CAROLINA LIFE

Finding real solitude - in a belly boat

By TIM DOMINICK - tdominick@thestate.com

“A lot of people think that I’m a buoy.”

That’s how 39-year-old Scott Altenburg of Pelion describes people’s reaction when he’s in his belly boat fishing on area lakes. A belly boat is an inflatable horseshoe shaped tube with a seat and compartments to store fishing tackle. The fisherman wears flippers on his feet to propel the tube through the water.

First exposed to the belly boat on a fishing trip to Colorado with his dad 12 years ago, it has now become almost an obsession with Altenburg.

Quietly paddling around the coves and shoreline in search of fish, he encounters wildlife most boaters don’t see.

“I’ve seen turkeys, deer, rabbits and bobcats. You really get to enjoy wildlife. You’re so much more at peace with your surroundings.”

One critter that he keeps his eye out for is a snake. He says snakes don’t generally bother you in the water, but if one feels threatened, it will look for something to crawl up on. That might be the belly boat.

Altenburg fishes at least once a week in the belly boat as an escape from the daily grind. With every lap of small waves, problems of the day wash away.

“Some people do yoga to get that peace of mind, some people hunt, some people fish. A lot of people do a lot of different things in order to find their peace. Well, for me, this does it.”

— Tim Dominick