Friday, October 21st was autumn planting on Battery Island in the mouth of the Cape Fear River with Lindsay Addison, her parents, Peggy and Dave Addison, and Emily Beddoes from the Cape Fear Garden Club. About twenty gallon-size yaupon holly, donated by the Garden Club and several gallon-size red cedars are now planted amid adult yaupon and red cedar that are nesting trees for White Ibis and other wading birds. The trees we planted on the 21st will hopefully be nest platforms for wading birds some years in the future. Nothing like planting small trees to gain hope for the future. Which leads me to the rest of the story.
Everything went well with getting the boat in the water, carrying our intrepid crew across the boat-wake-tossed Cape Fear River, the planting, and travel back to the ramp, and getting the boat out of the water and back on the road---but briefly. About 100 yards from the boat ramp entrance, the drive train on the 1990 Ford pickup decoupled with no uncertain terms, leaving the truck and boat stranded in the road as only a slipped driveshaft can do. It’s a poetic sight really, for there is no more iconic image for another boater than a dead-in-the-road, 1990 dark blue Ford F-150 with a brand new 23’ pale blue Jones Brothers boat hitched-up.
The boat ramp was operating at full speed on this first clean-weather day in nearly a week. Fishing is in Autumnal peak here on the coast and many trucks passed us by, their own fishing boats in tow, slowly; some drivers wearing a face of understanding and heartfelt empathy. Some might have thought, “Well, they’re pointed away from the ramp entry, so at least they already got out on the water. Lucky; could be worse.”
Yup; that’s what I thought anyway.
The incident was not without lessons; I have a renewed respect and appreciation for the work involved in moving traffic around an obstacle in the road, which is what I did while Lindsay tied the pickup’s broken part out of the way and otherwise prepared the truck for towing, with help from her parents; who now have a new understanding of what Audubon North Carolina does in the service of birds.
Thanks to the tow operator for pulling the boat off the road, to Southport police for hanging with us while the operation was completed, and to Walker Golder for being able to retrieve the boat. And thanks to ANC for our AAA membership.
Safe travels, and happy Autumn,
Andy Wood
