"It's OK. It's all part of the experience," her father says with a laugh.
If you're looking for a true East Coast lobster experience, it doesn't get much better than this.
Captain Ron Cormier and his wife Denise operate Shediac Bay Cruises, and they give visitors the complete deal from the moment they walk down the gangplank at the Pointe-du-Chêne Wharf, in the bay, until they dock several hours later.
One of three tours available, "Lobster Tales" is an interactive 21/2-hour cruise of the bay, offered in both English and French.
The boat can accommodate 56 people. And it's popular. Cormier will take out 10,000 people during a season, with as many as four tours a day during high season.
As lively Acadian music plays on the breeze, Cormier, a working fisherman with 28 years' experience, takes participants through a spirited presentation on the lobster, the Atlantic fishery, and tips for cooking and consumption of the crustacean. The tour ends with those on board cracking into a freshly cooked lobster feast with potato salad, rolls, and coleslaw.
The cruise lets you glimpse both the region's fishing life and the Acadian joie de vivre, which liberally peppers the presentation.
The main-deck tables are painted in the vivid red, white and blue and yellow star of the Acadian flag, while a real Acadian flag snaps in the breeze from the upper deck.
Captain Ron quickly gets the kids into action, along with anyone else who's interested, asking them to pull hard on a nylon rope tied to a colored buoy to haul a lobster trap out of waters said to be the warmest north of the Carolinas.
"We're going to go fishing and we're going to get you guys to work," he says.
