Great Goat Gathering, pt. 1

And so it came to pass that many GIS sailors converged upon the finger lakes region of New York state to participate in...

The 2014 North American Northeast Great Goat Gathering, Campout, and Gab-fest!!!

It was over two years in the making.  It began in early 2012 with the suggestion by skipper Paul (S/V Kathleen Marie) that there was quite a growing contingent of Goats in the Northeast and that we should all come together to Mess About in Boats.  Suggestions were made and dismissed, dates were proposed and ruled out.  Time marched on.  Goats changes hands, new were ones completed, and the earth orbited the sun again.  I finally decided, "book it and they will come."  So we did.

The location was chosen to accommodate more westerly members in Toronto and Michigan.  When they are included as "Northeast-ish" (and North American as opposed to US) the finger lakes seemed to be centrally located.  In the end, those two boats were unavailable.  But Lake Cayuga State Park is a great shore-front facility that would allow us to camp and boat and enjoy beautiful scenery.

Here are some pics of the run-up to the event:

The journey begins in Brooklyn, picking up IAZ,P

IAZ,P meets Chivita in New Jersey

Ready to roll

Halfway there, lunch stop

Final approach, along western shore of Lake Cayuga

The Goats find water

Preparing to splash

We just had to get out on the water before the light ran out

Tucked in for the night

Meanwhile, in Pennsylvania a Bolger makes ready
(S/V Pelican, a 23' Martha Jane designed by Bolger)

And in Connecticut waits Kathleen Marie

And elsewhere in New Jersey, freshly roasted coffee is prepared for the trip