Quandary
Well-known member
The silly season, so here is a silly story but completely true.
Late this year moving our boat from Loch Fyne to its summer berth at Crinan but we did it the Monday after Tarbert race weekend. Myself and the dog aboard, my wife ahead in the car taking lines, opening and closing gates, we were following one of the race boats returning to Oban, closing up to him at the bridges. The dog was in his favoured position when motoring, at the bow with his front paws up on the pulpit step, like a figurehead (I think he may have seen Titanic on TV). We passed the swan's nest to port on the bend before Crinan bridge, Mrs Swan perched on her eggs on top of her mound of reeds. Just round the bend her mate was approaching, returning from a recce. down the canal, he was paddling hard, close to flat out but sticking to his correct side and passed the lead boat comfortably port to port. As we got closer he started to move away from his correct side giving me much less room than the first boat. I steered to starboard but he kept coming over toward our side; close to the bank our keel touched the bottom, stopping the boat abruptly, pitching the dog over the pulpit on top of the swan. Dog was up the bank in two splashes while I got under control and proceeded through the bridge to our berth, the swan turned round and followed me at close to the 4kts. speed limit, the dog running ahead of us along the towpath. As I tied up, starboard too, at our berth, the swan arrived and started hammering on the gelcoat with his beak, just like I expect to have to hammer the dent in the lead keel when I can get at it.
Lessons learned - swans like many other canal users do not always adhere to the collision regs. and may do the unexpected, they are not as placid as they let on.
Swans do not like dogs especially if they are near their nest.
A winter spent waxing the hull to get a reflective shine is not always a good idea.
Late this year moving our boat from Loch Fyne to its summer berth at Crinan but we did it the Monday after Tarbert race weekend. Myself and the dog aboard, my wife ahead in the car taking lines, opening and closing gates, we were following one of the race boats returning to Oban, closing up to him at the bridges. The dog was in his favoured position when motoring, at the bow with his front paws up on the pulpit step, like a figurehead (I think he may have seen Titanic on TV). We passed the swan's nest to port on the bend before Crinan bridge, Mrs Swan perched on her eggs on top of her mound of reeds. Just round the bend her mate was approaching, returning from a recce. down the canal, he was paddling hard, close to flat out but sticking to his correct side and passed the lead boat comfortably port to port. As we got closer he started to move away from his correct side giving me much less room than the first boat. I steered to starboard but he kept coming over toward our side; close to the bank our keel touched the bottom, stopping the boat abruptly, pitching the dog over the pulpit on top of the swan. Dog was up the bank in two splashes while I got under control and proceeded through the bridge to our berth, the swan turned round and followed me at close to the 4kts. speed limit, the dog running ahead of us along the towpath. As I tied up, starboard too, at our berth, the swan arrived and started hammering on the gelcoat with his beak, just like I expect to have to hammer the dent in the lead keel when I can get at it.
Lessons learned - swans like many other canal users do not always adhere to the collision regs. and may do the unexpected, they are not as placid as they let on.
Swans do not like dogs especially if they are near their nest.
A winter spent waxing the hull to get a reflective shine is not always a good idea.
:encouragement: Funny Story indeed :encouragement:
