This afternoon, I and other members of the Defender's of the Coast (a non-profit watchdog organization out of New Orleans) chartered a boat from Pointe-aux-Chenes to Raccoon Island which is one of the barrier islands in the chain of Isle Dernieres south of Terrebonne Parish in Louisiana.
Life seems to take so many quick turns for me; it's one adventure after another. One great opportunity after another. And today was no exception. On the drive to the meeting point down Pointe-aux-Chenes road, I noticed a small alligator sunning himself on a piece of styrofoam. He was no longer than 2-3 feet, but he was surrounded by duck weed. I passed going 55 mph and hurridedly turned around and took a few photographs. This is my pic-of-the-day for today. He was just too cute to pass up. Then a few more miles down the road just before the turn off point, I passed up a bunch of people standing on the side of the road and I notice gators all lined up on the ground! A gator catch. So I turn around again and start snapping away. Talk about some big ones! The Naquin's caught 22 in all; and 18 yesterday! Luckily the season opened as I was beginning to see more and more alligators closer to where people fish and play in and around the bayous.
So off again to the dock were we began our journey at 2:00 p.m. The seas were pretty calm in the beginning, but soon started to ramp up as we reached deeper waters. The boat ride was very long, about 2 1/2 hours and the seas made it very hard on the butt, lol...but we were determined to reach the island. When we finally had the island in view, we noticed boom on the bay side and it was really shallow, so we took the Gulf side in. Pelicans were flying overhead from the point to about a half-mile down. They rested on the boom and the mangroves and the beach.
We were able to disembark on a sand bar that was made by the rock jetties. The captain, Mr. Anesie Verdin, put the rutter in the sand as an anchor. Roger, the founder of the group, got out first, wading in the knee-deep water to the sand bar. I only had my short shrimp boots, so it was go barefoot or do the next best thing. So, I called Roger to come back and give me a piggy-back ride, lol.... And he did! So, I didn't have to get my feet wet, lol. I already have a cold, so that was a good thing and he didn't mind. Steven, Jessica, Tanya, and Lorri followed.
When we reached the sand bar the first this that greeted us was a dead black drum. A few feet away was another one, then another. On the beach itself black drum and bull red's were scattered about all in different stages of decomposition. I headed straight for the mangroves and was greeted by the most beautiful sight...a baby pelican sitting in a nest. Then over to my right was two more nests with more babies in them. They are very late in the stages of development. These babies were maybe 5-6 weeks old, if that. Most were still all white. Then I saw a dead laughing gull... and another... and another. The same story as on Modoto Island. The gulls were scattered around like popcorn. But these were along the area where the bare sand meets the mangroves.
I continued to walk into the mangroves, being careful not to disturb any nesting pelicans with babies. I reached the beach and started to walk down. Maybe 50 feet down I found a dead dolphin. :-( It's tail was sticking out of the sand berm, like it had been there awhile, yet the tail was still intact. The body however was not. Continuing to walk down the beach, I checked pelican feathers I'd find on the sand for signs of oil. All those I found looked clean. Then I noticed something near the water's edge...it looked like a cross. I started to photograph it before I knew what it was. As I got closer, I figured out that it was part of the backbone to the dolphin which looked like a cross. I put on a glove and placed it in a pillow case I had brought with me so I could take it home. This cross I shall always carry in remembrance of all wildlife that has perished because of this oil disaster.
Time passed fast and we had to start heading back as the sun would be setting soon and we had a long way to go. The ride back was just as or more rough than going. And we could see thunder bumpers in the distance. No lightning, but rain showers. So, we decided to go through Cocodrie instead of Lake Felicity. But, it took so much longer because in the bayou you can't make any wake. Thus the three hour extension to our adventure. We did get to view some pretty scenes however in doing so. The sun was setting with boomed trawl boats and fishing camps in the foreground. When darkness fell, we spotted a coy dog or maybe it was a red fox, I'm not sure. I did get a few pictures of it, but it was dark.
We stopped at Boudreaux Canal to pick up the boat and rode back to Pointe-aux-Chenes with Mr. Verdin's boys who came to pick us up. Mr. Verdin was a great captain, very patient and kind. He knew his way around the waters really good. We were in excellent hands.
Tomorrow, I'll be doing it all over again...another charter to the barrier islands and Fourchon, Elmer's and Grand Isle and Queen Bess. It will be another long, long day! But, we're leaving much earlier this time!
~Darlene Eschete~