I use my cat Dinghy. Just his presence keeps the birds away.
Doug MountjoysvPegasusLF38 #4just west of Ballard, WA.
------ Original message------From: robert via CnC-List Date: Fri, Sep 30, 2016
06:25To: cnc-list@cnc-list.com;Cc: robert;Subject:Stus-List Birds
I have had a boat on the same mooring for the past 20 years but have never
experienced a problem with birds crapping on it like recently. Over the years
I have the occasional bird incident however a few weeks back, I went out to the
boat and it was a mess.....the whole top of the main sail cover was loaded,
cabin top, the starboard deck back, bimini, the cockpit, the binnacle.....the
worst mess I have ever encountered. And it was a hot day and the smell was
unbearable.....I couldn't get the boat into a slip fast enough to get access to
a hose and fresh water. 2 1/2 hours cleaning the boat.Sh_t happens, I know.
But the next day I go out and the same thing. So I begin my anti-bird
tactics.....streamers everywhere, a rope from the mast to the topping lift
about 6 inches above the main sail cover with streamers every few inches on
the rope.......piled my 3 fenders on top of the sliding hatch.....crossed lines
across the cockpit. Got relief for a few days but then they were back.Every
day for a few weeks I had to come into a slip and hose/clean the boat before I
could go for a sail.Then I got an idea......I got a piece of plastic netting
14' X 14' and tied it to the toe rails and ran it up over the mainsail cover on
top of the rope about 8" above the boom. The boat was virtually protected from
the mast back to the cockpit. No way the birds could get aboard now.Wrong!
Two days in a row the main sail cover, cabin top/coach roof and the cockpit was
crapped on. Can't explain how seagulls and cormorants could land on top of the
netting 8" above the main sail cover but somehow they did. The yard staff
that took me to my boat both days said "It must have been a fly by!" It was
funny but I did not find it funny.So I moved the boat into a slip for the
remainder of the season......I couldn't take it any more. The birds broke my
fighting spirit.If it happens again next season, I will get a different mooring
or keep the boat at a slip.Has anyone perfected a solution to keep birds off
their boats?Rob AbbottAZURAC&C 32 - 84Halifax,
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