The Gheenoo

Yesterday, Jared and I decided to go on a little boating excursion in the creeks near our house. We wanted to do a little cruising and fishing, and just generally being outside getting some sun on the water. So we packed up our fishing gear and a cooler of beer and were on our way. We did not catch a single fish, but we had a great time out in the boat. This was a feat in and of itself since our boat and I have a hate/hate relationship. This was the first time in about a year that Jared has used the Gheenoo and it was the first time in about 3 years that I have ventured out into the Gheenoo...I have my reasons.

This is the Gheenoo. You might be wondering what the hell a Gheenoo is and so I will tell you. A Gheenoo is an over-sized canoe with a pull-start motor on the back. Jared got the Gheenoo when he was in college, and I have been trying to get rid of it ever since. Jared claims that this vessel is perfectly safe and will not flip over, and I think he is full of crap. Plus, there is no possible way that you can look cool riding down the river in this thing. It's like the "single-wide mobile home" of fishing boats.

For years, I have refused to step foot in the Gheenoo. I have my dignity. Then one day, about 3 years ago, I agreed to go fishing with Jared in the Gheenoo. We didn't even make it off the boat ramp, and I was already angry. As I was helping Jared get the Gheenoo off the trailer...because you don't drive the Gheenoo off the trailer, you have to push it off by hand...I slipped and fell on the boat ramp and slid down into the water on my hand and knees, thus tearing the skin off of my hands and knees. The rest of that fishing trip wasn't much better; we didn't catch very many fish and Jared got a catfish's barb stuck in his thumb, so then we had two bleeding people on the boat. When going fast in the Gheenoo, the person sitting in the front (me) gets completely soaked, and every time you shift your body weight, it feels like the whole thing is going to flip over. After that experience, I refused to get back into the Gheenoo for three years, until yesterday. Everyday since then, I have been scowling at that Gheenoo as it sits in my garage unused, taking up space.

Finally, I told Jared that if this "metal dinghy" (as I like to call it) is going to sit in my garage, then I want to put it to some use. I decided to be adventurous and take my chances in the Gheenoo again. Plus, I decided to make my own fun. If I was going to be seen bass fishing in this white-trash looking boat, then I was going to look the part. So as we set off down Trout Creek, I was proudly lounging across the front of the boat dressed my American flag bikini, cheap canned beer in hand.

We cruised around the banks of the creek, fishing and it was so relaxing. The only sounds around us were those of the birds, bugs and other critters in the surrounding woodlands. Being that the Gheenoo makes no noise and it sits so low in the water, there is no telling what types of visitors might come by. The gar (which is a type of fish) were jumping around a lot and one of them was jumping so close to the boat that it almost jumped into my lap. Needless to say, I screamed and almost fell out of the Gheenoo. Although the fish were not biting, I was really entertained by all the alligators prowling around in the water. When fishing in the Gheenoo, you just turn off the motor and float around, so we were able to quietly float up close to gators and turtles without bothering them.

With no luck in Trout Creek, we ventured over to Six Mile Creek for some better luck. We continued floating around, checking out the gators and turtles, and fishing. But despite our best efforts, no fish were caught. Even though we were failing miserably at fishing, we were still enjoying our time together in the great outdoors.  

We finally decided to give up on fishing, and this is when I discovered my new favorite thing about the Gheenoo. Since the Gheenoo is basically a giant canoe, it is really light and easy to paddle by hand. It comes equipped with canoe paddles just in case the motor breaks and you get stranded. I am always telling Jared how I want to go kayaking or canoeing, but they are kind of expensive to rent so we never do it. So we tilted the motor up all the way out of the water and got out the paddles. We paddled the Gheenoo up and down the creek and this ended up being my favorite part of our fishing trip.

After canoeing for a little while, we drove the Gheenoo over to Outback Crab Shack at Six Mile Marina. We docked the boat and had some lunch before heading back to the boat ramp. We had such a great day and I can't wait to take the Gheenoo out again for some fishing and canoeing. Plus, we now have a fun, cheap activity to keep us busy for the summer!