Saturday, January 23, 2010 was Volunteer Appreciation Day on Bull Island, and I took the easy ride over on the Island Cat ferry. Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge staff hosted this event that included the trip over to the island, a guided tour around the island (with trailers and a van to transport the group), and a potluck luncheon at the Dominick House. The northeast wind was cranking up at 8:30 when the group departed Garris Landing with 40 volunteers and family members on board.
I was “pressed” into service as mate by Captain Chris Crolley. The wind blew harder and colder as we proceeded to the island, flying in the face of the weather predictions for sunny and a high of 58. Vehicles were waiting at the dock to transport the group and the food for the luncheon to the Dominick House.
Chris and I made the trip back over to the mainland to pick up the regular 10 AM run. Despite the brisk weather, a hardy group of 18 people showed up, including one family with four children. For the majority this was their maiden trip to Bull Island. Despite being hunkered down on board, this mixed group was cold, and I voiced my encouragement to them about the forecast for sun and the potential for alligators to come up on the dikes to soak up the solar radiation.
We were met by a van to transport the food to the gathering. Once collected at the house, everyone except the individuals that had already left for their own adventures on the island embarked in the vehicles and trailers to make a circuit of the island. Chris organized the plan for three stops: the dike at Upper Summerhouse Pond, the Old Fort, and the Boneyard. The weather was still overcast with a wind chill negating the more optimistic forecast, and the group was bundled up with every bit of clothing worn.
But by the time we reached the Old Fort, and most definitely at the Boneyard, the skies had cleared and the day was warming up and promising views of alligators.
I have taken the motorized tour around the island several times in the past, and I did so today to spend time with the other volunteers. Yet I knew I was missing something – I was covering lots of ground but losing the intimacy of the walk, stopping to explore and observe. At one point we passed without stopping a fascinating place on the island where the ocean and a new tidal creek have breached the old Jack’s Creek dike on the eastern side of the island (see On the Edge 12/26/09).
I saw a friend John Sisson walking on the dike on his own, and he declined a ride from us, choosing to go his own way. Checking in with him later, he shared his observations, including going to the new observation tower. Yet his best viewing occurred just off the path leading to the tower on the edge of Jack’s Creek, where he waited quietly until the birds came to him, including a pair of white pelicans. I had earlier mentioned to several parties on the ride over to the island about the possibility of seeing white pelicans, and in processing with people leaving the island later that afternoon a white pelican duo had been observed by others. My first observed white pelicans were in Jack’s Creek about five years ago, but the motorized tour did not bring them into my field of vision.
Our visit to the Boneyard came at high tide, and there was little beach to step on. Chris used the available space to model a barrier island like Bull, and demonstrate barrier island dynamics and what happened to the maritime forest to create this skeleton forest called the Boneyard.
We had a little shelter from the northeast wind here, and the sun thawed our bodies. As Chris finished his interpretative talk, we saddled up again for the ride back to the Dominick House and the awaited luncheon.
What a smorgasbord! The group of volunteers, family members, and refuge staff squeezed into the largest room in the first floor with plates full from the buffet line. The meal went on for a while, and was followed by a recognition ceremony of volunteers. It was calculated that in the previous fiscal year volunteers for the refuge had given enough hours to provide for six full time employees, significant since the refuge only has five full time employees. One of those volunteers in attendance here today, Jim Hawkins, an acquaintance from the loggerhead program, logged almost 900 hours last year. The loggerhead turtle program in particular is quite volunteer dependent. Yet much other work, whether manning the visitor desk at the Sewee Center, or eradicating invasive species, gets done through volunteers. This service work provides considerable meaning in the volunteers’ lives, and the development of friendships with refuge staff and fellow volunteers.
I had anticipated getting some time to stretch my legs and explore before the return, but time had flown and the 3PM return to the mainland of the regular ferry run approached. While several of the volunteers planned to return at this time, and were loading into a vehicle, I set off on foot toward the dock, realizing my time on the island was quickly coming to an end. I met up with a couple from Connecticut on their fourth trip to the island, and heard about their day on the island (they saw the pelican pair). I repeated this processing with the other groups on board, and was pleased that my prediction of sun bringing out the alligators came through (the images of a number of these reptiles resided on digital cameras). The sun continued to shine, and the ride was pleasant all the way to the landing.
Right after we turned to head back to the island, the sun disappeared for the rest of the afternoon. Back on Bull we loaded up Island Cat to capacity, and made the last run back. Bundling up was in order again, and I sought out various people on the ride to find out what I had missed. I talked with Mary Catherine Martin and John Sisson about birds, and John consulted his Peterson’s field guide, comparing the wingspread of brown pelicans (6.5 ft. wingspan) to white pelicans (8 – 9.5 ft.). The packed seating only enhanced the camaraderie of the group on this late afternoon ride. Perhaps I missed some sights on the island, but the bonding with this incredible group of volunteers made it all worthwhile.
I secured Island Cat as Chris brought her into the berth. He was giving his final closing comments to the group when I looked back toward the island, and flying by was a large pelican heading south – a white. After people had disembarked I mentioned to Chris about seeing the white pelican. He replied that is the way it goes – you look one way and miss something in the opposite direction. There was more experienced than missed today, and many more days on the island to come.
