Trawling the ICW, day 10
There are Manatees in the ICW. A Manatee is a big blob of harmlessunderwater animal that is neither dangerous nor quick. They were a threatened species for a while. You see a lot of signs along the ICW that basically say "slow down, you are passing through a manatee zone". However, many of these signs never bother to define "slow". The word "slow" to a gazillion horsepower sportfisherman is much different than the meaning of "slow" to a sailboat or small trawler. But, I guess we must be doing something right, because the manatee have been making a comeback. Score one point for the critters.Cruising with pets has it's advantages and disadvantages. One of the disadvantages on the ICW is the tendency of the shoreline to be mud. That means at the end of the day you not only have to drag out the dinghy to get the little guy ashore, but you should also plan on some muddy-paws clean up time. Frank told me of a story where he anchored the boat for the night and took Di Di ashore for a bathroom break. Both dog and master were quickly up to their elbows in ICW mud. That is one of the reasons why Frank prefers marinas, the "no dinghy required" solution.
Di Di has adapted well to the cruising environment. Frank gives her a walk before leaving the marina in the morning. After that, Di Di just "holds it" until she has grass access at the end of the day. Di Di is very friedly, and very quiet. She is getting on in years, and generally is pretty mellow and slow moving. The one exception is when we pull into a marina at the end of the day. This, to Di Di, is the most wonderful and exciting development that could possibly happen. The adrentine continues to flow until Captian Frank FINALLY takes her for a walk. Grass is a wonderful thing.
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