Vancouver Island 'adventure cat' skis, bikes and kayaks
Before Michelle Gagnon figured out her that her cat liked playing fetch outside in the snow, Bodhi was a skittish kitten.
“He’d be like, ‘This is kinda scary,’” Michelle says, imagining her cat’s little voice.
Bodhi was also really curious about the outdoors, so Michelle started taking him for walks around the block on a leash.
It took a while for the cat to be comfortable, but once he was: “He wanted to be outside every second of the day,” she says.
So, when that first winter rolled around, Michelle and Bodhi started skiing together.
“I’d say ‘load-up’ and he’d run up to my shoulders,” Michelle says, before showing a video of the cat perched beside her head as she skied down a slope.
That lead to summers filled with hiking up mountains together and cycling long distance together (Michelle was responsible for peddling the bike and patting Bodhi in the front basket).
“Wherever I went, I’d just take him with me,” she smiles.
Michelle started sharing their adventures on land through her "Bodhi the Adventure Cat" Instagram page before introducing him to water.
“He was like a magnet,” she says, re-enacting how drawn he was to the water.
She says Bohdi started pawing the liquid for a while, before walking right in.
“I thought, 'Wow!'” Michelle laughs. “I should buy Bodhi a paddle board!”
So she did. And paddle-boarding together led to what Michelle says is now Bodhi’s favourite activity to do with her — kayaking.
“He just gets to sit there and watch the shoreline and smell the smells,” Michelle smiles, before showing photos of Bodhi perched on the front of the kayak.
The cat also alerts her to passing wildlife, from otters to orcas.
Bodhi often spots creatures Michelle wouldn’t have seen on land too. There are pictures of the cat watching a large ram and a little bear.
“You can’t get anything by a cat,” Michelle says. “They notice everything.”
They also stop to experience everything, all the time.
“Kitty adventuring is not for people who want direct results,” Michelle laughs.
And that, Michelle says — the fact that her cat is not an adrenaline-junky, goal oriented, Type-A adventurer — is the best part about being with Bohdi.
“You have to go with the flow, enjoy your time in nature,” Michelle smiles. “And appreciate all the little things that they show you.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter banned from NBA
Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter has been handed a lifetime ban from The National Basketball Association (NBA) following an investigation which found he disclosed confidential information to sports bettors, the league says.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Attempt to have murder charge quashed against alleged serial killer dismissed by judge
A motion filed by the man accused of killing four Indigenous women in Winnipeg to have one of those murder charges quashed has been dismissed by the judge – weeks before the start of his trial.
Government proposes new policy for federally regulated employees to disconnect from work
In their 2024 budget, the federal government wants to amend the Canada Labour Code, so employers in federally regulated sectors will eliminate work-related communication with employees outside of scheduled hours. If implemented, this would affect roughly 500,000 employees across the country.
Earthquake jolts southern Japan
An earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 6.4 hit southern Japan late on Wednesday, said the Japan Meteorological Agency, without issuing a tsunami warning.