Wild Nature: Florida’s Forgotten Coast
February 10-16, 2009 - Trip Report
Guide Peg Abbott, with 7 participants

Feb. 10 Arrival in Tallahassee / Drive to Apalachicola
What a delight to arrive to warm air, fresh smells and greenery.  Our four from Boston breathed a sigh of relief to be out of WINTER and with no delay we loaded the bags and headed west to Apalachicola.  We followed a route that took us through Panacea (promising to send loved ones post cards to be marked with such a place name!) and on to grand views of the Gulf Coast on our left side.  Our timing was perfect to admire the early winter sunset. Having driven, Polly, Ernest and Richard greeted our van as we arrived from the airport. They looked relaxed, trying out the hotel’s signature front-porch rocking chairs as they waited.  Our group was a mix of several who had traveled together previously and some new to Naturalist Journeys. 

At our welcome dinner we had a grand time and fine food at Chef Eddie’s Magnolia Grill, a short drive from the hotel. Introductions were fun as the collected life experience of our group held such diversity, from detailing the chemistry of moon-rocks to tales of teaching careers and travel forays.  We enjoyed fresh Cobia, oysters from the bay and shrimp grilled to perfection.  Okay, we sampled a round of desserts as well…this is the land of Key Lime Pie – yum!

Feb. 11 Apalachicola River Cruise / Ft. Gadsden / St. George Island
We discovered what would turn out to be our daily breakfast spot, an artsy café just across the street frequented by locals seeking out great food and coffee.  At 8:30 we met Captain Larry for a cruise up the Apalachicola River to learn about the river and the way of life of local people along it, past and present. We passed fishing camps and a cluster of Tupelo trees where honey is still made by hauling hives out to the wilds. We eventually got to Ft. Gadsden to learn of a shocking battle of the British-American war. Dioramas depicted a massive explosion that killed over 300 people instantly as fire reached the fort’s magazine ammunition supply. On trails at the park we found Wild Dewberries and a few other flowers in bloom, but birds were quiet.  Returning, we did find Black-crowned Night-Herons roosting in an old crane abandoned by the town waterfront and they came out for a peek. Other birds included Ospreys, Double-crested Cormorants and a thrilling look at a Bald Eagle.

It was cold returning downstream, so we were glad to warm up over lunch at That Place in Apalachicola where we enjoyed fresh salads and the atmosphere within one of Apalachicola’s many historic buildings.  It was nice to be able to walk everywhere and to take a break back at the hotel where the staff made us all feel most welcome. 

In the afternoon we headed across the causeway to St. George Island.  A brisk wind had kicked up so we took quick peeks at various viewpoints rather than a long walk. The beauty of the white sand beach, stretching for miles and miles, was terrific. We had good looks at Forster’s Terns diving for fish and started work on sorting through shorebirds, something we continued throughout the week.  In addition to Sanderlings and other common shorebirds, unique to today were sightings of Piping and Snowy Plovers, though viewing conditions did not allow for long inspection. 

Everyone was free tonight for dinner and there were numerous places close by to choose from. Several went to sample Tapas, the Wednesday night special at Tamara’s Café Floradita. Polly and Ernest returned to a favorite they’d found their first night where they enjoyed fresh Apalachicola Bay seafood.  

Feb. 12 St. Vincent NWR / Cape San Blas / St. Joseph Island
This morning we ventured west to St. Vincent National Wildlife Refuge which we accessed by a short boat ride across the channel. Captain Joey, the shuttle driver, gave us some pointers and we took a few moments to photograph and observe a very tame Snowy Egret that was intent on hunting and oblivious to us.  Right away we found tracks of a Bobcat in the sand and we learned a bit more about the Red Wolf program from refuge staff who were in the midst of a trapping effort to replace the older female’s radio collar this very day.   We had a challenging time focusing on birds as they wanted us to stay on the road, yet were running dump loads of oyster shells back and forth that they would crush to resurface the road.  Between deafening passes of the equipment we enjoyed the tranquility of the forest and views of Hermit Thrushes, No. Cardinal, Catbird and what seemed to be an endless supply of Yellow-rumped Warblers. We elected to stay in the woods for our time there, enjoying time under Slash Pine and Cabbage Palms.  Polly found a large jellyfish as well as shells on the beach and took time to watch a few shorebirds.  

Lunch today was delightful. We stopped at the Indian Pass Oyster Bar, a place to sample fresh oysters and other seafood.  They take their seafood seriously here and we had fun sampling a variety. The place is full of local color and quite busy – we all agreed it’s a must when visiting the area.

After lunch we went to Cape San Blas to see its signature lighthouse.  We spotted some Northern Gannets WAY out at sea and then drove on to St. Joseph Island State Park a short way away.  A stop at the pond close to the road’s junction was very productive. Here we found a Belted Kingfisher, Reddish Egrets and the whole array of local herons.  It was fun to watch behavior and the interaction between species.  A shallow lagoon just inside the park let us have close looks at Ruddy Turnstones, a Spotted Sandpiper, a mob of Brown Pelicans and a flotilla of Red-breasted Mergansers intent on hunting.  Scenery stole the show at the next stop.  Miles of white-sand beach spread in both directions. This park wins awards every year for being one of the nation’s finest and it was not hard to see why it rates so high. 

En route home we stopped to view an active Bald Eagle nest and were treated to the sight and sound of the adults doing a nest exchange.  Large hungry chicks popped up in view from the massive stick bowl.  High in a pine, they seemed like regal rulers of this domain.

Dinner tonight was at Tamara’s and it was a fine one. By now we had hatched the name and idea of a new Naturalist Journeys Blog to catalog our nature adventures of the culinary kind.  Check it out at epicureanbirder.wordpress.com.  What fun!  

Feb. 13 Apalachicola National Forest – In Search of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers & other Southern Forest Specialties 
The day dawned as a fine one and we had a great day for our search for the region’s specialty birds.   We drove north of Highway 98 towards Sumatra, with our first stop being an idyllic setting where we spent quite a bit of time – Wright’s Lake. We walked a loop tour around the lake, then ventured off on a path that took us into the pine forests so characteristic of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers.  Did we get a peek?  We could not be sure, as a group of Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers descended on the spot. They are often found together, but it made things complicated for us, so after admiring their antics, we moved on.  Voila, the next spot they were right on cue, and we all had great looks at this species.  Very close to them we had a gang of noisy Brown-headed Nuthatch and Peg found a spot for us to search out Bachman’s Sparrow. Lunch at the Family Coastal Café in Sumatra.  We filled the day searching for more species, driving scenic forest roads, and finding a few of the season’s first wildflowers.  We returned to Gibson Inn to freshen up and dine at Tamara’s – a restaurant which won top billing on our new Blog – the Epicurean Birder – epicureanbirder.wordpress.com.  

Feb. 14 Coastal Birding on a Rainy Day! / Mash Sands State Park / Alligator Point & Roses for all on Valentine’s Day
We woke up to a relentless rain and Peg quickly made a new plan for the day.  We had to forego time in grassland savannas and some wintering sparrow specialties of the area. Instead we hugged the coast in search of water birds that did not mind the downpour.  At one point we pulled into a parking lot to scope out a small offshore island, where we got a nice comparison of Royal and Caspian Terns amid Laughing Gulls, Willets and a mix of herons.  To our delight a group of Ruddy Turnstones and Dunlins were so intent on feeding that they forgot about us and approached quite closely. We had good looks at Willets and Sanderlings, Osprey and Double-crested Cormorants.  We then drove east to Alligator Point where we had close looks at Wilson’s Plovers, a big group of Lesser Scaups, Eastern Phoebes and at every turn – Yellow-rumped Warblers.  We walked out on a windswept beach but found most of the birds hiding in a small woodlot behind the dunes. We scanned for sea ducks to no avail, so turned inland with lunch on our minds.  Near Panacea we found a number of excellent marshes where, with little effort, we found Clapper Rails and beautiful Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrows.  Both species stayed around to inspect us and we got some excellent photos. Lunch was at Posie’s Steam Room and Oyster House where Polly slurped down a soft-shell crab sandwich and others tried grouper or shrimp.  As it was STILL raining we decided to head in for the day.  Most of our group took some time to check out the town, which had a number of really interesting shops, including an excellent local bookstore, run by two folks that used to live in Portal, Arizona, home base for Naturalist Journeys.  Peg and Richard went hunting the elusive Sprague’s Pipit, reported for the fifth year or so to be wintering at the Apalachicola airport.  We found the management there most helpful and welcoming, but as they pointed the direction of the last sighting (several weeks ago) they warned us people rarely had luck finding them in the rain.  Sprague’s Pipits are skulkers!  Peg got a quick glimpse at the bird, first a large eye peering at her through the grass, then the characteristic tail pattern as it flew away – not to be found again.  We walked for an hour or more, enjoying having the rain quit and a nice sense of solitude. We saw good numbers of Black-bellied Plovers and Killdeers at near dusk to decided to return with reinforcements in the morning.  As it was Valentine’s Day, we freshened up a bit for dinner. What a surprise we had when Ernest greeted us all with our own vase with a beautiful red rose!  He and Richard treated all the gals – how sweet.  We had a nice dinner at the Owl Café, which went out of their way to fit us in when a mix-up occurred with our reservation. They had a classic menu with a large wine list and good quality food. We certainly were not going hungry on this adventure.

Feb. 15 Apalahicola Airport in Search of Sprague’s Pipits / Shell Point / St. Mark’s NWR / Wakulla Springs Boat Cruise
We enjoyed a leisurely breakfast at Caroline’s on the River with a great view.  Then it was off to the airport to search again for the elusive wintering Sprague’s Pipits.  This time – success!  Almost immediately we found and got fine views of this handsome bird.  We paid for our foray later in the day when we wished we had more time at St. Mark’s NWR, but alas, the pull of a rare bird called.

With our gear packed up, we headed east along Highway 98, calling out shorebirds and waders now with familiarity.  We found a Clapper Rail for Ernie as he’d missed the other, a bird he had hoped to see.  Tight for time, we grabbed a quick lunch at Subway (next time we’ll try Outz’s Too Raw Bar right at the refuge road junction…). 

St. Mark’s was delightful. While the Visitor’s Center was closed, we drove the tour route out to the lighthouse and got fine views of White Ibis our first good looks at American Alligators.  We enjoyed the open terrain with its crowds of wading birds (including a gang of Tri-colored Herons). 

We had scheduled the last cruise of the day at Wakulla Springs State Park, at 4:30 pm and we made it with few minutes to spare.  With luck we boarded their quiet electric boat with a group of docents for the park, so it was a very attentive, appreciative group. What a fabulous experience.  With soft light excellent for photography as the sun peeked through, we saw at very close range beautiful Wood Ducks, Hooded Mergansers, White Ibis and numerous herons.  Snowy Egrets had their breeding plumes and Ospreys chirped above our heads as they looked to dine.  We settled into lodgings at this historic property and gathered for our celebratory final dinner. While not up to par with our dining adventures in Apalachicola, the company was fine! 

Feb. 16 Wakulla Springs Birding and Departures
We tried to pull a few more species out of the hat this morning on what turned out to be a windy, cold walk.  Instead we enjoyed looks at American Goldfinches through the picture window over a nice hot breakfast and then headed for the airport and home.  Richard returned to St. Mark’s for a nice day and with good weather he did pick up five new species. 

Photo credits
Gibson Inn photo, www.gibsoninn.com

 

Close This Window