I remember as a young teen wading in Cedar Creek while fly fishing both banks. I always put on my big rubber boots so that the snapping turtles would not bite my toes.

I explored the fields and forests in Mt. Juliet as though it was the wild west and I was the first human there. Life was good then…exciting and challenging.

I rode my bicycle each morning during the summer of 1963 at 3:00 a.m. to work at “Whitsits Creek Boat Dock,” currently Cedar Creek Marina. My job required that I had to be there before the fishermen arrived. I earned 45 cents per hour at that time. I was in the money!!!

Soon, I decided that a motor would be better than a bicycle, so I purchased a nice boat and motor and rebuilt it in my garage. When complete, I was sporting a 25 hp Johnson motor on a runabout with a steering wheel!! EeeHaa!!!! Living on Cedar Creek, I knew all the logs, rocks and shallow places in the creek. I am sure the morning fishermen were upset when I came down the creek at 30 mph and zipped by them. Oh well…a young boy had to get to work on time!

There are many more stories of my life on Old Hickory Lake and the Cumberland River where I spent most of my youth. Those were the good ole days, and my life was free and easy.

George