From lakegastontoday.net
A new gang has struck on Lake Gaston. A group calling themselves ‘The Goat Island Gang’ has placed a new family of goats back on one of Lake Gaston’s favorite islands, Goat Island, and most people are thrilled.
The goats appeared at least two weeks ago according to several regular islanders and there are signs scattered about the island asking folks to care for and protect the family of three goats. We say family because one ‘kid’, which is what baby goats are called, was seen nursing the female goat.
The signs are signed “The Goat Island Gang” and read:
Welcome To Goat Island
Please be respectful of the animals. Their predecessors were removed due to abuse. Do not allow your pets to chase the goats. Do not feed the goats anything you would not feed to your pet.
Your courtesy and cooperation will allow us to continue the tradition of (having) goats on “Goat Island.”
The tradition referred to in the signs dates back to the early seventies when another unknown ‘gang’ placed several goats on the island and the name stuck; it was and probably always will be referred to as Goat Island.
Actually there was a ‘real’ Goat Island in the Roanoke River, before the Gaston Dam was built. If you have an old enough map of Lake Gaston, you can see the real island plainly marked, situated several hundred yards from the Gaston Dam, just to the north, on the Jimmy’s Creek side of the lake. The island rests in about 50 to 60 feet of water, at peace in one of the best lakes in the country, Lake Gaston.
The real island is a favorite fishing spot for some of the long-time Striper and Blue Catfish anglers, who easily find the island as it shows on their depth finders coming up from 60 feet to 40 feet as they glide over the island.
Local farmers placed their goats on the island on the river because the goats were protected and could not get away. Unfortunately for the goats, the Roanoke River often had terrible storms, called freshets that sometimes turned the river into a torrent that often saw the river level rise by up to 15 feet, sweeping away crops and livestock. It was because of this rampant flooding and destruction that the first Roanoke River dam, John Kerr Dam, was built U.S. Army Corp of Engineers.
Getting back to the Goat Island we know today, the new family of goats is just adorable. They seem to be initially shy, but after just a few minutes, they warm up to people and love being scratched. The mother goat watches closely as the kid is loved and scratched, obviously proud of her young one.
As far as the goats liking their new home, the question is difficult to answer. When a boat lands on the Goat Island beach, the goats almost invade the boat as if they’re ready to leave. This could be natural goat curiosity, as they immediately begin peering into all the nooks and crannies of any boat they board, but they obviously were brought to the island on one of these contraptions, so they might actually be ready to go home to their previous location.
One thing is for sure though; they came from a loving home and are not afraid of people. This is both good and bad as most people and children will love and care for them, but as we all know, not all humans, especially young boys, are good people. We hope the good folks will protect the family and the new tradition will continue.
As for the new “gang”, we hope they keep up the good work they have started and continue to care for both the family and Goat Island itself. All signs so far point to this Goat Island Gang as being a true friend of both Goat Island and Lake Gaston, so here’s to you guys! Keep up the good work.
