A Very Busy Day

Excited to have a big breakfast of free range chicken eggs given to us yesterday by our island neighbor and resident hog hunter, Eric, we woke at 4:45AM, 15 minutes ahead of our regular schedule.  Somehow, we managed to drag our rather groggy selves out from under the covers after only hitting of the snooze button once.  Breakfast was indeed a treat and worth the early rise.  We were surprised by the eggs; they were large, with bright orange yolks, hard shells, and they were very flavorful.  Along with fake sausage, toast and tea, we were full up for the day, and we would prove to need it.

We headed to the south end first today in order to work our patrol into the tide schedule.  Kate dropped me off at the double kayak and took the Mule to the south end as usual.  I began my patrol just as the sun rose at 6:30. We had high hopes today for a nest, being that one was reported yesterday on Sea Island (a private island home to a luxury resort).  We found out later today that the Sea Island nest was in fact a Green Turtle nest, which is still good news, but not the Loggerhead (Caretta caretta) nest we are waiting for to officially begin the season.  After only about 3 kilometers of ATV riding I was quickly disheartened as I came upon another stranding.  The moderately decomposed, sub-adult Loggerhead was just below the high tide, and oddly, just a couple hundred feet from the turtle we found last week.  I dragged the carcass up above the tide line to avoid the problem we had last week (we thought we could come back later for it and found it almost washed away, having to recover it from the surf).  I radioed Kate, then finished my patrol.

Kate met me at the inlet to the south with the stranding kit (a dry box containing paperwork, gloves, plastic bags, biopsy punches and vials, camera, a dry erase, GPS, knife, measuring tape and calipers).  She had the Mule (with all the gear) on one side, and me the ATV on the other.  We figured she could wade across and in doing so, could save a little time.  The tide was a bit high though, and after she got about half way, the water dropped off and became too deep. So after an ATV ride back to the kayak, a short paddle to the landing, picking up Kate and the gear, a tandem kayak back to the ATV, and riding doubles back up the beach, we were ready to start working up the turtle.

Since I did the dirty work last time, Kate put on the gloves and I got to handle the paperwork.  We recorded the standard measurements required, checked and scanned it for flipper and PIT tags, recorded the location and took all the pictures as per our stranding protocol.  It was then time for the nasty part, removing the humerus bone.  The skin of a sea turtle is surprisingly tough; add to that the fact that I didn't sharpen the knife after last time and it became a real job to remove the bone.  Kate did well though, and together we got everything in order.

Now that we were behind schedule, Kate decided to revisit the idea of crossing one of the tidal creeks to catch back up.  This time, Kate volunteered to cross the inlet between the two middle beaches.  In this way, North Middle could be walked in only on direction, and I could go back to the Mule, drive around, and pick her up when she finished.  Then we could patrol North Beach together.  I thought it was a good plan, but when it came to getting it done, Kate just plain chickened out.  The water was still a little deep and would require getting wet.  She stripped down to her undies and made it pretty far out, but couldn't bear the cold dark water.  After 15 minutes of waiting for her to build up the courage, I stripped naked, threw my clothes in a bucket and went across.  It was my first time naked on the beach, and while it was a bit chilly, it was quite invigorating.  So Kate regrouped, took the ATV back, and I walked North Middle.  When I got to the end, I stripped down again, and crossed the next inlet to get to North Beach.  Kate wasn't there yet, so I ran around in the buck a little while to dry off before putting my clothes back on.

After Kate picked my up, we began our North Beach patrol.  We finished up around 11:00, two hours later than our days so far.  Though they will regularly be long when the nests arrive.  We decided to play a little on the way back.  We rescued several horseshoe crabs (there are always plenty stranded upside-down every morning).  We even found a pair that had gotten flipped while mating.  We put the two down at the surf line watched them find their way back to the ocean.  The female (much larger) had no trouble, while the male kept going the wrong direction until we put him further out.  Then we picked up a few balloons on our way back the the inlet to the south (only 4 today due to the busy morning).  There we decided to put Kate's superior cast netting abilities to the test.  At first we had no luck, not because of Kate's throws, but because we couldn't find the minnows.  But as we kept working the creek Kate really started to shine.  Throw after throw she was brining them in.  At first, just two or three at a time, then six, seven or eight.  We put about two dozen in a minnow box and were about to head home when she tried one more throw at a big school and caught two larger fish (though too small to eat) that we haven't identified.

When we got home, we learned that Amanda (Eric's Wife) broke water at 8:30 this morning and both were off island expecting Eleanor (named after 97 year old Ms. West) to be delivered, and who arrived 6 pounds, 8 ounces later in the day.  Congratulations Eric and Amanda!

Wiped out from the sun and activity, we ate a quick lunch (leftover mussels marinara may be better than the first time around), and took a nap.  I got up first and spent the time alone completing an online HAZMAT training course in case the Deepwater Horizon spill ends up here. When Kate came to, we decided to try our minnows out on some fish.  Sadly, all but a few of the minnows had died, either from being in warm water, not enough water, or from being jostled around in the Mule on the ride home.  But dead minnows are still usable as bait, and we set off anyway to Old Cabbage Garden.  We tried, but apparently have no idea how to fish.  We caught a few logs, and brought home a ton of ticks.  As soon as we walked in the door we had to strip down and inspect each other.  Besides the dozen or so on our clothes, about 4 had latched on to Kate and I had three.  The sun set just as we got home and Kate went quickly to bed.  Again, I'm up much later than I want to be, writing much more than I thought I would - though I'm sure I'll be glad to have this journal years from now to remember just how much stuff we packed into each day out here.

Learning to Throw a Cast Net

Same early morning routine. We're getting better at leaving the house, and made it to the beach just before the sun appeared over the horizon. Still no turtle nests to report. Any day now... I found another dead armadillo in between the tide lines. Maybe they creep too close to the water's edge, and since their sight is so poor, they are swept out and drown? This is just another natural oddity we have come across. Each day Ossabaw shows us something strange.

Adam came today to drop off some supplies. Vials for egg and biopsy samples, a spare GPS, a trickle charger for the Mule, a smoke detector and fire extinguisher (Steve is very safety oriented), and some other things. He told us about some places on the island we should check out, including other better preserved shell middens. The list of places to visit grows each day.

Steve tended to some chores as I read lazily in the sun. He burned the paper trash in the cement receptacle. He also sprayed insect killer around the perimeter of the house. We're generally opposed to such a practice, but the insects, especially the biting ones, are prevalent. Anything for some relief.

Feeling optimistic about catching some fish after talking with Adam, we watched a YouTube video about how to throw a cast net. It looked tricky at first, but after the technique is practiced, handling the net isn't so bad. Steve and I headed for the dock. We see fish there all the time, or so we thought. We took turns throwing the net. I surprisingly had no problem, and Steve, poor guy, couldn't seem to get the hang of it. Throw, pull in, no fish. Repeat. Still nothing. We really have some bad luck at fishing in Georgia. Eventually we give up, but leave determined to find the bait fish.

After dinner, on our way to feed the animals, we bumped into Eric, the hunter. We asked more questions, and he revealed the best places and times to get bait fish, clams, big fish, and blue crabs. I think we're finally on to something. Eric later brought us a dozen eggs from his chickens. We love real eggs.

We went to feed the horses and other funny animals. I love it there. I've taken care of so many animals, but never horses, a pig, a temperamental goose, and shy peahen. The stables are in dire need of help. A little work here and there, and Steve and I will help to clean and fix up their space. I look forward to some hard work.

Midden Mussels

We finished our patrol around 9AM today.  The tide was up pretty high and the driving was a bit rough around the erosional parts of the beach, and around the boneyards (areas where the beach is overtaking forest leaving complete trees fallen and dead).  Strong winds out of the east brought 17 balloons today, several crab pot buoys, plastic bottles and various other garbage.  Five of the balloons we found today and yesterday were Happy Mother's Day balloons.  Two of them found today were tied together and had messages to a mom in heaven.  While I appreciate the sentiment, there's no reason to intentionally set balloons free into the air.  Oddly, they both had an address on them.  Kate and I plan to mail them back with a friendly reminder of the harm they cause.  The crab pot buoys we're starting to collect to make a string of them to decorate the turtle shed with.  We both feel the urge to pick up all the trash that washes ashore, but it's endless, and just can't be done.


Kate was beat when we got back to the house around 10.  Probably because we only had oatmeal for breakfast.  Our neighbor Eric has chickens and hopefully, we'll be able to get some eggs from him regularly for more substantial breakfasts.  Kate napped and I spent the time diddling around the house.  After she woke and we had lunch, we went down to the dock and tried a little fishing.  We had no luck.  You can see a live web feed off the dock.  You can't see us in it today.  Next time we'll dance in front of the camera.


Since we couldn't catch any fish, we decided to go on a small adventure.  Front the dock we headed northwest down Cane Patch Road.  After a short drive we came to a sign that said the road was closed to motor traffic, so we hoofed it the rest of the way down the road until we came upon a rickety old bridge.  There we found a treasure we've been looking for: mussels!  They were all about in the tidal creek below the bridge.  We didn't have the right stuff to harvest any, so we had to go back to the house and change shoes, pants, and get a bucket.  We got back to the bridge in no time and climbed down into the mud.  We sank right in and had a bit of trouble moving about.  The horse flies where on us right away and we had to act fast. After filling our bucket we climbed out of the marsh and continued down the road to Cane Patch Island, which "was once a large prehistoric shell midden.  Shell mining for tabby construction in the 19th century and road maintenance has destroyed the vast majority of the midden".  It was a really interesting area and will undoubtedly be explored more in depth soon.

A few horse flies bites proved well worth bearing.  When we got home, we cleaned and cooked more mussels than I've ever had in one sitting.  Mussels marinara over angel hair, with steamed mussels for an appetizer.  It was excellent and will likely become a regular meal.  Along with whelk fritters, we are starting to learn to live off the land.  Hopefully soon, I'll figure out how to catch some fish.

Susie & Steve Homemaker

We started the day like any other. We patrolled the opposite beaches than yesterday. No nests, though Steve did find a dead armadillo on one beach. No signs of casualty. Pretty strange. The wind was blowing pretty hard from the northeast today, and started uncovering lots of hidden things in the sand. We collected 30 balloons. Happy Birthday, It's a Boy, Get Well Soon.

The house is a work in progress, though today Steve and I made some big improvements. The living room was rearranged and dining room and office were created. It's starting to feel homey. There's this place nearby where things go to die. Cars, appliances, tires, bicycles, etc...simply because it is pretty hard to get things off of the island. Over time - a very long time - some very cool things have accumulated. I went searching for items to create bird feeders and bird baths for the back yard. I found some old hubcaps that should do. Steve later found an old hose that we may be able to create a fountain with. If it weren't for the ticks climbing on us for a meal, we'd have been there all day.

The oysters and whelks we gathered a couple of days ago became dinner. Steve made fritters with the whelks - think conch fritters. The oysters were steamed and thrown into a pasta. We're pretty excited to be able to get some of our food from the island. Blue crabs and fish soon!

Your questions answered.

I've been getting two questions time and again: "Where are you?" and "What are you doing?".  I've added a little FAQ to provide the answers.  Please feel free to email Steve or email Kate with your questions and I'll be sure to update that page with answers to the common ones.  You can find the link in the menu to the right under Frequently Asked Questions.

Happy Mother's Day

First, Kate and I would both like to say Happy Mother's Day to both our moms.  We love and miss you.  We picked these for you.

Now I'll tell you about our day - it has been a draining one.  We are both ready for sleep and it's only 7:30.

We woke at 5AM to get an early start again.  We ate a quick cereal breakfast, put on warm clothes, and started putting all the gear we would need into the Mule.  We planned on taking a few extra turtle screens with us to stash in different places on the beaches (when we do see our first turtle crawl, and verify that there is a nest, we will use these screens to cover the nest cavity, protecting it from potential predators such as ghost crabs and raccoons - we worry about the feral hogs too, but these screens are no match for them).  So onto the Mule went the screens, the orange watertight box we carry that contains our data sheets, GPS, camera, and various other tools of the trade, a few posts we use to mark the nests, and our personal stuff like snacks, binoculars, sunscreen etc.  Then I tried to start the Mule - it wouldn't start.  We knew right away what the problem was: a dead battery.  We had this same problem Thursday.  I tried both the jump packs we had in the house, but one is apparently broken, and the other just wasn't charged enough.  So, we headed down to the shop where the dead battery from Thursday was sitting after spending a day on the shop's charger.  We walked back and swapped the batteries.  The Mule then fired up just fine and we set off.  Not 50 yards down the road we realized we had a flat.  We drove the crippled Mule to shop to assess the tire.  As soon as I looked at it, the problem was obvious, there was a brown object stuck in the tire.  I got out the plug kit, then Kate volunteered to do the repair.  With a pair of pliers she pulled out what I had thought was a stick, but proved to be some kind of claw, presumably from a hog, though we don't know for certain, it could have been an alligator claw.  Kate did a bang up job repairing the tire, we put air in it and it's held up all day.  Finally, an hour behind schedule, we were headed down the main road toward Bradley (North) beach.

Last night Kate and I developed a plan to split the work load and save some time.  We went to the north end together but then split up.  Kate paddled across the tidal creek in the single person kayak, taking a few of the screens to stash on the other side.  She then walked North Middle Beach, while I drove North Beach.  Neither of us found any crawls.  The timing worked out perfectly, and we met back an hour later with two beaches done in half the time it has taken us before.  We also took a pair of walkie-talkies with us to test them out, but they proved useless - I think they are from 1995 and one has a broken antenna.  After we logged our survey times in our books, we took the Mule south to the kayak landing.  There I took the remaining screens and paddled down to the ATV.  Kate took the Mule to patrol South Beach.  I stashed one screen by the ATV and took the others up to the north end of South Middle as I patrolled.  This time we tested out our state issued cell phones.  They have the push-to-talk feature, and it seemed to work, though not perfectly.  We still didn't find any turtle crawls, but we did get some good pictures of us in the kayaks.  We were off the beach by 10AM, shaving two whole hours off our routine.

With the extra time we saved, we took a leisurely ride back home.  We stopped to pick all kinds of wild flowers and plants along the way.  We also drive to Middle Place, which is in the middle of the island (go figure).  Some of the buildings there are left over from one of the three original plantations that were on the island.  The rest of the structures were built by a colony of artists that lived here in the 70's.  When we got home, we ate lunch, and after fighting the urge to nap, started some much needed yard work.  The ticks have been very bad in the grass behind our house, so we got the lawn mover, rake and loppers out and went to work.  It took quite awhile, and a lot of effort, but the yard looks much improved.  When we finished, we went over to Ms. Wests house to feed the horses, but they weren't there.  Paul Mitchell, a very old and gross looking pig, was there, so we fed him - and Christmas Goose (a funny looking goose).  We also saw a peacock roaming around the property.  We knocked Ms. West's door in attempt to meet her, and deliver the Mother's Day arrangement Kate made from our earlier flower picking.  She wasn't home - probably on the mainland with her children being celebrated.  On the way back to our house, we found the horses in the main field.  They wouldn't follow us, so they didn't get any food from us, but seemed happy just grazing.

Finally we were home and able to relax.  Dinner, showers, and comfy clothes ease the soreness.  Days of driving bumpy roads are starting to take their toll on my back.

What you've missed...

Steve and I arrived on Ossabaw late afternoon, Monday, May 3rd. After a morning of paperwork at Georgia DNR office in Brunswick, we drove to Savannah and met our boss Mark for a boat ride out to the island. Once on land, we got a very limited tour and met most of our fellow island residents. That night we heard stories of Ossabaw over a late dinner.

Tuesday was met with uncertain weather as the storms that flooded Tennessee crept closer. Mark took us to the beach for training and on the way we had several surprises. First we came across a wayward alligator blocking the road, and further on what we believed to be a coyote as it darted across the road. They are a rare sighting on the island, so we don't want to say for sure. On the beach we went over sea turtle nesting protocol. Mark made examples of loggerhead crawls in the sand and we reviewed how to tell the difference between a nesting crawl and a false crawl (when a turtle crawls on the beach but for some reason leaves without depositing eggs). After some ominous clouds passed over, and dumped some rain, we went over egg relocation protocol. Depending where on the beach a turtle lays her eggs, Steve and I may have to relocate up to 50% of the nests to safer ground. We then patrolled the entire North Beach (6.70 km). No turtle nests, yet. Mark left around noon, and we went home to start cleaning our house.

Wednesday, Mark's right hand man Adam, arrived early to continue our training. He led us south on the island to patrol the other three beaches. Let's just say the road was rough. I remember laughing out loud most of the 30 minute drive as I tried to keep up with Steve on another Mule (Kawasaki, not the animal) who was following Adam on an ATV. Our first stop was the kayak launch point to South Middle Beach. Steve and I paddled down a tidal creek as Adam took the ATV over shallow water to the dune. The ATV is our transportation for this beach, so Steve and I had to sit back to back on the cargo rack as Adam drove. We patrolled the whole beach (5.92 km) and found nothing. At the north end, we crossed, at low tide, another tidal creek to North Middle Beach. This beach has to be patrolled on foot (2.28 km) (unless Steve can repair the beach cruiser that was left out there all winter...) (donations welcome). It was a nice chance to slow down and look around. Adam is an amazing naturalist and knows what everything is from the grass, to the birds, to the shells. He even made us eat a couple plants, one was an antiseptic and one was a relative to the carrot. After the kayak ride back, and an awesome bald eagle sighting, we drove even further south, to South Beach. This road seemed to not have been used in a very long time, and later we had to make our own road. We patrolled (2.74 km) and again, no nests. On the way back, the older Mule dropped some parts on the road, and then the frame cracked in half. Steve did his usual MacGyver thing and removed the bed so it could creep along the road some several kilometers more just to get home. We'll be down to one Mule for a bit, but the upside is that every morning for the next while we'll be patrolling together.

Thursday, Adam came early again, and we spent the early morning troubleshooting the "good" Mule as it wouldn't start. After some brains worked it out, Steve and I were sent to patrol North Beach as Adam picked up the pieces of the other Mule somewhere on the Main Road. No nests were found so we headed back. We completed sea turtle stranding protocol training with Charlene (Adam's preserved hawksbill sea turtle) and reviewed the equipment in the house and shed. Then Adam took us to "the hill" (main land), to get stuff from the RV and local store. We towed the canoe back and attracted some dolphins along the way. As soon as we unloaded the boat, he left and Steve and I were officially on our own.

Friday we woke up before sunrise so we could be on the beach as the sun came up. As the early morning takes hold, signs of sea turtle crawls can be diminished so it's important we're there every morning at dawn. We patrolled all four beaches over five hours. Lots of rough Mule rides and some wet ass from the kayak. Still no nests, however we did have a dead loggerhead stranding. This required some paperwork, photos, examination, and biopsy. Steve removed the left humerus bone and skin sample for research. The carcass was painted (to prevent double counting) and pulled up to the dune. On the way home we got to see 4 Roseate Spoonbills feeding in the marsh and a pretty Broadhead skink hanging out in the hole of a tree.

Saturday we woke up even earlier (5 AM) and changed up our patrol route because of the tide. We headed to South Middle Beach first and took the kayak across to the ATV. This proved to be not such a great idea, because both the kayak and ATV were still wet from the morning dew. However, we were able to do the walk of North Middle Beach without the blazing temperatures of the mid-day sun. After the Middle beaches, we went to South Beach. The tide was much lower than any other day and we were able to explore the very southern tip of the island. There, we collected a few oysters and whelks. They are sitting in a bucket of fresh water now, and in a few days will make a nice addition at the dinner table. Afterward, we drove up to North Beach. We encountered a few weekend goers that had their boats pulled up and beach chairs setup. Even still... no turtle nest. In the afternoon, after much needed naps, we went over to the island manager's (Andy's) house. He is going on a trip to Alaska and needed to show us how to feed the horses, and possibly his house pets in case Eric, who is the island's designated hog killer cannot (because his wife is having a baby any day now). It was our first glimpse of Ms. West's property. It reminds me of the movie Great Expectations. We will have pictures of it soon, since we have to visit it everyday this week. When we got back, Steve cooked up taco night. We cracked a few beers and spent rest of the night working on this update. It's now 9:30 PM and way past our bedtime. Sunrise is at 6:30 tomorrow, so we need to be up before 5:00 if we want to be able to eat a big enough breakfast to last until noon and still make it to the beach by dawn.

Goodnight and stay tuned fore more. Please email us with your stories. Take care.