Spring Break in the Panhandle (Part Two)

Better late than never I always say. (C'mon...I was busy, Ok?)

When we last left our intrepid travelers they had just reached the panhandular city of their destination; Panama City, FL. The next stop was to pull into the campground and set up camp for the week. St. Andrews State Park is located on a quiet tip of land just opposite the melee of the extremely "Disneyland-esque" main portion of Panama City. Opposite, in that a body of water called the Grand Lagoon separates the glitz and gaudy from the quiet and serene. Don't think me too harsh here as I'm only pointing out the dichotomy. Your "thing" just might be tuned right in to the neon, fair rides, loud music, countless tattoo parlors, trendy eateries, and hundreds of recreating college students all experimenting with a form of perceived "adult" behavior. Years ago I might have joined in the frivolity, but not now, not this time. Panama City and its even more promiscuous cousin, Panama City Beach are areas in transition. Each is attempting to carve out a lasting identity and finds itself divided somewhat between the factions that don't mind swooping in for the quick buck and the long time residents and those with vested long term interests. In spring of 2009 it was evident that the economy had laid its suffocating hand on the neck of the construction industry as many a development had stopped dead along with many a dream crushed in the process. Money was lost by the oyster bucketful as the speculation cash supply dried up. Well, as far as the Devereauxs were concerned, we would sprinkle as much of our hard-earned "stimulus money" into the local coffers as possible; doing our part. We tend to support the Mom and Pop establishments whenever we can anyway, so it was a win-win

We found our site after check-in and began setting up as per usual; Nola and I doing mostly everything. The weather was wonderfully Floridifically warm and the breezes from both the ocean and the lagoon sides kept the air moving nicely. Bugs were practically non existent for the week and the birding was fantastic! The sugar white sands of the many beaches attract tens of thousands to them each year, with a favorite spot of many; the Lagoon. Mothers can bring their small children there, protected from the wilder waves by the man-made, bouldered "jetty." Max began filming one of his famous Youtube videos patterned after his (then) favorite movie; Life Aquatic. I helped as I could while keeping an eye open for birds. Yes, Dedra...birds...those flying things honey. She spent a great deal of time on the white sand working on her tan soaking up the sun, so she was good; birds or no birds. The shelling at St. Andrews is pretty scarce so finding anything unique was particularly hard, however the quality of the small available varieties is still wonderful. One can find zillions of really cool gastropods, bi-valves, Florida cones, Olives, scallops, and the typical broken sand dollars. This year hundreds of dead sea urchins littered the waterline along with the occasional expired pufferfish. Fishermen, fisherwomen and fisherkids stood steadfast on the jetty wall staring at their lines in hopes of landing some bizzare sea creature. (Well, probably not, but that's what I would want if I was out there amongst them). Just off this side of the park, across St. Andrew Bay lies Shell Island. It's a place that I have not gone as yet and perhaps I will some day, but every time I hear about it and its desolation (no shade whatsoever) I think that I'd best be better prepared for that sort of excursion before paying the money to be marooned and toasted. if you are curious, click on the link HERE to learn more about how to get there. You'd think that there'd be better shelling on "Shell Island" but that's not what I hear, so if you want to save your money for another tee shirt or bundle of firewood, that's probably your best bet.

The waves along the ocean (gulf-side) are larger and surfers are seen attempting to make a go of it. Personally, not being a surfer myself and not playing one on TV either, but having a bit more than half a brain: I can tell you this ain't no Tamarindo, Costa Rica. It hardly looked worth all the paddling it took to get out there if you ask me...but then again the surfers probably would say the same of chasing a Loggerhead Shrike across a crowded parking lot. Night time on the beaches is a blast. We always take our high-powered spotlights along to find washed-up weirdness on the beach. Ghost crabs dash in and out of the surf and the occasional unidentified creature rolls itself up and out of the water to be discovered. The roar of the waves in the pitch black is slightly unsettling and wildly exciting too. Try it the next time you are camping near the ocean...it's exhilarating...your kids will go nuts too.

So, I'm getting around to the birding part of this blog entry now, so thanks for sticking with me. It must be said straight away that of the 65 species I recorded while in the Panama City area, I picked up just 3 new life birds for my lifelist; Black Skimmer, the Eurasian Collared Dove and the magnificent Summer Tanager. Gulls were by far the most prevailant species in the area with egrets a close second as many were in breeding plumage and nesting nearby in specialized island colonies on inland waters. There was this one (idiot) guy who decided that he was such an amazing wildlife photographer that he parked his giant pickup on the side of the road, got out all his expensive camera gear, rolled up his pant legs (not sure why he bothered) and waded out into potentially alligator-infested waters up to his armpits within a good spit of the protected nesting Great Egrets to get a "better shot." He must have had some sort of Marlin Perkins complex to be sure. I took photos of him while I bitched (to absolutely no one nearby) as to what a moron I felt he was...grrrrr...but I felt better anyway. I went back to the campsite to watch the deadfall behind the camper for a while. It had become a bit of a mecca for several interesting species of ground-feeding birds since I "seeded" the area just a bit with Kaytee. Brown Thrashers, Northern Cardinals, Bluejays, red-Bellied Woodpeckers and the cutest pair of eastern Towhees hopped and skipped amongst each other pecking at my free-will offering. The most interesting bird to visit was the Red-headed Woodpecker. It would take a sunflower seed and wedge it into a crevice of the deadfall before pounding it into submission in search of the soft inner flesh.

One of the more spectacular sightings was a small tree full of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks that had decided to take a break near the boat landing. They dotted the branches with their crimson black and white feathers like ornaments. Each afternoon when the fishermen would come back to the landing, the Brown Pelicans would greet them. Their are signs clearly posting that it is not a good idea to feed them, however as we all know; signs be damned...that's for other people to read. At least their persistant mealtime begging and squawking was a good opportunity for a photo or two. Northern Mockingbirds could be heard and seen in multiple locations. They are the south's version of robins. Plus, while the Blue Grosbeak sighting was not my first, I was able to take a better photo this time and felt privileged to do so. As a matter of fact, even though my digital camera is not a "pro" model, I still highly enjoy taking images of birds...LOTS of them...just ask my family.

Then there was the hunt for the elusive alligator. It seemed that the majority of casual vacationer was far more interested in spotting a reptile than would ever get a kick out of a Great Blue Heron. I would be sitting on my bike seat on the side of the road staring through the brush at a Little Green and a car would stop to ask me if it was an alligator I was looking at. When I turned to tell them no it was a such and such bird, they would drive away before I could get it out of my mouth. Pity...they missed the unappreciated beauty and splendor of the Boat-tailed Grackle for peetey-sake. Sure I saw the stupid alligator...even got a snap-shot of 'em too, but c'mon...you seen one, you seen 'em all right? I even tried crabbing. Nola and I tied some chum-flavored chicken parts onto the floor of two Internet-purchased cages and sat them on the bottom of the bay at night. The only large crabs we caught were Spider crabs. Arguably, thee most hideous looking creatures God ever laughingly decided to place upon this earth. But creepingly weird enough to pick up with your bare hands. Watch it however, they are sharp little buggers with their armored-spiky shells

So the moral of this two-part story is: Go Camping. Plain and simple eh? You truly need to get outdoors and "rough it" a bit, turning off the TV and walking in the bushes for a hike to get the feel of really living. If you try it and don't necessarily like it, fine; you'll at least know what you are missing when you open up the mini-fridge for a San Pelegrino before you step into the hot tub...the rest of us will be just fine out there...catching real crabs. See ya' later alligator!

PS: When in Panama City, try Capt. Anderson's and Billy's Oyster Bar...you'll thank me.

Spring Break in the Panhandle (part one)

There’s nothing more satisfyingly recharging for a northerner, than to reverse migrate in the early spring. Leaving the frozen tundra of the upper Midwest for the milder, sunnier climes of the south, if even for a week, can drive out the long winter chill from your body faster than a frozen penguin on a tanning bed. That’s why, with extreme anticipation, the family and I set out for Panama City just ahead of Easter 2009. We’re campers by nature (and fiscal leaning) so the days of preparation specific to making that happen, are akin to readying the famed Lewis and Clark expedition. In the “old days” BK (before kids) my wife and I could throw a few things in a common suitcase, pack the nylon tent and chairs into the trunk, making sure to bring along a good novel or two, and off we would trundle. Not anymore. “Dad, can the power inverter handle both the DVD player AND the X-Box 360?” and “I know I have a lot of clothes and shoes, but that’s OK, there may be some cute boys…” are common questions and statements from today’s teen-travelers. Gone are the simpler days of butterfly nets and Golden books that used to entertain them for countless hours. Here now are electronic everythings, designed to fill every waking (and sleeping with your IPod earbuds in) hour from sun-up to sun-down. But it could be much worse I guess; they could have declined to go along at all. So I count my blessings as I peek under the Honda Odyssey’s undercarriage, brow furrowing, trying to gauge the narrowing distance to the road surface. Our ultimate destination lay 1100 miles ahead but the tank was full of $ 2.05/gal gas (instead of last spring’s $3.59). The oil and filter were both freshly changed; the washer fluid reservoir filled, ample snacks and hot coffee for the passengers gave every indication that we were READY. Just one more trip back to the locked house as we attempt to leave the driveway, one more quick potty stop before we turn determinedly southward, gleefully leaving Milwaukee in the rearview mirror.

“Remember those days when driving around Chicago were as tedious as giving birth to a piano bench?” I remarked to my sleeping wife. “God bless the inventors of IPASS open road tolling,” I muse as the van breezes along the freeway bypass underneath the overhead scanners. Debit, debit, debit my butt off, you State of Illinois you; at least I don’t have to stop in your flat, Bear-loving, excuse of a state…ahem,…sorry.

The overnight at the Columbus, Indiana Days Inn was a welcome respite after pounding down the highway in the darkness. Those flip-over, make-em’ yourself, Belgian waffles at the complimentary breakfast bar make a great eye-opener too. Next stop would be Pelham, Alabama and the Oak Mountain State Park some 450 miles down the road. We finally arrived at around 6 PM after some pretty scary moments dodging tornadoes in Tennessee and big hail in Kentucky. I had just completed the ringmaster duties (sans red suit and cane) related to the circus of Jayco camper set-up, when I noticed the Purple Martin gourd colony in the turn-around near the lake. The sun was just starting to think about evening retirement so the birds had mostly taken their places in the nest openings. The greater Milwaukee area has a consortium of birding enthusiasts who are actively working towards increasing the likelihood that martins will find the area to their liking. HERE is a link to their Blog, outlining their commendable efforts. A curious southern drawl caught my ear and I turned my head towards the sound. Waddling slowly from a canvas compound set back in the woods ahead of me, ambled an enormous, t-shirt-bellied, NASCAR hat sporting, 100% pure, Alabaman specimen. He was yelling back over at his shoulder to a sleight, mouse brown-haired waif of a woman in sandals, that “you ain’t gonna’ touch my beer, you know? I’ll be back and I wanna’ see it all still there!” A White-throated Sparrow began singing its warbled song as the man approached a beat-to-death, rust brown Chevy Cavalier and pried open the driver’s door. I know my mouth was hanging slightly open as I witnessed the man turn his body, massive butt first into the now open car door, and proceed to wiggle back and forth as he levered his oil-stained, jeans-covered fanny into the void. “Now that’s something you don’t see everyday.” I thought as I couldn’t tear my eyes from the unbelievable scene. Like a front-end loader dumping a boulder into a baby buggy, the man eventually settled his largess onto the godforsaken front seat of the Chevy, then started working on swinging his tree-stump legs around into the driver’s well. I had seen enough of the logistical nightmare for one day, so I backed away from the slow-motion train wreck, to look for more birds.

The next day, some early morning birding yielded some nice sightings. The list of 30 compiled while there, is as follows: Great-crested Flycatcher, Ovenbird, White-throated Sparrow, Northern Cardinal, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Hairy Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Eastern Towhee, Eastern Phoebe, Eastern Towhee, Chipping Sparrow, American Robin, Northern Mockingbird, Whip-poor-will, American Crow, Tufted Titmouse, Brown Thrasher, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Purple Martin, Chimney Swift, Yellow-rumped Warbler, Black-capped Chickadee, White-breasted Nuthatch, Carolina Wren, Eastern Bluebird, Blue Jay, Canada Goose, Cedar Waxwing, Red-eyed Vireo, Red-headed Woodpecker, and Brown-headed Cowbird. After we ate, we all packed up the site and headed for the highway once more.

You know how it is when you are on your way “to” your destination VS coming back “from” it? Well, the next 6 hours in the car flew by as the temperatures rose outside according to the proximity to the Gulf of Mexico. Sorties of Brown Pelicans could be seen soaring high in the sky from out of the car windows, as the swaying pine tree boughs slowly gave way to the bristling palm fronds. Paradise at last, was in reach. The cities of Panama City and Panama City Beach are located along the gulf between Pensacola on the west and Tallahassee on the east.

NOTE: Stay tuned to this blog for the second installment of Spring Break in the Panhandle…