Party Cove

This is the only area on the mammoth manmade lake in central Missouri where boat speed is regulated by law, and that's because of Party Cove, where boaters, drinkers and exhibitionists gather for weekends of sun-drenched, alcohol-fueled, sometimes X-rated revelry. In the late morning and early afternoon, hundreds if not thousands of boats -- from jet skis and pontoon putt-putts to sleek cigarette boats to 40- and 50-foot yachts -- are all headed at idle speed in the same direction.

The procession is a weirdly somber prelude to a vast, loud, wet, joyous and furious revel. The boats are headed to an enclosed, south-pointing finger of water (its actual name is Anderson Hollow Cove) in a state park, where captains tie their crafts together in chains, sometimes dozens of boats long, creating impromptu buoyant frat houses. (NY Times)