrade! ;-)

  2. What fun…and I thought a little birdie said that Keri would never make that road trip again because of length and having the kids strapped in that long. Sorry about the phone, bummer! Glad to see the pics and ideas for traveling. I always enjoy hearing about my far away family.

    1. Yeah, the last time we made that trip it was pretty hard, but thankfully, life and travel is much easier now. I love that now the two can entertain each other, and they did amazingly well.

      Wish you had been there with us, Elizabeth!

Comments are closed.