“Despite the litany of the sorrows of the city, we must believe in the ability of man to respond to the problems of his environment.”  – Stokes

Just the other day I had a rare opportunity to kayak Clam Bayou on my own, not to pick up trash but to reacquaint myself with nature’s residents  that inspire my waterway clean ups. I paddled silently around the south pass and admired the clean habitat. I stopped momentarily to see the progress of a recycling project put on by the Little Green Heron’s. They lost their eggs last year  because they built their nest too close to the waterline. This year they took apart the nest and moved it up higher! Our construction industry could learn a thing or two from these geniuses. 

The wintering pelicans and Willits fed calmly on pristine oyster bars and shimmering, shallow grass flats. The mangrove’s legs look better than ever these days and the herons are moving about under the clean canopy.   At times I lost myself in the peacefulness of the bayou and wondered; What now? What to do without funding to organize and run public clean ups for our waters?  Any suggestions?
I found a possible  answer when Wilford Woodruff Academy from Winter Park came to town to help restore our bayou. They sat intently at the Outpost with Carol on  a cold morning and artistically worked on coconut doorstops. Alex Russell went to work immediately on his project like he had a purpose -  a red base coat with a black web overlay and BAM = Spiderman!  Another nut  read “Peace”. A few had colorful flowers, all showed extreme creativity! What goes on in  a young person’s mind these days? What inspires them to learn & grasp the importance of the environment?  We shared  ideas on recycled art that could help raise money for their school’s cause and at the same time help the environment. The “treasure bottles” for restaurant tables is sure to be a winner! (Attn teachers; send me a note and I’ll share more on this one)
After a chilly launch from the shelly shore the stiff northern breeze literally blasted us out  the south channel of the bayou. A brown pelican dove in between the us and sifted mouthfuls of small minnows in front of a eleven-year old giggling girl. Before I could ask my usual question on the most common death of a pelican a youngster asked me…”is it true that most pelican’s die from blindness? From diving into harsh elements that wear away their eyelids and expose their eyes to ultra-violet rays?”   The #1 answer is always “fishing line” but this boy somehow knew the correct answer.  When I asked how he knew he said, “Because I’m Robbie Pellicane!”

Greg McIntosh helping with the Bring Back The Bayou project  provided some great entertainment for the crew. He instinctively jumped out of his kayak in a popular trash-catching corner and thrashed around the  mangroves tossing bottles, cans, bags, & balls out to the eager cleaners to pick from the water. I was standing knee-deep pulling  bags when saw a red football come flying straight out the top of the canopy. A long arm from the back of a kayak stretched tall and with the talent of an NFL wide receiver snatched it one-handed!  To my surprise (but somehow not really…) it was Alex Russell who grabbed the Spiderman ball from the air. It matched his already painted coconut perfectly!

In nature & in life – the answers are within the adventure!