colbysmith
Active member
James, I forgot to ask you on your way back down river, did you ever make it up the Oklawaha River? And if so, any problems with the snags and downfalls? Colby
03/09 - 3/11 - Hontoon Island CBGT DeLand Florida
- Thread starter Avidmagnum12
- Start date
Molly Brown
Member
Colby...didn't do the O this trip because we got enticed to do DeLeon Springs and follow Tom's group for a couple of days. Amazingly we still found places we'd never been.
Sandy....I'm a dog man and have always had a dog onboard but our current dog hates water and boats, and other dogs hence the cat since he wouldn't accept another dog in the house. I'm 65 and have never owned a cat but have to say Luna is more fun than the dog. She'd been on the boat in the barn many times while I was rebuilding the interior and prepping for this trip but had never been aboard while it was on the water. We had no idea if she would take to boating but have to say it was a pleasure to have her along. It took a week or so for us to get educated though. Disappearing cat caused us some consternation but we soon learned when and where she would go. Interestingly we immediately discovered she is a "clockwise" cat. Always out on the port side and always back in on the starboard side consistently. Even when she fell off, be it port or starboard. she always went towards the starboard side. Normally I would scoop her back aboard from the cockpit but missed getting her the third time and that's when we discovered that she could and would go to transom and get out by herself. As time went on she preferred being on the roof or the bimini especially if the kayaks were up there. Her main issue was the roof of the 24 is curved at the edges, much more so than our original 22, and the slanted windshield. Our first clue she was going overboard would be a scrapping claw sound followed by a splash. I always thought cats were more surefooted and were not good swimmers. Luna learned early on what to avoid and she is an excellent swimmer, and once over the initial falls she did much better. We thought we were done with falls until she slipped off the very last night at anchor. So, there is no secret but to learn the cat's habits. I readily admit to having heart failure a couple of times when we couldn't find her but there are only so many places she could go onboard and I think we found them all
:wink:
Sandy....I'm a dog man and have always had a dog onboard but our current dog hates water and boats, and other dogs hence the cat since he wouldn't accept another dog in the house. I'm 65 and have never owned a cat but have to say Luna is more fun than the dog. She'd been on the boat in the barn many times while I was rebuilding the interior and prepping for this trip but had never been aboard while it was on the water. We had no idea if she would take to boating but have to say it was a pleasure to have her along. It took a week or so for us to get educated though. Disappearing cat caused us some consternation but we soon learned when and where she would go. Interestingly we immediately discovered she is a "clockwise" cat. Always out on the port side and always back in on the starboard side consistently. Even when she fell off, be it port or starboard. she always went towards the starboard side. Normally I would scoop her back aboard from the cockpit but missed getting her the third time and that's when we discovered that she could and would go to transom and get out by herself. As time went on she preferred being on the roof or the bimini especially if the kayaks were up there. Her main issue was the roof of the 24 is curved at the edges, much more so than our original 22, and the slanted windshield. Our first clue she was going overboard would be a scrapping claw sound followed by a splash. I always thought cats were more surefooted and were not good swimmers. Luna learned early on what to avoid and she is an excellent swimmer, and once over the initial falls she did much better. We thought we were done with falls until she slipped off the very last night at anchor. So, there is no secret but to learn the cat's habits. I readily admit to having heart failure a couple of times when we couldn't find her but there are only so many places she could go onboard and I think we found them all
:wink:
smckean (Tosca)
New member
Thanks James for the info on Luna's adventures. Looks like having a cat on board will result in flops into the water (unless you trapped her inside -- which I am unwilling to do). My conclusion is that I don't have the strong constitution you do to handle a cat's falls into the drink. I'd be a neurotic mess after the first time, much less multiple times. One positive note for me in your story is the apparent ability of a cat to swim around the boat and find a way back onboard (altho I wonder in a windy anchorage). I suppose I could attach some kind of extension to the swim ladder so a cat could easily re-board. I love to take one of our cats since I often do solo cruises on 3 to 5 days trips. The few times I did take a cat, it was a lot more fun having that company. BTW, as you know, one of nice advantages of a cat vs dog, on a boat, is that unlike the dog folks, who I see rowing to shore every morning and evening, cats don't need to go ashore.
P.S. Since you are basically a dog person, I am struck that you find cats more interesting than dogs. I certainly have always thought so too. As I say, I like dogs, but cats are my thing. True, a cat will never be your friend like a dog can be, but to me dogs are always doing the same things over and over again. They look at you with those big sad eyes making you feel special, or they run to you every time they see you, and those other doggy things; but with a cat, you never know what they are going to do next. They are always surprising me with some unexpected antic.
P.S. Since you are basically a dog person, I am struck that you find cats more interesting than dogs. I certainly have always thought so too. As I say, I like dogs, but cats are my thing. True, a cat will never be your friend like a dog can be, but to me dogs are always doing the same things over and over again. They look at you with those big sad eyes making you feel special, or they run to you every time they see you, and those other doggy things; but with a cat, you never know what they are going to do next. They are always surprising me with some unexpected antic.
smckean (Tosca)":3qcpys2a said:
One thing to do is to hang some piece of stout fabric (may a piece of outdoor carpet) over the side of the boat into the water. A cat can climb up this with no problem if it knows it is there. FWIW, you're supposed to do this if you have a cat and a swimming pool (some other animals can use it to if they fall in).
Avidmagnum12
Member
Here is a copy of the donation letter from the CSO organization at Hontoon Island State Park thanking everyone for the generous donations from our group. The process of building a new shelter is ongoing but in time will happen. Thank you!
Tom and Joyce
colbysmith
Active member
Nice letter Tom and Joyce, thanks for sharing it!
I get my second Covid vaccine shot later this month, and expect things to be a little more normal by this time next year. Assuming that next year's gathering is during the first full week of March, I've already got my reservations in for site 9A arriving Monday afternoon, March 7th, and departing Friday morning, March 11th! Just waiting for a new signup to be put up for the gathering!
Colby
I get my second Covid vaccine shot later this month, and expect things to be a little more normal by this time next year. Assuming that next year's gathering is during the first full week of March, I've already got my reservations in for site 9A arriving Monday afternoon, March 7th, and departing Friday morning, March 11th! Just waiting for a new signup to be put up for the gathering!
Colby