Hobbes the cat is fine and well now after spending almost 4 months in the Vancouver Island wilderness this summer. (Submitted photo/Molly Gastle)

By Jordan Davidson

an incredible journey

A Harrowing Tail: More details emerge on cat’s coast-to-coast adventure ending in Nanaimo

Nov 14, 2022 | 5:27 AM

NANAIMO — Multiple rescue attempts and a case of mistaken identity are the latest chapters in the story of Hobbes the cat, with more details coming to light about his amazing journey across Vancouver Island.

Earlier in 2022, Hobbes fled from his family and into the woods during a camping trip just outside of Ucluelet. It began a four month journey in the wild before he was eventually re-united in late October with his Victoria-based family at the Nanaimo SPCA.

Now, more is known about Hobbes’ trek through a woman named Larissa who contacted NanaimoNewsNOW after reading about the cat’s journey. She first spotted him Oct. 22, roughly 45 minutes from where he went missing.

“I found the cat on Marion Creek FSR (forest service road), about eight kilometres from the highway and 40 kilometres from the Kennedy Lake boat launch. At first, I couldn’t tell what it was in the distance.”

Larissa said Hobbes was afraid of her vehicle, so she got out in order to coax him into her arms when she found him while hiking in the Triple Peak/5040 area. (submitted photo/Molly Gastle)

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Eventually, she was able to grab the cat and get him back into her vehicle. She said Hobbes was clearly scared, skinny and very hungry

“He didn’t stop meowing, and felt like bones. I had no food to offer except peanut butter Clif bars.”

She drove him back to Ucluelet where she had a meeting to attend, and left Hobbes in her car. When a coworker came out to meet and cuddle with him, Hobbes bolted once more.

“I quickly searched for him but had no luck. He was better off in Ucluelet then the logging roads at least. I posted on the local Facebook group, hoping someone will find him while I went away for a couple of days.”

But that wasn’t the end of Hobbes’s story quite yet.

(submitted photo/Molly Gastle)

The following evening, Molly Gastle was working at a restaurant in Ucluelet when she heard meowing outside by the dumpsters.

It was Hobbes.

“It clearly needed help, skin and bones and came right up to me meowing. I fed it some bacon from the restaurant and he allowed me to pick him up and put him in my truck as I finished my shift.”

Gastle recognized Hobbes from Larissa’s post in their local Facebook group and knew he was in need of a home for the night.

She put him in her truck until the end of her shift and then brought him home.

“He came home, ate a ton, and settled into my home. Eventually, he trusted us enough to sleep and he slept for a very long time.”

As they didn’t have a local SPCA in their area, Molly posted his photo to a number of Facebook groups hoping to locate the owner.

Hobbes spent a night with Molly Gastle who looked to find his owner on a local Ucluelet Facebook group. (submitted photo/Molly Gastle)

A Nanaimo woman reached out to Gastle, claiming it was her missing cat. They exchanged photos and video chatted, and the woman said it was her missing feline.

“My sister happened to be driving from Ucluelet to Nanaimo the next morning, October 24th, so we packed up the kitty and sent him with her to be reunited with its family,” said Gastle. “She planned to take him to the Nanaimo SPCA in the event they realized it was not their cat, but they welcomed him in with open arms, believing he was theirs.”

Unfortunately, it was a case of mistaken identity.

Hobbes got loose one final time, this time from both Gastle and the woman who thought it was her cat and spent another few days on the lam.

No-one is certain how Hobbes wound up with the people who eventually turned him in.

Courtney Irving was Hobbes’ last host on the evening of Oct. 28, where she took him to the Nanaimo SPCA the following day.

Thanks to Hobbes having an up-to-date microchip, the SPCA was able to get in contact with his owners in Victoria and the pair were reunited.

“I guess the main takeaway is to microchip your cats and to leave things up to the professionals,’ said Gastle. “I am very grateful on Hobbes’ third escape the woman who’s house he approached took him in and went immediately to the SPCA.”

What spooked Hobbes and how he survived in the Vancouver Island wilderness for months are still mysteries.

Hobbes is the only one who could answer those questions, and unfortunately, cat’s got his tongue.

Join the conversation. Submit your letter to NanaimoNewsNOW and be included on The Water Cooler, our letters to the editor feature.

jordan@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @JordanDHeyNow