How to Tugboat

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Easter weekend, 2010. We wanted to get out of town. We did not want to go far. Solution: rent a tugboat for two nights in Gibsons, BC.

The tugboat’s name was The Reliant. The captain’s name was David and the skipper’s name was Bill. We didn’t actually meet the captain and we only met Bill upon arrival: he was busy quadruple-tying the boat up to the dock because of the windstorm that had stopped ferry service to other destinations and knocked the power out in Horseshoe Bay. I don’t know the name of the neighbour who dropped off a game of backgammon that night, but it was a kind gesture and much appreciated.

Tugboat rules from the captain, copied and pasted from an email he sent prior to our arrival:

- Feel free to have a look in the wheel house, but be careful not to touch any buttons please.

- Please do not turn the fan down or off on the stove. If it gets too warm open a door or window.

- If you want to look in the engine room be careful on the ladder and while down below.

- There are pumps you will hear from time to time. If you hear pumps on allot,like every half hour call me. You should hear them go every couple of hours which is normal for a wooden boat.Don't be alarmed.

Tips for tugboatting

1. Make sure you like the people you are going with. Tugboats are not spacious.

2. Do you like the smell of diesel? Yes / No (circle one). If you choose No, you may have to reconsider this adventure.

3. Tugboatting is a little like camping. It can be cold, you may have to pee in the dark, and your clothes will smell weird when you get home. If you don’t like camping, tugboatting may not be for you.

4. Bring scotch.

5. Bring beer.

6. Bring your imagination, and as you eat Cheesies and look out the cabin porthole into the night, imagine you are out at in a white-capped sea instead of quadruple-tied to the Gibsons dock,bobbing from side to side.

In conclusion

We returned to the city feeling relaxed and (personally) a little wobbly. Can you get sea legs in two days? I did. If you are at all considering spending a weekend on a tugboat, I highly recommend it.