Saturday, October 16, 1999

On board the ... Dottie G

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Lace-curtained paddleboat now couple's avowed avocation

BY JANE PRENDERGAST
The Cincinnati Enquirer

The Dottie G heads downriver Friday. (Craig Ruttle photo) | ZOOM |

        She may be the littlest boat out there, but the Dottie G packs a lot of cute in her 68 feet.

        Lace curtains hang from the dining room windows. The senior deckhand took great care to make them herself. And with good reason — she's Dottie Gerdes — Dottie G.

        “They say you should name your boat after your woman,” she said, pointing at one of the boat's captains, her husband Conrad, a retired airline transport pilot. “I guess he did.”

Complete Guide

        The two, married 20 years, bought the 15-year-old boat three years ago. They fixed it up, painted over the awful green color somebody else had chosen and now use her mostly for chartered special events. This is their first Tall Stacks as participants.

        “We've come before just to see it,” Mrs. Gerdes said. “It's great to be part of it this time.”

        As for how they manage to get along as they spend so much time together, they laugh and say they have one important thing in common — river water and tiny boats in their blood.

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Today at Tall Stacks
Captains grab chance to socialize
Inland river cruises evoke Twain's era
On board the ... Dottie G
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