Cedar Key National Wildlife Refuge is made up of several small islands, most of which are closed to the public for protection of wildlife and wildlife habitat. The fishing around these islands is phenomenal, and on Wednesday morning we had the privilege of joining Kenny McCain and Larry Woodward on a Carolina Skiff to capture the final footage needed for our film. Kenny is a local of Cedar Key, FL and predominantly uses a cast-net to catch fish. A cast-net is a circular net with small weights distributed around its edge and is thrown in such a manner that it spreads out on the water and sinks. 

Kenny directed us into the oyster flats, which are a common site in this area, to net fish for cut-bait. We ended up with several spot, though I think Kenny was hoping for mullet, his favorite.  [He also pulled in a large black-tipped reef shark, which circled its way into a tangle in the cast-net.] Once we had our bait, rain was on the horizon. We were forced to take refuge on Seahorse Key under a pavilion leased by the University of Florida’s Marine Science Lab. It took about 20 minutes for the weather to clear, and the gnats to appear, for us to get back on the boat and fishing. 

We all started casting; now was the time to document release footage of anything we caught. Kenny, Woodward and I began to pull in small sharks, Heather Jerue pulled in a spotted sea trout, and Joe Milmoe caught what we think was a hound fish. It was the first time the entire boat had caught fish! What a success. After about three hours on the water, and several camera batteries, we headed back to shore.

The afternoon was spent prepping for our last adventure: trapping alligator snapping turtles with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Later in the evening we drove over to the Shell Mound Unit of Lower Suwannee and fished with our remaining cut-bait. We didn’t catch much but sitting on the pier, overlooking the islands, was the most peaceful time for me on this journey. Only one more day, then it’s 13 hours on the road home to D.C. I don’t think I’ve really stopped to breathe in all that’s happened over the last 10 days. With a roseate spoonbill flying overhead, and frigatebirds in the distance, I’m now starting to experience and understand what Paul Kroegel and so many others fought to save.

Anna Harris is the Vision Coordinator for Conserving the Future and a member of the team taking vision on the road.

Bob Hudson is a Friend of the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge. Friends organizations are crucial to the mission of the Refuge System and essential in helping millions of Americans understand that their actions today determine the legacy we leave for tomorrow.  Hudson is Vice President of the Friends group this year, and plans to serve as President in 2014. 

Hudson, along with refuge manager Andrew Gude, had offered to take us out on a tunnel-hull flats skiff for a scalloping trip. Recreational scalloping is considered a type of saltwater fishing and used to be popular past time around Cedar Key National Wildlife Refuge. Only recently have these delicious mollusks begun to thrive again. It was a high low tide on Tuesday morning, meaning the water was a bit deep for scalloping. But that didn’t deter Hudson from finding a thick grassy flat to drop the anchor and having us jump into knee deep water to begin our scalloping quest. To effectively find them, you feel with your feet (preferably with water shoes on) and use your hands or a net to pick them up once you feel the shell.  At first both Heather Jerue and I were a bit squeamish. All trip we’ve been hearing about shark breeding grounds, and now here we were, wading through thick turtle grass hoping to locate a scallop with who-knows-what lurking in the murky water.

Our limiting factor on the quest was rain. Florida, this time of year, does not feel like the Sunshine State. Thick rain, lightening and bellowing thunder started coming our way and eventually drove us off the water. Once back on dry land, Hudson invited us to his house for a lesson on cleaning scallops. Scallops generally pop open on ice, and Bob used a shop-vac to remove the innards, leaving the mussel to be removed with a curved, sharp spoon. Bob’s wife Barbara invited us in for some hot team and delicious lime pound-cake. She doesn’t scallop, for the same reasons we were squeamish, and says when her husband’s out there, all she can think about is “how stupid they all look.” They’ve been married for 50 years. It’s probably not the brightest idea to be wading around with baby bull sharks lurking, but it was a fun adventure and the dinner last night was the best yet!

Anna Harris is the Vision Coordinator for Conserving the Future and a member of the team taking vision on the road.