PLUMCRAZY WEEKEND
sorry bout the length but it was worth it ....
I had the privilege this last weekend to run with a hardcore airboating family. They were gracious enough to show me their piece of paradise and I appreciated it and here’s the story ... sorta ...
It started Friday night when I showed up at the appointed place and time and they were outside waiting on me. I was running with PLUMCRAZY, and JDOTSON we had planned a froggin trip. The evening started out with a little confusion because some one was coming to look at a four wheeler, and someone was supposedly selling a airboat ridiculously cheap, so plumcrazy was taking care of those things and so jdotson, with kdotson along, were off to the froggin hole with plans for plumcrazy to catch up with us there.
Let me tell you ... there are some skinny twisty roads out in the middle of nowhere, seemingly leading to nowhere, and all of a sudden you are there .... the middle of nowhere. The boat ramp was one of the most special I have used in a good while. You had to back up for several hundred feet, across a cattle guard, which is fenced and just barely wider than the trailers all the while making a slight turn to line up with the ramp which has a curb one side which will cause major problems if you are able to jump it, of course by now it had gotten dark, just to add a little challenge to it not to mention the other vehicles parked too close to the side of the aisle and the family fishin with the little kids running all around the ramp, but we gotem in the water and only snagged one fishing line which broke and snapped me in the leg, I was waiting on the pain from the hook but it somehow missed my leg.
Well we were off to the swamp I shoulda known it was going to be a fun evening because I had four lights on my boat and only one would work, but one was enough. A quick run down a twisty turny narrow creek with deep and shallow in the same curve, we got to the flats. We sat and waited for the frogs to start croakin but not a sound was heard, of course after shinin the lights around it was obvious why ... there were so many gators if a frog woulda opened his mouth he would have been snackfood. We strarted cruisin and lookin and a few were up and we added them to the bags in short order. Now it started getting interesting I had a floating island wrapped around my boat and it is really hard to frog draggin a island with you so I went to find something to rub it off on. Once I got rid of the island I managed to find a little black mud but got off it ok, I noticed jdotson was sittin still so I pulled over there, we conversed for a bit and we had called plumcrazy and waived him off and were going to meet him at another location. We went to crank up and jdotsons caddy wouldn’t turn over. The starter was draggin bad, e tried jumper cables thinkin it was a bad battery, and jdot had another starter so I had the tools and he put it on. Same deal only cable was smokin now, well we had somewhere else to be so I went to turn around to hook up to him and gigged two big frogs while gettin there. I didn’t gig any while draggin him to the ramp, I thought that would be a little much, plus two boats really turn hard.
We loaded up and took off to meet plumcrazy. The next ramp was just as special as the first one, to use it you had to back around a blind curve in the dark and down a conc strip just as wide as the trailer axle. We got in the water and off we went across what I am sure is one of the most beautiful lakes in the state in the daytime. A few close calls with some high grass and cattails and we finally saw a light. We pulled up there and there were three boats sittin on the bank, plumcrazy had brought his son, ROSCOE, along and there was King from the site there as well. I pulled up on the hill, and after greetings were done, plumcrazy stated my boat was quiet, insanely quiet, made me smile. Ms. Kathy, plumcrazy’s wife was with him and another guy who I can’t remember his name, but he owns a camp in the glades, King had a rider with him, and I can’t remember his name either, Roscoe had, I think his girl friend with him so we were getting quite a crowd now. Now Roscoe was on lockdown , but this is definitely an airboating family and being grounded doesn’t interfere with an evening of runnin. Off we went the next stop we circled up in the grass and it was discovered there was bird in Roscoes boat and it was alive, well kdot is one tough gal, she had been wadin and draggin on the boat already that night gettin it loaded and she wasn’t fraid of no little bird. She was crawlin around under the engine stand in the cage tryin to get it out when it decided to peck her in the forehead we all laughed and the bird somehow got out. Plumcrazy was complainin of a sore head and shoulder, it seems Ms. Kathy who rides behind him, thought he was goin a little faster than he needed to so she had been encouraging him to slow down using sign language and object lessons on him. Well Kdot wanted to drive her dads boat and Ms. Kathy wanted no part of that so I inherited her and the other rider from plumcrazy and we were off again, I missed the trail which looked just like the rest of the wall of brush in front of us but after a few circles around and some friendly hand gestures I picked it up and shot down it. I could see the lake again so I was skinnin it back on the dry ground when it became obvious they had forgot to tell me about the wash line piled up by the hurricane, oh well no harm. We shined a few deer on the grass flats and I caught up with Roscoe and King crossing the lake. Plumcrazy was nowhere to be seen though but then they were out and comin, seems kdot missed the trail a little worse than I did and plumcrazy had to make her stop so he could get the trees outta the boat before they went into the prop. We got to the ramp and after a hour or so of swappin stories it was time to call it a night, it was 2am. Not one single light came on in any of the houses at the ramp and no one yelled at us, it is an airboat friendly place for sure.
Plumcrazy and I ran Saturday night but other than the canoe in the dark it was pretty uneventful.
I really want to thank all of them for some great memories and wonderful hospitality, I got an invitation to come back anytime and I will for sure. I can’t say where we were, as if I even had an idea, all I know is you follow the tailights in front you and all of a sudden you are there.
Thanks Folks it was special.
sorry bout the length but it was worth it ....
I had the privilege this last weekend to run with a hardcore airboating family. They were gracious enough to show me their piece of paradise and I appreciated it and here’s the story ... sorta ...
It started Friday night when I showed up at the appointed place and time and they were outside waiting on me. I was running with PLUMCRAZY, and JDOTSON we had planned a froggin trip. The evening started out with a little confusion because some one was coming to look at a four wheeler, and someone was supposedly selling a airboat ridiculously cheap, so plumcrazy was taking care of those things and so jdotson, with kdotson along, were off to the froggin hole with plans for plumcrazy to catch up with us there.
Let me tell you ... there are some skinny twisty roads out in the middle of nowhere, seemingly leading to nowhere, and all of a sudden you are there .... the middle of nowhere. The boat ramp was one of the most special I have used in a good while. You had to back up for several hundred feet, across a cattle guard, which is fenced and just barely wider than the trailers all the while making a slight turn to line up with the ramp which has a curb one side which will cause major problems if you are able to jump it, of course by now it had gotten dark, just to add a little challenge to it not to mention the other vehicles parked too close to the side of the aisle and the family fishin with the little kids running all around the ramp, but we gotem in the water and only snagged one fishing line which broke and snapped me in the leg, I was waiting on the pain from the hook but it somehow missed my leg.
Well we were off to the swamp I shoulda known it was going to be a fun evening because I had four lights on my boat and only one would work, but one was enough. A quick run down a twisty turny narrow creek with deep and shallow in the same curve, we got to the flats. We sat and waited for the frogs to start croakin but not a sound was heard, of course after shinin the lights around it was obvious why ... there were so many gators if a frog woulda opened his mouth he would have been snackfood. We strarted cruisin and lookin and a few were up and we added them to the bags in short order. Now it started getting interesting I had a floating island wrapped around my boat and it is really hard to frog draggin a island with you so I went to find something to rub it off on. Once I got rid of the island I managed to find a little black mud but got off it ok, I noticed jdotson was sittin still so I pulled over there, we conversed for a bit and we had called plumcrazy and waived him off and were going to meet him at another location. We went to crank up and jdotsons caddy wouldn’t turn over. The starter was draggin bad, e tried jumper cables thinkin it was a bad battery, and jdot had another starter so I had the tools and he put it on. Same deal only cable was smokin now, well we had somewhere else to be so I went to turn around to hook up to him and gigged two big frogs while gettin there. I didn’t gig any while draggin him to the ramp, I thought that would be a little much, plus two boats really turn hard.
We loaded up and took off to meet plumcrazy. The next ramp was just as special as the first one, to use it you had to back around a blind curve in the dark and down a conc strip just as wide as the trailer axle. We got in the water and off we went across what I am sure is one of the most beautiful lakes in the state in the daytime. A few close calls with some high grass and cattails and we finally saw a light. We pulled up there and there were three boats sittin on the bank, plumcrazy had brought his son, ROSCOE, along and there was King from the site there as well. I pulled up on the hill, and after greetings were done, plumcrazy stated my boat was quiet, insanely quiet, made me smile. Ms. Kathy, plumcrazy’s wife was with him and another guy who I can’t remember his name, but he owns a camp in the glades, King had a rider with him, and I can’t remember his name either, Roscoe had, I think his girl friend with him so we were getting quite a crowd now. Now Roscoe was on lockdown , but this is definitely an airboating family and being grounded doesn’t interfere with an evening of runnin. Off we went the next stop we circled up in the grass and it was discovered there was bird in Roscoes boat and it was alive, well kdot is one tough gal, she had been wadin and draggin on the boat already that night gettin it loaded and she wasn’t fraid of no little bird. She was crawlin around under the engine stand in the cage tryin to get it out when it decided to peck her in the forehead we all laughed and the bird somehow got out. Plumcrazy was complainin of a sore head and shoulder, it seems Ms. Kathy who rides behind him, thought he was goin a little faster than he needed to so she had been encouraging him to slow down using sign language and object lessons on him. Well Kdot wanted to drive her dads boat and Ms. Kathy wanted no part of that so I inherited her and the other rider from plumcrazy and we were off again, I missed the trail which looked just like the rest of the wall of brush in front of us but after a few circles around and some friendly hand gestures I picked it up and shot down it. I could see the lake again so I was skinnin it back on the dry ground when it became obvious they had forgot to tell me about the wash line piled up by the hurricane, oh well no harm. We shined a few deer on the grass flats and I caught up with Roscoe and King crossing the lake. Plumcrazy was nowhere to be seen though but then they were out and comin, seems kdot missed the trail a little worse than I did and plumcrazy had to make her stop so he could get the trees outta the boat before they went into the prop. We got to the ramp and after a hour or so of swappin stories it was time to call it a night, it was 2am. Not one single light came on in any of the houses at the ramp and no one yelled at us, it is an airboat friendly place for sure.
Plumcrazy and I ran Saturday night but other than the canoe in the dark it was pretty uneventful.
I really want to thank all of them for some great memories and wonderful hospitality, I got an invitation to come back anytime and I will for sure. I can’t say where we were, as if I even had an idea, all I know is you follow the tailights in front you and all of a sudden you are there.
Thanks Folks it was special.
