2011-01-02
By Priscilla Lister
George Ward has boating in his blood lines. At
51, fit, flinty and friendly, this
third-generation boat captain and fisherman in
Apalachicola, Fla., knows these waters as well as
anyone. As he guided my friends and me through his
bay to go shelling on the uninhabited Sand Dollar
Island, he spotted several dolphins swimming near
our small skiff.
"Let's get them to play," he said. He lined up
our boat with the dolphins' trail that seemed
evident only to him and gunned it. In a flash, two
dolphins were jumping 10 feet into the air in our
wake, over and over again. We swore they were
smiling, and we were squealing with delight.
Such outdoor thrills are common in Franklin
County on Florida's Panhandle, one of the most
pristine places left anywhere. The county dubs
itself "A Natural Escape" for good reason.
One of the largest counties in Florida,
Franklin covers 545 square miles or about 350,000
acres but is home to only some 11,000 people. More
than 87 percent of the county is federally or
state-protected land, including Apalachicola
National Forest, St. Mark's and St. Vincent
national wildlife refuges, Tate's Hell State
Forest, and Bald Point and St. George Island state
parks, making this destination a natural for
hikers, bicyclists and birders.
"If you like to be outside, this is a great
place to be," said Seth Blitch, manager of the
Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve.
The estuarine system formed here by the
Apalachicola River and Apalachicola Bay as they
empty into the Gulf of Mexico is one of the most
productive in North America. Conserved as a
national reserve, its 247,000 acres make it the
second largest (largest is in Kachemak, Alaska)
among 28 such national reserves on the continent.
An estuary is essentially a nursery for all
kinds of sea creatures who begin their lives in
this mix of fresh and salt waters before heading
farther into the gulf. Filter-feeding oysters
especially thrive in these muddy waters, where the
low salinity is perfect for them.
Indeed, oysters are big here — both as a
business and as plump, juicy taste treats favored
by chefs nationwide. Some 90 percent of the
state's oyster supply comes from Apalachicola and
about 10 percent of the nation's. No other area
offers such steady "wild harvest" oysters of
similar quality. Ward says it's hard,
back-breaking work, but it has also been a hearty
way of life for folks here over the last 170
years.
Kevin Patton calls himself a "way-back
cracker," a 30-something young man with deep roots
in this part of Florida whose family has been
around here since 1849. He's a park ranger in Bald
Point State Park, which lies in the eastern part
of the county on the Gulf Coast, where Ochlockonee
Bay meets Apalachee Bay.
Bald Point is a major stopover for migrating
birds, notably bald eagles, and is part of the
Great Florida Birding Trail. It's also an amazing
fishing destination for sea trout, red fish,
flounder, mullet and blue crab.
"Where else do you have a big coastal island
with 30 freshwater lakes?" Patton asked.
As he took us on a short hike over the sand
dunes to the water's edge, he showed us ghost crab
tracks and deer hoof prints on the beach, which is
even visited by black bears.
Hikers and bikers should note that Florida is
quite flat — the highest point in the state is
only 300 feet — so trails here are really easy.
"I get a nosebleed on a sand dune," cracked
Patton.
On another afternoon, we went hiking in the
pine flatwoods with local certified green guide
Lesley Cox into Tate's Hell State Forest.
As we walked along the High Coastal Bluff
Trail, Cox pointed out that all the straight, tall
pines are slash pines, mostly replanted some 40
years ago when this land was part of the state's
then-thriving paper mill industry.
A master naturalist, Cox showed us the huge
lateral trunks under the sandy surface of the
short palmettos — hundreds of years old. She
identified the purple blazing star flower, the
yellow coreopsis sunflower and the purple deer
tongue. The carnivorous pitcher plants are a big
draw here in late spring and early fall, she said,
and the forest's dwarf cypress swamp is an unusual
wonder to behold.
Cox first came to Franklin County 20 years ago,
but she and her husband moved here just five years
ago.
"If we aren't on the rivers kayaking, we're out
here looking for wildflowers," she said. "We could
do something different every day of our lives and
couldn't see it all."
Matt Anderson, a naturalist on staff at the
Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve,
took us birding one morning in St. George Island
State Park, another place on the Great Florida
Birding Trail.
"The barrier islands here are used a lot by
migrating birds who hunker down and fatten up
before they go to Central and South America," said
the native Floridian.
Anderson could identify a bird from even the
briefest glimpse. He pointed out lots of migrating
yellow rump warblers with the yellow patches on
their behinds — "butter butts, we call them."
"Their migration thousands of miles and their
songs totally fascinate me," Anderson said. "I
really love to go into the forest and just listen
to their songs."
Some 90 percent of birding depends on knowing
songs and calls.
"The Carolina wren sounds like a horse
galloping," Anderson told us as he tried to mimic
the sound. "The catbird sounds like a kitten. The
ruby-crowned kinglet sounds like an old-school
typewriter. My favorite for song is the
golden-crowned sparrow, who sings a beautiful, sad
song."
Then we saw dozens of migrating Monarch
butterflies munching on the beach mint leaves.
We toured the new facility of the Apalachicola
National Estuarine Research Reserve which informs
and educates visitors about this valuable resource
and its natural wealth.
Local photographer Rusty Amos showed us his
favorite photogenic places on St. George Island. A
frequent visitor since he was a teenager, he
finally moved here with his family from
Chattanooga about five years ago.
"What hooked us is this really is old Florida,"
he said. "Even on the Fourth of July you will have
200 feet of beach to yourself."
We feasted on seafood every day and night in
charming, homegrown restaurants and shopped the
boutiques in the beautifully restored Victorian
town of Apalachicola, Franklin County's seat.
Cotton coming from the plantations of Alabama and
Georgia helped Apalachicola thrive as a pre-Civil
War city with a racetrack, opera house, plush
hotels and gorgeous homes. Cypress lumber became a
big industry in the 1880s through the 1920s. But
when those industries died and fishing became the
only game, the town sagged until a few savvy
designers started fixing up those homes and
buildings in the 1980s. Now tourism and fishing
keep it humming.
After our shelling excursion to Sand Dollar
Island, Ward captained us back to St. George's
Island during one of the most exquisite sunsets
we'd ever seen anywhere. But we could only be in
Apalachicola when he anchored just offshore, took
out his 8-foot-long wooden oyster tongs, plunged
them to the shallow bottom and pulled up batch
after batch of those fresh bivalves and plopped
them onto the bow. An oyster knife and hot sauce
were all we needed for a happy hour we'll never
forget.
WHEN YOU GO
For general information:
www.anaturalescape.com
Getting there: Fly into either Panama City-Bay
County International Airport or Tallahassee
Regional Airport and rent a car. Franklin County
is about an hour and 45 minutes' drive from either
of those airports.
Staying there: Small hotels and exquisite B&Bs
are the places to stay in Apalachicola. The Coombs
House Inn,
www.coombshouseinn.com, is a restored
Victorian gem that many credit with spurring the
entire town's revitalization 20 years ago.
Vacation rentals are the rule on St. George
Island and Alligator Point. Collins Vacation
Rentals (www.collinsvacationrentals.com) and
Resort Vacation Properties (www.resortvacationproperties.com)
offer a wide range of rental homes and villas,
including beachfront luxury properties, on St.
George Island. In Alligator Point, check
www.harborpointrealty.com.
Eating there: Captain Snook's Seafood
Restaurant, 500 East Highway 98, Eastpoint, FL
32328, is a waterfront favorite where everything
is homemade and the oysters are identified by
named sand bars.
Harry A's Bar and Restaurant, 28 West Bayshore
Drive, St. George Island, has good food and
nightlife.
The historic Owl Cafe, 15 Avenue D.,
Apalachicola, is a locals' favorite.
Jeanine Slagle of That's A Moray (www.thatsamoraygourmet.com)
in downtown Apalachicola can cater your gathering
at your rental home. Her bakery, 25 Avenue D,
across from the post office, is also a gourmet
takeout favorite.
Exploring there: The new visitors center of the
Apalachicola National Estuarine Research Reserve,
350 Carroll St., Eastpoint, FL 32328, is slated to
open in Spring 2011. For more information:
www.dep.state.fl.us/coastal/sites/apalachicola/info.htm
For birding excursions, e-mail matthew.anderson@dept.state.fl.us.
Bald Point State Park:
www.floridastateparks.org/baldpoint or e-mail
kevin.patton@dept.state.fl.us.
To hire George Ward or other fishing/boating
guides from Journeys of St. George Island:
www.sgislandjourneys.com
To hike with Lesley Cox, Les Hassel Excursions,
Carrabelle, Fla., e-mail dan-lesley@att.net.
For photo safaris on St. George Island with
Rusty Amos:
www.sgiphotos.com.
Priscilla Lister is a San Diego-based freelance
travel writer. To read features by other Creators
Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the
Creators Syndicate website at
www.creators.com
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