FOX ISLAND Hosts FOMS Students in May, 2001
A group of eighth graders from Forest Oak Middle School visited the CBF site of Fox Island in the late spring of 2001 for three days and two nights. Fox is a land of magic, an archipelago of uninhabited islands undisturbed by civilization, and minimally affected by pollution. We brought lots of energy, inquisitive students, a few meals, and good weather. We took home an increased awareness of the need for conservation and a better understanding of the inhabitants and critters and culture of the bay islands. We also took home dirty clothes and shoes and wonderful memories of our time on the bay. We had a wonderful visit, enjoyed our hosts, Colin and Captain T and look forward to sharing our experiences with you with the video diary.
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The lodge on House Island shelters our ragtag band for our two nights on the Bay. |
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Our Chesapeake Bay Foundation educators, Captain T., Colin and Captain Dallas (retired) look out over House and Big Islands of Fox. |
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Captain Dallas, a native of Smith Island, has spent a lifetime on the bay as a waterman. |
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Local watermen scrape around Fox Island for soft-shell crabs, plentiful this month. |
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The bay and marsh meet, and the bay is winning the battle of erosion. |
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We go out in the boat to experience the life of the watermen. |
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Captain T at the helm of the "Aunt Allie II" searches for good waters in which to drag our scrape. |
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"Disco jackets" are de rigueur on the "Aunt Allie II." |
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The first scrape brings up bounty, a blue crab ready to molt. |
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An osprey nests in a duck blind. Habitats don't have to be only nature made. |
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The scrape brings up many critters, large and small. We save a few for our aquarium at the lodge. |
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Treat of the day, a terrepin gets caught in our scrape. |
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Take a good look at this terrepin before we let him go. |
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This guy wants to get back to the grasses. |
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Back from our boat trip, MTV, "Marine TV" on Fox Island has better reception as we add to the aquarium from our new catch. |
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Captain T looks on as FOMS students study MTV. |
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Lots to do in the meeting room at FOX. |
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Now what is it, really? |
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We enjoy a critter scavenger hunt of discovery. |
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A seahorse, cool! |
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I'm NOT tired... |
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I didn't know they did that! |
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The "management" discusses maintaining the surrounding property. Colin, Dallas and T at work. |
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A special treat! Dallas prepares a softshell crab for dinner. |
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After our mud treatment in the marsh, we wring out muddy clothes. |
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Am I beautiful yet? |
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It's a good thing this water's warm today, since the shower's "out of order." |
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Crab pots sometimes catch croaker instead of crabs!! |
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Silver catch of the crab pots! |
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What? More fish? |
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Guess what's for dinner, tonight? |
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Crab-lite feast? |
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Colin and T grab a teachable moment. |
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But are they ready for this? |
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Examining the crab catch. |
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Five inches? Not today. No legal catch - no crabfeast this night. |
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Dinner preparations take a new turn for most of us. |
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Colin shows off his new oilskins. Ice cream man or waterman? |
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Captain T prepares the crew for oyster dredging. |
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Role reversal? Colin at the helm. |
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We don gloves to protect our delicate hands. |
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Oysters are making a come back with special care from the Bay community. |
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There are more critters here than first meet the eye. |
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T teaches about the oyster life. |
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T shows us how oysters like to live in clumps of old shells. |
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Oyster life cycle demo by T. |
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Oyster physiology lesson by Colin - the inside story. |
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Ms. Martin puts that oyster in a safe place. |
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At the end of our stay, we sadly bid farewell to Fox Island as we head back to Crisfield, MD. |
This page created on a Macintosh using PhotoPage by John A. Vink.
The future of the Chesapeake Bay depends on how each of us manages our lives
in the watershed. Our best hope is to infuse our youth with a determination
to improve the quality of caretaking of this great resource.
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