By Dan Hunt
CNI News Service
Ed Blackburn of the Reed Creek area of Hartwell, won the spring Lake Living cover contest for his photo of his canine friend Lincoln driving a boat.
Reed Creek resident Ed Blackburn won Community Newspaper Inc.’s Lake Living cover photo contest for its spring edition. The unique shot shows a dog at the helm of a boat on the lake, but Blackburn said the image is one he sees regularly.
Blackburn doesn’t refer to “Lincoln” as his dog. Rather, one day about three years ago, Lincoln “arrived.”
“Right away he just took an interest in the boat and dock, so he started riding in the boat and I just kind of taught him how to drive on straightaways,” Blackburn said.
Blackburn said he started feeding Lincoln, who is a middle-aged or older lab mix, and Lincoln started sticking around. But he’s far from a homebody.
“He took a liking to the boat. I couldn’t find Lincoln at the door,” he said. “He was on the boat so I started driving him around and he stood on the bow of the boat for a long time.”
Blackburn soon started “teaching Lincoln how to drive” and he swears Lincoln understands the basic dynamics.
“He’s not too good at U-turns though,” Blackburn said. “He takes an 8-mile trip about every day and in particular, if the water is calm, he’ll do pretty well, so if I can just get him to park the boat, that’ll be my goal this year.”
Driving boats isn’t Lincoln’s only party trick, according to Blackburn. And it wasn’t the first Blackburn noticed.
“He’s just a dog who no one knows who he belongs to but when I first saw him, I was drinking coffee and Lincoln showed an interest in it. So, I started giving him decaffeinated coffee. He drinks that in the mornings,” he said.
Lincoln rarely enters Blackburn’s house but he accompanies his human companion on truck rides from time to time.
“I don’t think he’s a city dog,” Blackburn said. “I think he’s a county dog who was probably the runt of the litter and put out by the other dogs.
“I feel that way by the way I feel him. He gets intimidated easy. If I don’t take him to the store and I come back with bags, he gives me the side eye, like, ‘Where ya been?’”
Blackburn said he’s hesitant to refer to Lincoln as his dog because he may have to leave town for work and have a hard decision to make about what to do with the dog. The two will always be linked though.
“He’s just a strange bird that’s a joy to be around,” Blackburn said. When you’re working, he’ll just sit there and be quiet and a good boy, but by the end of the day, he’s ready for a boat ride, whether it be winter or summer.”
In addition to the honor of having the Lake Living cover photo, which Blackburn said he took with his phone from the passenger seat, Blackburn was awarded $100 from CNI.
“I just sent it in because he’s a cool dog that likes the boat,” Blackburn said. “And now I can get some gas so he can ride some more.”