[^OOE VD Outdoors SSCiiDbON Georgia August 1975 . """''* -T* V George Busbee Governor Joe D. Tanner Commissioner George T. Bagby Deputy Commissioner BOARD OF NATURAL RESOURCES Leonard E. Foote Chairman Waleska-- State at Large Donald J. Carter Gainesville--9th District Mary Bailey Izard Atlanta-- 5th District Wade H. Coleman Vice Chairman Valdosta-- State at Large George P. Dillard Decatur--4th District Lloyd L. Summer, Jr. Rome-- 7th District Leo T. Barber, Jr. Secretary Moultrie-- 2nd District Dr. Robert A. Collins, Jr. Americus-- 3rd District J. Wimbric Walker McRae-- 8th District James Darby Vidalia-- 1st District Leonard Bassford Augusta-- 10th District Coastal District James A. Mankin Griffin--6th District James D. Cone Decatur-- State at Large A. Calhoun Todd, Jr. -- Macon State at Large DIVISION DIRECTORS Earth and Water Division Sam M. Pickering, Jr., Director Parks and Historic Sites Division Henry D. Struble, Director Environmental Protection Division J. Leonard Ledbetter, Director Office of Planning and Research Chuck Parrish, Director Public Relations and Information David Cranshaw, Director Game and Fish Division Jack Crockford, Director Office of Administrative Services James H. Pittman, Director OutdOOrS \t) Georgia August 1975 Volume 4 Number 8 FEATURES SHARKS! 2 by Joe Cullens Will-A-Way 7 by Connie Steele Revolution in Georgia: A Chronology 10 by Billy Townsend Close-Up Photography 13 by Bob Busby Oysters 20 by Jingle Davis A Certain Way With Wood 24 by Bill Morehead and Jim Couch A Terminal Addiction 26 by Bill Morehead PHOTOGRAPHIC FEATURE The Sand and the Sea and the Sky 16 by Bill Morehead and Jim Couch REGULAR DEPARTMENTS Letters to the Editor 30 Book Reviews 32 Coming Next Month 33 FRONT COVER: Beach scene on St. Simons Island. Photo by Jim Couch. BACK COVER: Sandpipers carved by Jim White. Photo by Jim Couch. MAGAZINE STAFF Phone 656-3530 David Cranshaw .... Biil Morehead Managing Editor Liz Carmichael Jones . . . Art Director Aaron Pass Wildlife Editor Joe Cullens Staff Writer Dick Davis Staff Writer Rebecca N. Marshall . . . Staff Writer Publisher Jose Vinas Artist Bob Busby Photo Editor Edward Brock . . . Staff Photographer Cathy Cardarelli . . Staff Photographer Jim Couch Staff Photogapher Priscilla C. Powell . Circulation Manager Outdoors in Georgia is the official monthly magazine of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, published at the Department's offices, Room 713, 270 Washington Street, Atlanta, Georgia 30334. No advertising accepted. Subscriptions are $3 for one year or $6 for three years. Printed by Williams Printing Company, Atlanta, Georgia. Articles and photographs may be reprinted when proper credit given. Contributions are welcome, but the editors assume no responsibility or liability for loss or damage of articles, photographs, or illustrations. Second-class postage paid at Atlanta, Georgia. 35,000 copies printed at an approximate cost of $14,500. The Department of Natural Resources is an Equal Opportunity employer, and employs without regard to race, creed, color, sex, age, or national origin. The Revolution Two hundred years ago the colony of Geor- -- gia was in turmoil. In Savannah citizens had committed the unthinkable they spiked the cannons to be used in the King's birthday cele- bration and threw them off the bluffs. What was happening? For 32 years Georgia had been little more than a coastal enclave, bordered on the north by South Carolina, on the south by savage -- Florida (just emerging as a colony); on the east by the beloved Atlantic Ocean the road to "home" in England; and on the west by 2,000 miles of foreboding Indian territories. The youngest of the 13 colonies, Georgia's civic heart pulsated in London, not in the new country. Citizens were divided into three groups: those caught up by the radicalism of the older colonies; those whose hearts and minds could never accept the thought of rupturing the ties attaching Georgia to England; and per- -- -- haps the largest group those who were igno- rant or uncaring about the whole thing. The revolutionary history of Georgia and the South is somehow lost in the national presentations of textbooks and TV. The war was not just an argument between Old and New Eng- land. The Commanding General of the Revolu- tionary Armies was a southerner, the turning point of the war was in the South, and the crushing defeat of Cornwallis was a southern event. For those reasons we are publishing a chro- nology of events in Georgia (see page 10). Billy Townsend, of our Parks Interpretation group, and the Georgia Historical Commission have developed this chronology. In following issues we will carry articles featuring the events of two hundred years ago. These will deal with people, events, and the nature of that area called Georgia, described by Sir Robert Montgomery as "The Most Delightful Country of the Universe." Parents, save this chronology for your chil- dren. It will become very important to them -- during the next school year. And while you are saving it, read it it tells the unique story of Georgia. IJLiAa LA (Z^/kfiLuJl August 1975 by Joe Cullens Photography by the Author The mid-morning sun shone through haze-ridden skies gilding a deceptively cool reflection off the calm waters of St. Andrews Sound. A slight northeasterly breeze brought the warm salt air laden with the familiar smells of the Atlantic. The small boat bobbed on the gentle swell, straining against the anchor holding her fast against the incom- ing tide. Beneath that fragile hull of glistening white fiberglass lay eighty feet of murky green . . . "eighty Outdoors ip Georgia foot hole" . . . home to one of the most underestimated gamefish in the A world, the shark. looping toss ended in a spash as bait, hook, leader and line dribbled out, buoyed by a toy balloon to avoid fouling A and assure a straight descent. sec- ond splash followed moments later when the reel was taken out of free- spool and a sharp tug popped the fragile plastic balloon ... the vigil had started. Scarcely fifteen minutes had passed before the tell-tale bobbing of A the stiff rod began. Devonian left- over had taken the bait. Grabbing the big boat rod from its holder, the 130-lb. test braided dacron was given a feel to see if the fish was there. She was . . . and four or five good hard jolts drove home the barb of the 16-ought hook. The big lemon turned and began her run, obviously vexed at the au- dacity of a mere piece of cut bonita seemingly "biting back" in plaintive revenge for being eaten. 100, 200, 300 yards . . . would she stop? The question flashed in the minds of the anxious fishermen. Tightening the drag to within a hair of capacity proved to be the resistance needed to halt her run. Now if only her head could be turned, the arduous task of hauling a couple of hundred pounds of deadly weapon back to the boat could begin. Pump and reel, pump and reel . . . the ceaseless rhythm strains muscles from head to toe; sweat pops out in beads big as dimes, as limber arms stiffen in knotted stress. With feet braced against the deck, back arched against the fighting chair, a thirty minute duel has begun. "She's shaking her head. Must have popped her in the gills," says Charles Marshall through sternly gritted teeth. A couple of yards at a time, the big fish is wound slowly toward the boat. "I think she's comin' up," mutters Charlie. Sure enough, a scant 30 feet behind the boat glimmers the link of galvanized pipe used for a sinker, and, a few feet beyond, a flash of yellowish-white rolls in the chop, revealing a gray-green dorsal fin. By now Charlie is on his feet with the butt of the big rod firmly planted in the cup of the fighting belt around his waist. Just a few more agonizing pulls and it'll all be over . . . Carefully he eases the fish toward the left side of the boat, as the brass swiveled leader chunks to a stop at the tip of the rod. Grabbing the leader in one hand, Charlie's fishing buddy Jay Childers readies the 30 calibre rifle and pumps a couple of well-placed shots into the top of the big lemon's head. Thrashing wildly, the big fish makes a short run under the boat, soaking its occupants with a flop of her tail. Pump and reel, pump and reel: the drama's not yet over, as again the angered shark buzzes off several yards of stout line against the driving pressure of a drag tightened to the limit. "Whooee! I've never seen a lemon act like that," chortles Jay, obviously surprised, as he wipes some of the seawater from his face. "She's a real bugger!" Once more the leader appears, and with a firm grasp is brought tight against a clinched palm. One more shot and the shark is finished. The leader is detached, the shark gaffed and pulled to the front of the boat, where the end of the leader is secured after a careful inspection to insure that the hook is still well in place. A chill ripples up the spine when that gaping, toothy mouth opens revealing its deadly armament. Four or five rows of grizzly dentures can be counted easily, with nine or ten more imbedded in the soft white flesh behind. Icthyologists estimate that a shark may lose and replace as many as 24,000 teeth in a ten- year period. Literally all teeth, a shark's sandpaper hide also is covered with thousands of dentile scales, miniature versions of the dentition in his mouth: he can slice you like a band- saw. In fact, many so-called shark bites are actually the rasping result of a brush against the beast's skin. It's a good idea to slip on a pair of leather gloves when handling them. Sharks get and deserve a great deal of respect from those who deal with them, and the primordial fear that strikes on sight of one of these deadly living torpedoes is amplified in the terrifyingly awesome sight of A a feeding frenzy. shark is a grue- Au^ust 1975 -- The fight now over, this big lemon shark is hand-lined to the boat. Note that the tiller cable leader has a vinyl plastic coating. This not only makes the leader easier to handle but easier on the hands. While the big fish may seem docile at this point, don't take any chances, jor sharks don't give up easily. some eating machine . . . tearing out ten-pound hunks of flesh with a bone-crushing bite of 36,000 pounds per square inch! Virtually unchanged in nearly a third of a billion years, the shark is hideous testimony to an almost per- fect biological adaptation. Unlike most fish, the shark and his relatives, the skates and rays, have cartilage for a skeleton rather than bones. Though most of the modern-day members of the family are relatively modest in size, fossil teeth indicate that prehistoric members of the clan approached a possible length of 60 feet and tipped the scales at 15 tons! How'd you like to hook one like that on 30-pound test? "Ol Sa' nouth" still claims the f op two positions in the fish size category, with the mammoth whale shark (Rhincodon typus) and its cousin t... ' : "" shark (Cetorhinus maximus). But th leviathans feed almost exclusively on plankton and small . hes. The "requiem sharks" are prob- ably most noted for their nasty tem- perament, though all sharks are com- pletely unpredictable, e s p e c i a 1 ly when encountered as loners. There are at least nine species that rank as maneaters, though it is highly doubtful that any of these fish has a par- 1' ticular taste for "people meat. The great white shark (Carcharodon carcharais), lemon (Negaprion brevirostris) great hammerhead (Sphyrna mokarran), bull (Carcharhinus leucas), whitetip (Carcharhinus longimanus), blue (Prionace glauca), tiger (Galeocerdo cuvieri), dusky (Carcharhinus obscurus), and mako (hunts oxyrinchus) are pretty much proven as real nasties by either visual or physical evidence (teeth in wounds). Additionally there are probably no less than three other species that rank in the "formidable" category. It just isn't good policy -- or intelligence, for that matter to push your luck with any of them. 1 guess those of us who have fished with any success in the coastal waters have at one time or another caught a shark. But if you missed the action somewhere along the line, then you really owe it to yourself to give it a try. But prepare yourself well, for sharks are anything but easy to catch. Shark fishing has grown from a sport popular among a few "locals" to one involving fishermen from coast to coast. On the Georgia coast alone, it is estimated that avid shark fisher- men number in the hundreds. The fish begin biting in late April and early May, with the best fishing coming toward the end of May. Though a few are caught year-round, the good fishing ends in September. Primarily a saltwater fish, the shark can be found along most any coastal region. The Georgia coast has proved itself an excellent shark fishing ground. Sharks are scavengers and prowl ceaselessly in search of food, near dropoffs, holes, underwater ledges, and the mouths of rivers and streams which empty into the ocean. By nature they prey upon the weak and dying members of their aquatic universe, and for this reason a good bloody bait is essential. Cut bonita (especially the heads) is an excellent bait, as are jack cravalle and blue runners. Incidentally, cut bait of this type tends to be soft, especially after it has been frozen and thawed. It is a good inexpensive hint to wrap a few yards of gauze bandage around your bait to help keep it together. This will often save you the misery of baiting and rebaiting hooks. Sharks are not "nibblers," but if your bait has softened and separates from the hook you've got a problem. A good stout boat rod is essential, as well as a large saltwater game reel with no less than 550 yards of Outdoors ip Georgia A two-pound chunk of cut bonita makes an excellent shark bait. This piece was cut from the fish's mid-section, just fore and aft of the dorsal fin. Observe caution when handling the big tuna hooks, since the idea is to hook bait and not hand. 80- or 130-pound test braided dacron line. Another suggestion is to constantly check your line for signs of wear. It isn't any fun to spend 30 or 40 minutes fishing one of these brutes and have your line separate just as you get him to the boat. Wire leaders are a necessity, since a shark's teeth make quick work of even the strongest monofilament. Plain old tiller cable is probably your best bet. It is limber, strong (920-lb. test) and relatively light. You will need no more than 30 feet to make a good strong leader, with 18 feet an absolute minimum. By the way, most tiller cable comes with a vinyl plastic coating which makes it easier to handle and a lot safer. Sinkers are really up to the in- dividual, but an ingenious device is a 10-inch length of galvanized steel pipe. You can thread both ends and bore a hole in the caps, and when screwed in place, this little beggar will slide easily over the length of the leader. If more weight is desired, you can easily add shot to the cylin- der. Big, stout hooks are a must. Some shark fishermen prefer a straightshank hook, but a 14 or 16 ought tuna hook is ideal since it has a better barb structure and will set better. Now, a shark's mouth is pretty tough, so you'll have to really tug more than just a few times. A good guideline to remember is keep setting the hook while the fish is moving away. Yank him as hard as you can, as many times as you can. Generally, it's a pretty good idea to keep setting the hook the entire time that the fish is in play. You just can't be too careful when these beasts start work- ing their powerful jaws and shaking their heads: even a 16 ought hook can be tossed like a wad of chewing tobacco. Sharks are found at all depths and are caught from the beaches and piers as well as from boats; but boat fishing is really the best way. Georgia's coast is fairly shallow, so you don't have to worry about having a big off-shore craft, since you probably won't need to go out more than a couple of miles. Around Brunswick there are several good "shark holes". The fishing is good off the north end of Jekyll Island (there's a pier). The south end of Jekyll beach is also a good spot to try your luck. The "eighty foot hole" in St. Andrews Sound is probably the best, with the mouth of the Hampton River ranking a close second. It isn't absolutely essential, but it sure takes a bit of the worry out of handling a shark if you take along a shotgun or large calibre rifle. ( By the way, if you're a record hunter, international regulations prohibit the use of a weapon to subdue a world record, so you'd better have a good gaff along. ) Buckshot or one-ounce slugs make pretty quick work of these feisty devils once you've gotten them -- to the boat. But take care in the melee of excitement you could find yourself in for a long swim, should you accidentally shoot a hole in your boat. It has happened and it isn't funny. If you're going to fish from a pier, it is better to have one of the larger reels, like a 14 ought. You don't have much room to maneuver, and the fish is going to take a lot of line when he runs. Also, should he prove to be a really big one, he could easily strip your reel and leave you stand- ing in the lurch, with no way to follow him. Basically, this is why beach or boat fishing is preferred. Not only that, but the local gendarmery tend to frown on the use of rifles to subdue the fish once you've gotten him in. If you're out to boat really big sharks with any consistency, though, use a boat. The big ones like the deeper water, and for brute strength August 1975 Charles Marshall can smile now, but you should have seen his face earlier in the day, when this nine-foot lemon shark was on the other end of that stout boat rod. Incidentally, this fish measured nine feet eight and three quarter inches, and weighed a mere 297 pounds! and power, the tussle of your life awaits with a nine foot bull, dusky, or hammerhead. The most commonly caught spe- cies are the lemon, sandbar, and bull. Occasionally a hammerhead is caught, along with a few small blacktips. The pelagic sharks like the mako are very rare, though a good size mako was recently taken near Savannah. If you're after one of these denizens then you'll have to get out pretty far, perhaps as far as the Gulfstream, 70 to 80 miles offshore. Sport? No question about it. There's something exciting in the challenge of boating a fish considerably bigger than yourself, and a heck of a lot stronger. Like any big gamefish, the shark must simply be worn down before he wears you down. Constant pressure is the key. Keep that line tight and keep pulling. And though your arms may cramp from the strain and you may think you'll never get him in, it's just a matter of pacing yourself to eventual victory. Remember he's got 350,000,000 years of will-to-live behind him, but you've got a brain that's more than just an extension of your spinal cord. Outwit him and he's yours . . . falter for a second in your resolve and he's # gone. Outdoors it? Georgia Will-A-Way by Connie Steele Photography by Cathy Cardarelli How can a blind man find his way around in an ordinary state park? How can a child with cerebral palsy swim in an average lake? How can a paraplegic hike a nature trail, or make it from his car to a fishing pier, through the sand and stairs that block his way? Georgia has developed a remarkable answer to all these questions: Will-A-Way State Park for the disabled and their families. This park within a park, nestled on 350 acres within Fort Yargo State Park, is one mile south of Winder on Highway 81. Just inside Will-A-Way stands the visitor center, looking like a giant Japanese parasol plunged handle first into a lily-pad of cement, with plexi- glas instead of paper stretching be- tween its redwood ribs. Around the edge of the pad, a concession stand, shower room, and storage rooms al- ternate with open spaces which ex- pose a view of the beach beyond. Clustered around the visitor center are a picnic area, playground, rental A cottages, and nature trail. fishing bridge spans the lake that separates the day-use section of the camp- ground and the Group Ci- . re- served for organizations renting on a short term basis. -- The beach and lake where chil<- dren and adults can boat, catch crap- pie, or just carry home gritty, white -- sand in their bathing suits is the prize experience for most campers. For one man, paralyzed from the waist down in a diving accident at 1 5, it's hard to put into words: "I hadn't been able to cope with the hassle of trying to get to and from the water until four years ago, when they opened Will-A-Way. "But here, without ever leaving my wheelchair, I can move on a August 1975 hard surface all the way from my parked car, around the beach, and onto an entry pad in the lake. Once I'm out about chest deep, I can lean forward, stretch away from the wheelchair and start stroking. It's really fantastic." Another swimmer is a 9-year-old with cerebral palsy. She can neither walk nor talk, but in the water her muscles somehow relax, and she has more body control. "One look at her face tells it all," says her counselor. "In the water she can kick and move her arms. It's really wonderful to see her progress. She's gained enough body awareness that now, for the first time, she's able to do exercises out of the water. "Crawling around on a gym mat like a baby may not seem like much to some people, but to us that's suc- cess." Siothia Longmire, director of the -- park, says, "We like to think we're sort of an interim experience mid- way between the totally protected world that disabled people start in, and the world they're aiming for: full assimilation into the community. "You know, there's nothing like outdoor recreation. Most of us take it for granted. But, too often, handicapped people have been barred by their own limitations. "When a person has a disability, he may be self-conscious. And that takes a long time to get over. It isn't easy to try new things when you may be stared at by people who think you're strange, or even worse, fun- ny," Longmire points out. "But here, the physically or men- tally limited have a place to experi- -- ence the oui-oi-doors away from -- si- ' 'taring stares with all the equip- ment tnc_, "d Ajid acceptance and "derstanding are part of the equip- ment At first glance the park looks like any othei 1 ept state recreation area It's only as , ! ook closer and lean, nore that you ic-iize it's a one- of-a-ki Timperound in Georgia, and possibly - - ie world. "We've had , ; F;cial visitors from as far away as - s and, Germany, Franc, Russia, auJ Czechoslo- vakia," the director says. New York and California, which have the reputation of leading the field in innovative park programs, have sent their experts to the park to see what they can adapt for their programs. What these professionals come to see is an upbeat, indoor-outdoor melange of roughing it gently. They discover that there are no steps or steep slopes at Will-A-Way. They find paved, hard-surface routes leading from the entrance of the park to every corner of the park. They examine extra wide double-action swinging doors that provide easy entry and exit for all buildings; bathhouse showers with grab bars, portable shower heads and mobile wooden chairs; unusual construction materials used in the paths leading from the outside trail into the cabins and cottages. "This outside trail is made of asphalt and links every part of the park. Each building has an entrance made of terra-cotta tile that sweeps right inside, creating an inner threshold that butts smoothly into the brushed cement flooring. It's that -- change in texture each giving off a -- different sound that tells a blind person exactly where he is," Longmire explains. The air-conditioned cottages look like a plush way to camp. The ap- pliances and countertops in the modern kitchens seem low compared to those at home; low enough to be comfortably reached by a person in a A wheelchair. braille strip is placed inside the cupboards, on stove controls, or anywhere else a blind person might need instructions. "When we say our three cottages here in the day-use camp are completely furnished, we mean completely," Longmire says. "We pro- vide logs for the fire, the match to light it, and will even strike the match if any of our campers needs us to. "For $14 a day, we'll provide everything but food. I guess we kinda spoil our people, but then," the director shrugs, "that's why we're here." The day-use area is separated from the Group Camp site both physically, by the lake which divides the park into two sections, and phil- osophically: the Group Camp is re- stricted solely to organizations working with the handicapped. Recognizing the therapeutic and rehabilitative possibilities in outdoor recreation, such groups rent an entire section of the Group Camp, including campers' cabins, yellow plexiglas tepee-style activity "tents," and use of the dining hall and program buildings. Outdoors \t) Georgia Total freedom to map out recrea- tional and therapeutic programs for their members without fear of intru- sion by outsiders is guaranteed. As many as four separate groups can camp at the same time, and probably none will meet except at meal time in the dining hall. With proper coordination of group activity, even with a capacity crowd of 250 campers and staff, it's possible for retarded children to be swimming in the 30 x 60 foot swimming pool while blind kids play on the ballfield, severely multi-handi- capped youngsters work on arts and crafts projects, and a senior citizens' group meets at the boat dock. And none of the groups will cross paths. A member of a Golden Age Club staying at the camp described her experience at Will-A-Way: "We've spent a week here and gone from morning meditation to bedtime with so many choices of things to do it's made Las Vegas look pale. "Our gang staged a carnival with 14 different games in the open-air pavilion. We've played putt-putt golf and worked on painting and needlework. But sailing on the lake has got to be my favorite sport. "In the pontoon boats, with the awning overhead to keep the sun off, and seats on the flat deck, it's all pleasure and not much work. The exercise has been good for us, too. At home we've been accused of get- ting on our behinds in front of the TV and forgetting the off button. But there's no chance of that here," she says. "At Will-A-Way, there is no TV." One senior citizen from Atlanta, who thought her days of enjoying more than just a walk around the block had ended, commented, "Just having the paved paths means we can go anywhere, and do anything, without stumbling around in the rocks and leaves. That one thing alone makes it possible for us to hike on the nature trail." Along the half-mile nature trail, there are 1 8 signs in both braille and print. This trail guide suggests that hikers "listen for tree frogs or spring peepers," "smell and feel the damp coolness," and "watch for fence lizards sunning themselves, and garden spiders spinning webs." After meandering through the woods, the trail circles around the bottomland, recrosses a slow-moving creek, and ends up where it began, behind the beach and lake. Almost half of Georgia's population lives within a two-hour drive of Will-A-Way. Slices of North Carolina, Tennessee, and Alabama are within 150 miles and make the camp a regional center. In the summer, the day-use area is a magnet for folks who live "just down the road." One of the areas they use most is the playground. All the ordinary slides, sandboxes, crawl-throughs, and climb-ons are here. But there are also shuffleboard and other game courts, horseshoes, carpet golf, and archery. And it's not unusual- to see paraplegics tossing horseshoes, or senior citizens com- peting at carpet golf, or a blind teen- ager shooting archery. "Many of our kids are legally blind but can catch glimpses of gray blurs," says one counselor. "We call out instructions and hope their shots are somewhere near the bullseye. Of course, we get mighty close to the target, just in case. "It's the same with golf. At first, we help them control the club, then, we turn them loose. Nobody's perfect, you know. With some practice --and who doesn't curve a few wild -- shots our kids can do well enough to feel like a budding Jack Nicklaus." One camper summed up his experience at Will-A-Way when he said, "It's that feeling that we come for. Even if it's just for the afternoon, it's good to feel like other folks, do- # ing all the things they do." August 1975 REVOLUTION IN GEORGIA: A CHRONOLOGY by Billy Townsend Art by Liz Carmichael Jones Coat-of-Arms of King George III 17 7 5 On May 10 news of the battles of -- Lexington and Concord which had been fought in Massachusetts on -- April 19 reached Georgia. The ?xt night patriotic members of what became the Council of Safety broke open the royal powder magazine in Savannah. Ac ording to legend, they sent some of this powder to Boston, and it was used at Bunker Hill. In : the patriotic fever con- tinued to climb. On June 1, then Royal Governor Wright ordered a celebration of the King's birthday, but Savannah patriots spiked the battery of cannon to be used in the salute, then threw them off the bluff. Liberty poles were erected to show defiance, and Tories were tarred and feathered in Savannah and Augusta. Although Georgia was not represented at the First Continental Congress, the Patriots did meet. They elected John Houston, Archibald Bulloch, Dr. John J. Zubly, Noble Wimberly Jones, and Lyman Hall to the Second Continental Congress. The Provincial Congress declared that Georgia was on equal footing with the Continental Association in agreeing not to import British goods. On July 10 a British ship arrived at Tybee, carrying 13,000 pounds of powder and other items for the garrison and for Indian trade. Georgia at this time was thinly inhabited along the coast and up the Savannah River, and this 30- to 60-mile wide strip of land was highly vulnerable to attack by raiding parties. So the Patriots seized the powder. 17 7 6 The Council of Safety ordered the arrest of Governor James Wright and his council. They were placed under parole and forbidden to leave Savannah, but on Feb. 1 1 they fled to the British ships at Cockspur Island. This left Georgia almost completely controlled by the Patriots. 10 Outdoors it? Georgia British ships, forced by Patriot cannons to remain below Savannah, were short of supplies. Several boats loaded with rice were being held in port by non-importation agreements, and these became a prime target for the British. After skirmishes on land and sea, the British seized 1600 barrels of rice and sailed away. There were few casualties in these actions: the fighting was still a "family" affair, and the British were not yet considered a hostile enemy to be ex- terminated. The provincial congress consoli- dated its spreading power, elected Archibald Bulloch governor, adopted a constitution, and started preparing defenses. On July 4 Lyman Hall, Button Gwinnett, and George Walton signed the Declara- tion of Independence. On Aug. 10 the Declaration was publicly read on Savannah's Johnson Square beneath the liberty pole. British-held East Florida became a haven for Loyalists (Tories), and it offered a strong base for raids on Georgia. Plundering by guerillas and by Florida Rangers led to an or- ganized expendition to capture Florida. This failed because of sickness, lack of leadership and transport, and lack of cooperation between military and civilian leadership. 17 7 7 The Patriots were firmly in control of the government which enacted the Constitution of 1777 and set up the first eight counties. Seven counties grew from parishes or combinations of parishes while the eighth, Wilkes, was an original county. On Feb. 7 Florida Rangers, led by Lt. Col. Thomas Brown, and some British regulars and Indian allies, took Fort Mcintosh on the Satilla River; they killed 4, wounded 6. and captured 68 Americans. An expedition of more than 500 men invaded Florida. On May 20 the Treaty of DeWitt's Corner ended the Cherokee war against the Patriots, but the same day Col. Samuel Elbert's contingent of the Florida invasion was forced to turn back when the British surprised the Patriots at Thomas Creek in the Revolution's southernmost battle. 17 7 8 East Florida continued to be the major trouble spot for Georgians. The King's Rangers with Indian al- lies captured Fort Barrington near Darien on March 13. Backwoodsmen from South Carolina, called Scopholites after their leader, crossed the Savannah and plundered their way to Florida, where they joined the enemy preparing to invade Geor- gia. The third and final Whig invasion of Florida was begun. The largest, it started with more than 2,000 Con- tinentals, Georgia militia. South Carolina militia, and the Georgia Navy. But when no plan could be agreed on and leadership problems couldn't be solved, the expedition collapsed. While the B r i t i s h-influenced Creeks were raiding northern Georgia, the British began a concerted push into the southern section. On Nov. 20 they burned buildings around Midway, i n cl u d i n g the church. Four days later Patriot General James Screven was mortally wounded at nearby Bulltown Swamp. On Dec. 1 the British approached Fort Morris at Sunbury, but Col. John Mcintosh refused the surrender proposal with his famous challenge, "Come and take it!" On Dec. 29 a British force led by Lt. Col. Archibald Campbell landed below Savannah. The British entered Savannah by an unguarded passage through the swamps. The Patriot defenses were led by Gen. Howe, Gov. Houston, and Col. Walton, with no one having central control. The poorlyled and poorly-placed Americans fled in panic; 100 were killed and 450 captured. The British lost only 7 dead and 19 wounded. 1 779 Alter the capture of the capital (Savannah), the British moved quickly to capture the rest of Georgia. Campbell led the British north to capture Ebenezer. They skirmished with Patriots at the Burke County jail, then captured Augusta on Jan. 31. Col. Augustine Prevost captured Fort Morris on Jan. 10. Almost all of the heavily populated sections of the state now were con- trolled by the British. The Patriots were resisting in sparsely settled sections such as Wilkes County, and the battle of Kettle Creek was one of their major victories. After this battle they never completely lost control of the upcountry. Reinforcements from North Carolina forced the British to with- draw from Augusta down the Savan- nah River. British forces under Lt. Col. Mark Prevost trapped and defeated 2300 Americans commanded by Gen. John Ashe at the confluence of Brier Creek and the Savannah in what now is Screven County. The British set up a new Royal government, and since the Patriot government still claimed sovereignty, Georgia had two governments. Gen. Benjamin Lincoln led the Americans and Count d'Estaing led the French fleet to lay seige to Savannah. In October an attempt to storm the British works failed, and Gen. Pulaski was killed. Nine days later the French and American forces withdrew. This left Savannah and much of Georgia under Royal Govneror Wright. 17 8 The Patriots elected Richard Howley governor on Jan. 4. They struggled to maintain a semblance of order by declaring Herd's Fort, in Wilkes County, temporary capital of Georgia. British leaders thought they had secure control of Georgia and moved many troops to the Carolinas and Florida. Patriot partisans took advantage of the situation and raided ever closer to Savannah. This led to heavy skirmishing at Ogeechee Ferry on April 4. The Carolina troops evacuated Augusta and the British reoccupied the town. Led by Colonels James Grierson and Thomas Brown, (who well remembered the coat of tar and feathers the Patriots had given him), the British began revenging Brown. This increased murders and looting by both sides in the upcountry. Elijah Clarke led a group of 300 Patriots in an unsuccessful attempt to capture Augusta. Col. Brown, August 1975 11 -- headquartered at the Mackay House, held off the Americans until rein- forcements arrived. Thirteen wounded Americans were hanged there. 17 8 1 Skirmishing continued while the -- Articles of Confederation formally aligning the thirteen original states were being approved. In one raid Patriot Col. Isaac Shelby killed 40 Loyalists. Meanwhile Patriots captured and burned the H.M.S. Britannia at the mouth of the Ogeechee. Patriots laid siege to Augusta on May 21 Under the direction of Gen. Andrew Pickens, the Patriots built a Mayham tower from which they shelled the - main defen- sive spot. Fort Cornwallis. On June 5 the fort and Augusta fell to the Americans. The Patriot government re-estab- lished itself and Americans started moving down the Savannah River. By December the Patriots had captured Ebenezer and were encircling Savannah. 17 8 2 The British, consolidating their position in Savannah, had burned all provisions to keep them from the Americans. Skirmishes occurred north of Savannah at Cuthbert's sawmills and south at Reid's Bluff; and later on at the Ogeechee Ferry. The British now were in a desper- ate situation. Cornwallis had surrendered at Yorktown; Virginia and Charlestown and Savannah were the A only strongholds in the South. band of Creek allies was called in to aid the British, but Gen. Anthony Wayne defeated them near Savannah on June 24. On July 1 1 the British surren- dered Savannah to the Americans, and Gen. Wayne allowed Lt. Col. James Jackson to take possession. From July 12 to July 25, the British and many Loyalists evacuated Georgia. They took with them most of their possessions, as well as some stolen from Patriots; they took 5000 slaves from Georgia. It took years for the state to recover its economic loss. On Nov. 30 a provisional treaty was signed in Paris between the United States and Great Britain. On Sept. 3, 1783, this treaty was formalized and the Revolution in Geor- # gia was over. 12 Outdoors ii? Georgia Close-up Photography by Bob Busby Photography by O.I.G. Staff It seems a condition of contemporary American life that every hu- man endeavor, whether work or play, be pursued feverishly else some important aspect might escape our experience. This over-zealous pur- suit denies us much of what we des- perately seek; the pleasures of the journey too often fall victim to schedules, real or self-imposed. The essence and beauty of the outdoors remain hidden if we refuse to ease our pace and change our perspective. Macro, or close-up photography, demands that we become aware of our environment and experience the minute, often unseen, world that surrounds us. The nature of macro photography causes us to explore, to deliberate, and to enjoy the fascination and drama hidden in details previously denied us. The rewards of photographing this tiny world are great, but so too are the demands of eye, body, and equipment. The principles of photography discussed in preceeding articles be- come even more important in macro work. Problems encountered in "normal" photography become more critical as the image size increases on the film: effects of camera and subject movement, narrow depth-offield, perspective distortion, and exposure compensation determine the quality of macro work. Macro photography requires more light for proper exposure than does work in normal situations. This in- August 1975 13 One of the limiting factors in macro work is the extremely shallow depth-of-field. Only this grasshopper's eye is in focus; features in front or behind the "plane of focus" are distorted. Orienting a subject so that most of its important features fall parallel to the plane of focus will allow the photographer to capture a clearer image. creased need for light becomes cri- tical when close-up work is carried on under the forest canopy or in any low-light situation. These conditions require long exposures and/or ex- posures at maximum lens aperture; this increases the danger of move- ment and decreases the depth-of- field (distance between the nearest and farthest objects in sharp focus). Movement, either camera or sub- ject, is the most commonly en- countered and least successfully re- solved problem in macro photog- raphy. Camera movement can be controlled by using a sturdy tripod and cable release, while subject movement poses more problems. Two difficulties may occur: subject movement during long exposures will yield a "blurred" image, while movement of subject or camera may result in an out-of-focus image as the subject falls outside the ex- tremely narrow depth-of-field in- d in macro work. Often long exposure can be avoided and the chance of movement reduced. Use c "faster," more sen- sitive films can shorten exposure time, but may result in increased "grain" "contrast." As limits imposed by :ht conditions and equipment are a >ched, compro- mise becomes necc Compromise and c rol are im- portant factors in dealing with the extremely narrow depth-of-field en- countered in close-up work. Regard- less of lens, depth-of-field is re- duced to fractions of an inch and is actually little more than a plane in image depth. "Stopping down," us- ing a smaller lens aperture, will in- crease depth somewhat, but should be avoided if it results in extremely long exposure times. Because focus lies along a narrow plane, the subject must be carefully placed in relation to the camera to allow important ele- ments of the subject to fall within this narrow range. If movement and focus are carefully controlled, a sharp image should appear on film. A sharp image, although necessary to good close-up work, is only part of a satisfying photograph. Counter to popular belief, "good" (expensive) equipment does not guarantee good photography. This is important to consider when selec- A ting close-up equipment. wide range of equipment is available; some close-up lenses cost under $20, while some "macro" lenses run sev- eral hundred. Determine your needs, your ability, your budget and exam- ine the advantages and disadvan- tages of each. Close-up lenses are simple menis- cus lenses which, when attached to a prime lens, shorten the focal length and allow work at closer ranges. This is the least expensive approach to close-up photography and offers many advantages. They simply screw on the prime lens as does a filter and are therefore the most convenient, requiring no exposure compensation; they are highly portable, and allow through-the-lens metering. Used properly, close-up lenses will perform satisfactorily for small objects in the center of the image area where definition is best and aberrations are least. These generally come in sets containing three lenses, which may be used separately or in combination with each other or extension rings and bellows. When extension rings and bel- lows are used, either in combination with close-up lenses or simply with the prime lens, exposure values are changed. The rings and bellows are placed between the lens and camera, thereby extending the distance of the lens from the film plane, causing a larger image to be projected upon the film. These devices offer improved optical reproduction, but create exposure problems the novice might find unwieldly. Macro lenses, designed especially for close-up work, are probably the best approach for those considering macro work seriously. Although somewhat expensive, these lenses double as normal lenses, and if purchased in place of normal lenses, the cost seems reasonable. They allow 14 Outdoors it? Georgia A normal lens has considerable depth-oj -field. Notice how many flowers are in focus. Insert: combining macro and normal lenses enables a photographer to capture a range of detail and perspective. through-the-lcns metering; many will produce a 1:2 reproduction scale, and all offer greater optical fidelity than close-up lenses, bellows or ex- tension rings. Good photography is difficult to define, more difficult to achieve, and yet so obvious when experienced. Good macro photography results from patience, knowledge, and effort. Equipment is important, yet modest investments in gear can yield outstanding results; the difference is # in the photographer. August 1975 15 cJhe (band and the Sea and the &AU ~**>- by BUI Morehead Photography by Jim Couch The beach is important to us. We all know (or should know) how im- portant it is in terms of tourism, eco- nomics and biology. It's time we ad- mit to ourselves that it's also important to us as a play area. All of us harbor memories or fantasies (or both) about the beach. These feelings are filled with pictures of sand 16 Outdoors hy Georgia drifting between our toes, with sand crabs darting about beneath sheets of foamy surf, and the rumbling serenade of crashing breakers in a night filled with salt breezes and crisp windy star patterns. It's very important that we have a place to play. To sail a boat, to relax and enjoy the surf-ridden gifts of nature. Too soon we find ourselves August 1975 17 > Sfefa Outdoors \t) Georgia --I back to busy worlds of logic, dead- -- lines and bill-paying. For now at -- the beach a time to play is a time to remember. We And let's face it. tend to pro- -- tect those things that are important to us and what is important in our personal lives is not always monumental to society. Sometimes we need to save things from destruction simply because we'd rather keep them. -- Our Georgia beaches are very im- portant things. Ask a scientist he'll fill your mind with importances and you'll come away with images of test -- tubes, computers and concern. Or you could look in that child's face doubt the beach is any more important to those scientists than it is to that young boy. Or to you and me. August 1975 19 -- Oyster restoration is back-breaking work, but it may provide the basis for another sorely-needed industry on our coast. Oysters are among the tastiest, most nutritious and most popular of all coastal seafoods. Yet in Georgia, where eight million pounds of oys- ters were harvested in 1908, produc- tion has dropped to less than 200,- 000 bushels each year. The Department of Natural Re- sources is sponsoring a project to give Georgia oysters a boost, with biolo- gist Bob Mahood of the Coastal 'isheries Section in Brunswick in charge. DNR's Oyster Restoration Project, as it is called, has as its aim the reestablishment of the state's oyster production. e other marine biologists are hard a -- ect Toi. k on the five-year proji, Duanc Harris, and Bob Pa Though each is in- volved in a sej project phase, all work is int. d and Mahood, as project leader, I ie mammoth job of coordinating the work of the others. Mahood confirmed the statistics on Georgia's declining oyster crop, and explained that, though pollu- tion has closed many coastal waters to oyster harvesters, it is not solely responsible for the drop in the state's output. It might surprise you to learn that the drop is attributable to a combination of underharvesting and very productive coastal waters. Oysters, if not regularly harvested, tend to overpopulate and crowd each other out of existence. And because of Georgia's semi-tropic location, oysters here have a long reproductive season, which the biologists call the spat set. "Spat set here may last all sum- mer, while in Maine, there's only one spat set every four years," Mahood says. Tony Reisinger, making a study of oyster reproduction, interrupted to explain how the long spat set season affects future crops. "The spat, or baby oysters, freewheel around in the water for a few weeks, then settle down permanently on some firm substance," he said, adding that, all too often, the firm substance is the shell of another oyster. This tendency is responsible for the abundance of "coon" oysters oysters which grow in thick, convo- -- luted clusters which are common in Georgia waters. "The coons usually don't reach desirable size, and harvesters avoid them," he said. Reisinger showed me a clump of coons, and it was easy to under- A stand their unpopularity. harvester might as well try to shuck a stucktogether handful of razor-sharp crackerjacks. 20 Outdoors ip Georgia Because Georgia law prohibits the dredging of subtidal oysters (underwater at all tides), the state's current crop comes exclusively from intertidal beds, which are exposed for at least part of the daily tidal cycle. "This restriction may not be as limiting as it sounds, though," Mahood said. He and the others have discovered that subtidals in Georgia seldom reach the size and quality of intertidals anyway. The fact that subtidal oysters are not as desirable as intertidals led to one major thrust of the project. The biologists have learned that subtidal coon oysters taken from polluted rivers and relocated in clean intertidal beds undergo an almost miraculous transformation. They grow larger, faster, clean themselves of pollutants, and can be harvested about two weeks after being trans- planted. "We'll be going out to relocate -- an oyster bed in a few days would you like to come along and watch how it's done?" asked Reisinger. This was how I happened to be stumbling down the Game and Fish docks in pre-dawn darkness one clear winter morning. The diesel engine of the Research Vessel Anno, a 60-foot converted shrimp trawler owned by DNR, was throbbing an impatient note. At a nearby dock, the Sapelo Scout was ready and waiting to go. The Scout is the ponderous DNR barge which had been loaded a few days earlier with a small moun- tain of polluted subtidal oysters dredged from Brunswick's Mackay River. The plan was for the Anna to tow the slow-moving Scout down the Intracoastal Waterway to Camden County, where the shellfish would be relocated in the clean waters of the Crooked River, west of Big Cumber- land Island. Once underway, with the Anna's experienced captain, "Doc" Jones at the helm, we all crowded into the galley. First mate Leonard Reddick, who presides over the galley and mother-hens all project members, put on a pot of coffee and fired up the gas stove for breakfast. Soon the tantalizing odors of frying bacon and perking coffee were blending with Aquaculture, like agriculture, depends upon knowing when, where and how to "plant" seafood like oysters. This mixture of shells and live oysters will hopefully develop into a stable oyster bed. the natural marsh smells and the strong, though not unpleasant, odors drifting forward from the barge. The trip would take several hours, and while the Anna chugged steadily southward, the four biologists had plenty of time to fill us in on some of the other project, phases. Duane Harris is involved in mapping all the oyster resources in the state. He agreed that the job sounds nearimpossible, but said that a new Image 100 computer, recently purchased by the Kennedy Space Center, might make the task a great deal simpler. "We've bought a series of 600 nine-by-nine color transparencies of extremely good quality." Harris explained, saying that the computer can scan the photographs and determine the exact acreage of all intertidal beds in the state. "In addition, we can select a particular bed, maybe one that's very productive, and tell the Image 100 to find all other beds in the state like the first one." Harris believes the computer will be able to differentiate between live oysters and dead shell, and perhaps will be able to establish bed densi- ties. Bob Palmer is also involved in the survey, but his studies include sampling the natural intertidal beds and comparing his findings with data August 1975 21 -- -- Fancy equipment may be glamorous but often it all boils down to a man and a shovel and w*o*r*k. from relocated beds, to see if the project oysters compare favorably in all respects. "I'm trying to set up a plankton survey now to determine the nutri- ents available to the oysters," he ex- plained. "We need to know what times of year are related to growth rates; which water salinity is most desirable; and which substrates are best for maximum growth, lowest mortality, and least predation." Palmer said that part of the problem in locating new oyster beds in Georgia is the lack of suitable sub- trate, or bottom material. Oysters are particular about where they settle down. Plain sand is hard on their pumping systems; mud is too soft, idal movement causing silting whic ten buries the oysters alive. Th( ilmer said that he and the othei -ill doing studies to determine rate is most popular, they d / that spat tend to settle on roc scrap metal, dm ting, hunks of at bottoms (unfortunately), and, of course, the oyster shell. DNR Reisinger says that has pur- chased some 7,000 tons of Suwanee lime rock which will be put out in coastal rivers and creeks this spring, just before the height of the summer spat set season. "We put some of this clutch ma- terial out last July, and it already has a good crop of young oysters grow- -- ing on it some the size of silver dollars," said Reisinger. "Today, we'll be putting out a mixture of live oysters and dead shell. The dead shell will serve as a substrate for the spat this summer." By noon. Captain Jones dropped anchor in the Intracoastal Waterway west of Cumberland, where the Anna would wait while the shallow-draft Scout moved about half a mile up the Crooked River to the transplant area. Crew-member David Fawcett, act- ing captain of the Scout, got the barge headed upriver, and Mahood cranked up the kicker of a small Boston Whaler and zipped off to scout the transplant area. Mahood found the water in the staked plot still a bit too shallow to accommodate the Scout and signaled Fawcett to anchor a short distance away. There was nothing to do but wait for the tide to come in. Thoughts turned back to the comfortable, beamy Anna, where Reddick was preparing one of his specialties: southern fried chicken and homemade potato salad. Lunch, however, would have to wait on the tide. At last, with the water deep enough, the Scout chugged into the transplant area, with Captain Fawcett and crew member Jack Evans a college student on leave from Florida Institute of Technology both keeping a watchful eye on the prop to make sure it wasn't churning up bottom mud. Fawcett skillfully jockied the 22 Outdoors ii? Georgia Oysters, unlike other mollusks, have irregular shells in the adult state. The deep pit in the center of the shell is the adductor muscle scar. These shells will provide substrate for oyster larvae or "spats." gives a more even distribution on the bottom." In less than an hour, the barge was empty; the last of the 800 bushels had been washed overboard. The new bed was established and, in large part, the rest was up to nature. Since then, the biologists have made frequent trips back to the transplant site to check on the new oyster bed. They report that mortality is low, and that the oysters are exceeding all expectations. During the five-year project, at least fifteen acres of similar beds will be planted each year. "Well estab- lish the new beds all up and down the Georgia coast, wherever conditions are favorable," Reisinger said. "In many cases, we'll be putting beds in areas where there are no oysters now. Not only will this mean more harvestible oysters; it will also mean at least 75 acres of new fishing drops." Mahood said that future project plans will include a cooperative pro- gram between researchers and com- mercial oyster harvesters. Few proc- essors work with commercial harvesters in Georgia now, because harvesters hesitate to promise specified quantities which they may later be unable to deliver. Mahood said most Georgia oysters are presently harvested for local use. Reisinger commented, "We hope to get the oyster industry to establish new beds in the future, using meth- ods we'll try to perfect during the project." If the oyster restoration project is -- successful and early indications -- point that way Georgia's oyster harvest should increase dramatically # in the next decade. -- The Scout, headed out with another load of live oysters and dead shells. Time will tell if the restoration project is successful but things look good. Scout into the proper position, and then the fun began. The barge is equipped with a pressure hose, bolted to a frame and looking rather like a machine gun. The biologists use the hose to blast the oysters off the decks of the barge and into the shallow water. Fawcett, also team mechanic and general fix-it man, cranked up the pump and Reisinger began to play the powerful, 100-foot stream of salt water over the pile, scattering oysters high into the air and into the transplant area. Watching the normally sedentary oysters flying uncharacteristically through the air, Mahood commented thoughtfully, "This is probably a traumatic experience for an oyster. The hose is actually very effective, though, because it breaks up the clumps of coons into singles and August 1975 23 -- A Certain Way by Bill Morehead Photography by Jim Couch With Wood Carvings of birds often seem to me to be mor: real than the actual thing. I don't know ; is, maybe it's because a carving repre- sents both the living bird and the life of the artist. We some such carvings the other day. t Jim White's studio in Cairo, Geor- gia, wl d him make several carvings. Jim, transplani from New Jersey, studiously shaped a pie, wood on his grinding arbor his bespectack The denim apr : peering intently at his work. : wore was soon covered with 24 the dust of his work, and he told us of his youth. Memories of his childhood and the outdoors along the Delaware River mingled with the whir of the arbor. "I started all this for myself," he said, "when, as a kid, I hacked out a couple of decoys to have a go at the ducks which wintered along the Delaware." We watched Jim take this rough block of -- wood (white pine) and bring it into a shape quickly with the skill of a craftsman. "To get the finished shape, I whittle the body and sand it Outdoors ii> Georgia down. Often, I have to carve the head and body separately and glue them together later," he allowed. -- To see him finish the shaping with a whit- tling knife to watch his eyes and expressions as -- he worked and we talked was to experience the making of a little piece of art with skill and feeling. And Jim's skill does not end with the shap- ing of the form. We watched him paint the bird -- forms once more watching his eyes to glimpse -- the inward emotions and before too long, we saw the emergence of a bird, stopped in momen- tary action just as a photographer snaps a picture. We all record the things we love. Most do it with memories, I try to do it with written words. Jim White does it with a little wood, some paint, and a lot of feeling and skill. August 1975 25 A Terminal Addiction by Bill Morehead Photography by Bob Busby and Aaron Pass 26 Outdoors it? Georgia . There are four things in this world that a wise man won't fool with: golf, chess, bridge, and brown trout fishing. The first will put you to consorting with men and women in funny clothes, swinging iron sticks around on a closely-mowed cow pasture. Before you know it, you'll be saying things like "nassau," "bogie" and "Miss, let me help you with that three-wood shot." Before long, if you keep this up, you'll be carousing around with hookers, slicers, and pushers and not caring who knows it. Chess and bridge are not any better. The Big Fellow who sat at the head of the table, bought our groceries, and cuffed my ears as I grew up, sternly warned me against falling in with any "game" the English helped develop. His was the -- advice of a sinner not a saint. He was the -- spoon, brassie and setback vintage and for years I thought he was required to wear those old Bobbie Jones knickers in the afternoon. T thought it was part of his job. So did mother. The Big Fellow said all three of those games were designed so that when you were old enough -- to learn how to play them you were too old to learn how to play them! Oh, you could learn all the rules quickly enough (that's the devilment of it), but you could spend all your remaining days learning how not to let the fellow (or lady) down the street, who just picked up the game, make an absolute fool out of you. Well, I can't say that I was ever accused of my dutifully following the advice of father. In fact, I've paid plenty for proving time and time again that the Big Fellow knew what he was talking about ( and I didn't ) But it hasn't been hard for me to follow Dad's advice about chess, bridge, and golf. Oh, I fid- dled with them a while, but I've pretty much left them alone for some time now. Ever since my 12-year-old nephew checkmated me in 6 moves on a chessboard, the neighborhood bridge club got hysterical when I showed up as my wife's substitute, and that kindly 80-year-old retired concrete block manufacturer eked me out by 12 -- strokes on the first nine it hasn't been hard to follow Pop's advice. But Pop never said anything about brown trout fishing. Maybe he didn't know about it, or didn't figure that his kids would ever be sub- jected to its spell. Anyhow, fate left me facing the dangers of painted women, sergeants asking August 1975 for volunteers, and brown trout fishing pretty much by myself. One thing led to another and before I knew it I was grown, a veteran, married and pals with a -- bunch of seedy bank presidents, janitors, college teachers and plumbers who were as the kids now say-- -"in" to brown trout. I figured that brown trout wouldn't be any- thing but a passing, pleasant fancy. After all, the other name for brown trout is German trout, and I found it highly unlikely that anything "German" could have been cultivated by the English. That's how much I knew. Looking back on it, I can see how it all began. Innocent, really, just a flatland boy with Georgia mud on his shoes looking for a few kicks. Being offered, and accepting, a harmless venture or two with rainbows or brooks. Enjoying myself, having a great time, liking the label of "trout fisherman." Buying a fly here, a leader there, getting "in" to the feeling of flycasting, landing a trout or two, reading a book or an article. As I said, innocent. Quickly I found myself immersed in the trout fishing subculture that abounds in dank basements, savings and loan meeting rooms, and Kiwanis luncheons. It's easy for the subculture to exist side-by-side with society, for trout fisher- men look like most everybody else. It's hard to tell them from normal people, unless you know the code words like "Beaverkill," "quill gordon," and "blue dun." It's not long before you find that your affections have passed from work, sleeping decent hours, and most other aspects of the righteously ambitious. You find yourself able to tune out the boss when he's talking business and smilingly fade into that great trout stream in the sky, where you've hooked into the troutest trout of them all. You visit stores you never visited before, stores peopled with strange persons dressed like refugees from the world's worst safari movie. You get a strange compunction to buy ridiculous things. You go home with a pair of what looks like the world's largest rubber diapers, complete with boots and suspenders. They are called waders. You also go home with bits of feathered fluff, hooks and thread, all of which weigh an ounce and cost $12.98. You'll never tell what the rubber diapers cost. 27 Spring finds you attending what looks like the Daytona 500 held in the middle of a creek. Crazy people are all standing in the middle of the stream, each wearing a pair of rubber diapers. Instead of banners, each is waving a fragile, long, tapered wand with thin string attached. Occasionally, one lets out a whoop and others look to him, wands held high, and a fish is caught. Such ceremonies of the mad are well attended during the first few days, but soon you find your- self standing with a few friends with rain icing down the ready-made valley of your backbone. \ shiver starts you out of the creek, back toward the camp and a cup of warm coffee. Suddenly, sitting there with two or three others who also appear normal, it dawns on you that you are a d to this excruciating pleasure called trot ing. As sses, you discover that the subcul- ture has i subcultures. It has a group who fish with ik -^ut wet flies, another who fish only for trc; of them all, I ;md the freakiest subculture n trouters. 28 -- Of all the trout, the big, mature browns are hardest to catch and most deserve the title of trophy. Only the best of good casts interest the brown trout fisherman, and, if the trout is big enough, no puny insect imitation will catch his attention. Brown trouters do not speak of fishing, but stalking. And they don't speak of catching but A killing a brown. novice soon learns why. Crawling on hands and knees, you stalk a pool. You study it till you see a brown rising. Then -- you stalk just this fish none other. You fish for him alone, and if you're lucky enough (and good enough) you might get a strike. If you're extremely lucky, you might even land him. You can spend your life fishing hard for tro- phy brown trout in Georgia and not land a fish the size of the average, good largemouth bass. I -- know this was written by one who can testify to that. No matter, there is not much logic to trout fishing anyway, and none at all to brown trout fishing. Who cares about logic anyway? If any of us were logical, we wouldn't spend hours hunkering Outdoors ip Georgia under the spell of funny-looking objects on a checkerboard, or trying to put little white balls into gopher holes in somebody's pasture, and certainly not wading chilly streams for fish we could buy in a supermarket. No, give me that Ole Time Illogic of the trout stream. Place me knee deep in some mountain stream, listening to the laughing whistles of a mockingbird, and I'll be happy. Let me cast a fly onto the tail end of a pool. Let the fly start its drift toward the ripples. Wham! Let the fly be gone, and let the peaceful scene be transferred into the panic and fury of a brown trout "on." Will I land him? Will he get away? The brown trout always seems too fast, and I always seem too slow. Often, the fall-back of a limp leader tells me that the trout has won. Other times, I hang on to land him. I used to bring all the trout I caught back home. I'd drop by the drugstore and show them to my buddies, and bring them home to my wife and kids with a victor's gleam in my eye. But I'm older now, and even more illogical. It's far more likely that I will hold the trout, admiring its melange of brown, orange, red, and -- gold and gently let him loose. Don't ask me -- why I do this I certainly have no logical rea- son, other than by letting him go, I hope he will be there waiting for me again. He'll be wiser -- then, and maybe so will I. As I said it's illogi-- cal but I am not ashamed of this particular addiction. Oh yes, in case you're wondering, the English had quite a bit to do with trout fishing in general, and brown trout fishing in particular. Fact is. they more or less invented the art of angling, what with Isaac Walton, et al. My Dad was right. You should never get mixed up in any "game" the English helped develop. Such games can warp your mind, take you away from lawn-mowing, house-painting, and the like. Watch out. You never know when you may fall in with the wrong bunch and become part of that genteel insanity called brown trout fishing. Just yesterday, for example. I took my boy, the guy who lives next door, and his 1 1 -year-old son, and introduced them to a couple of nice-looking trout .... August 1975 29 Letters to tl?e Editor To The Edit or: On the question of photo explana- tions I agree that some photographs warrant no written explanation as to content. However, I would like to see more information on how each photo was taken; type of camera, film, lens, f-stop, shutter speed, light conditions and the like. Perhaps an index page could be included in each issue carrying this information. I be- lieve this would be useful to the amateur photographer and interesting to the professional as well. You have, I might add, a fine magazine that any Georgian can be proud of. Since I have been reading ii in the school library where I teach and summer approaches, please en- ter my subscription for three years. Enclosed please find a check for six dollars. Jim Odum Columbus, Georgia Editor Replies: We'd like to thank you for such a We great suggestion! have studied your recommendation and agree that an index, containing both technical details of the photographs and ex- planations of their content, is a valu- able addition to our magazine. Thanks for helping us out. Out- doors in Georgia is really the read- ers' magazine and we really appreci- ate such comments. Thank you, too, for the kind words concerning O.I.G. To The Editor: Enjoyed reading the June edition of OUTDOORS IN GEORGIA about the Poke Salad, and how to ' if. heen eating it for years, and was on it. Heix ripe for Poke Berries that some readers might have some use foi Some tinu > a pain in my knee. Being 68 old, I took it to be old age creeping up on me. A neighbor told me to try Poke Berry Wine. / won't say it works, but after 2 pints, my pain is gone. To make the wine, mash up about four pounds of berries. Eet ferment about a month. Strain this, and add about a quart of cold water and four pounds of sugar. When this stops working off, bottle. Dose is one tablespoon of wine everyday before breakfast. You are supposed to take this dose til your pain stops. It's said this stuff is good for arthritis. Could be, who knows? It's something the Indians used long time ago I'm told. People still contend the berries are poison, but I've seen birds eat them, and birds don't eat poison. Lauren Winburn Monticello, Georgia Editor Replies: In our endeavor to serve our readers, we are delighted to publish your recipe for "an old Indian" pokeberry medicine. Author Gib Johnston says -- he doesn't know many old Indians who drink pokeberry wine but he doesn't know many old Indians, either. Nevertheless, we are interested in your recipe. We don't know many outdoorsmen who have tried your particular brand of medicine, but we know many who are firm believers in following your dosage recommenda- tions! Thanks. To The Editor: Just had to add a bit of information to your article on pokeweed and have enjoyed eating poke greens since I was a child in Philadelphia, My Pennsylvania. grandfather used to "go down to the meadows" and get it for us in the spring. I spent several years in Tennessee and we ate it there too. So it appears it is not just a southern tradition. The difference is in preparing it; in Pennsylvania, my grandmother used to season it with butter, but in Tennessee and here in Georgia we use the traditional fatback. I was also under the impression that after the plant got big it was poisonous as were the berries. Enjoy your magazine very much, especially the helpful article in the June issue on how to deal with chig- gers. Ruth Aurett Appling, Georgia Editor Replies: Several people around here have tried your "butter" recipe, and say it's delicious! However, we haven't gotten one to try out the pokeberry recipe (see letter above). Our readers in Tennessee will read with interest your observation that their traditions are not "southern." I wouldn't doubt that you just might hear from them on that point. Fatback is not only used to season the poke salad down here but is also used as a fried, bacon-type side dish. Thanks for your comments on the magazine. The chigger article was well-received, especially by south Georgians who thanked us for calling them "redbugs," the local name. To The Editor: Our family and friends enjoy your magazine very much. We have visited several areas that you have featured and have found all your information that you have published to be very truthful (and helpful). . . . Mrs. David N. Wilson Swainsboro, Georgia Editor Replies: One of the most important ser- vices we can render our readers is We credibility. are tickled that you found our features to be truthful and helpful . . . that is really what we're paid for. We would like to ask other readers to send their comments on our fea- tured places and things in O.I.G. The special place you mentioned in your letter (not printed here) We sounds interesting. will check it out to see if we can include a future story on it for O.I.G. 30 Outdoors \t) Georgia -- To The Editor: Enclosed you will find my check for $3.00 for a one-year subscrip- tion of the OUTDOORS IN GEOR- GIA. I am very impressed with it and think it most educational and I am looking forward to receiving the June copy. H. L. DeLaughter Americus, Georgia Editor Replies: Thanks for your note. We think we are doing a pretty fair job when readers let us know they are looking forward to our next issue. The fact that you find it educational is dear to us, for that is one of the main func- tions of O.I.G. To The Editor: Finished reading "Sho Nuff Fish- ing" soon as I got home the other day. The sort of story that makes you glad you read it, it brought back memories, told me some new thoughts . . . and it made me hunger to get out on a creek bank with a cane pole. Bill Hammock Dunwoody , Georgia Editor Replies: In this age of commercialization and high technology, it's good to know that readers like a story the editor really enjoyed writing. To have comments from a noted and re- spected journalist like yourself is really encouraging. To The Editor: I am a subscriber to OUTDOORS IN GEORGIA magazine. I am very interested in receiving some copies of photographs which have appeared in this magazine. I would like to receive a color photograph of the front cover of the January, 1975 issue. Also, I would like to receive a color photograph of the sunrise picture, photographed by Jim Couch on page two of the February, 1975 issue. Any necessary charges may be billed to me at the address printed below. Thank you in advance for your cooperation. W Richard . Arnold Norcross, Georgia Editor Replies: We'd like to help you out. How- ever, I'm sure you understand that we cannot order copies of our photo- We graphs for you. will, however, be glad to furnish the photographer of your choice a copy of our slides, upon his request. That way, we wouldn't be involved in the billing, you would get your photographs quicker, and everybody probably would be better satisfied. (We would be glad to do this for any other read- ers, too). To The Editor- Enclosed please find my check and three year subscription for your mag- azine. Also, I would like to know in which state park the picture on page 9 of the June, 1975 issue was taken. I would also like to know if they, or any of the state parks, allow frog gigging. In reference to your letters to the Editor in the above edition, it would indeed be helpful if photos such as those in your article "Parks Summertime '75" were identified. Your photography in the June, 1975 issue is excellent, especially the cover. J. L. Hatcher Jeffersonville, Georgia Editor Replies: The state park to which you refer is Little Ocmulgee Park, near McRae, Georgia. Your interesting question on frog gigging in state parks in- trigued our parks personnel. Unfortunately, their response was that, since park lakes are closed at night -- for legal and other reasons and since frog gigging is a night activity --it is not permitted. Your suggestion of photo identification is also a good one, and we intend to start such identification with our next issue. To The Editor: The June issue of OUTDOORS IN GEORGIA was almost 100% in "photo-explanation." We realize the artistic merit would be harmed if identified. You didn't have to tell us that it is a swamp, we recognize the moss in trees and water Hyacinth (or lily pads). Maybe Metzen didn't know the name of the other two flowers. All the other illustrations were jam up! Thanks. J. Robert Slaughter Columbus, Georgia Editor Replies: Uh, thanks for your "kind" words. Artistic merit or not, we should have told you somewhere in the June issue what the flowers were. Your reply is -- one among many and we have de- cided to follow your implied recommendations to identify our pictures. The picture on page 16 is of the golden club, Orontium aquaticum. On page 1 7, upper left, a sundew (genus Drosera) ; upper right a water lily, Nymphaea odorata (and not a water hyacinth as you suggest); lower left, a chokeberry (genus Aronia); lower right, cypress trees. On page 18, upper left, is a pitcher plant, Sarracenia minor. The other pictures are of a frog, ospreys, and a sunset. Page 19 is a picture of white ibis roosting on a dead cypress. We appreciate your suggestions you got your point across. August 1975 31 Bool* Reviews FISHERMAN'S SPRING FISHERMAN'S SUMMER by Roderick L. Haig-Brown, Crown & Publishers, Inc., 222 253 pp., $7.50 each (hardbound). It's very hard to review a great book. Bad books on the other hand, make for simple reviews: the faults are so clear, the absurdities so evi- dent, that little effort is needed in the destruction. Good books also are fairly easy: the merits stand out and the value of the work is so obvious that the commentary almost writes itself. In most cases, mediocre books probably shouldn't be reviewed at all. But writing about a great book is substantially more difficult. The quality that raises it above a merely "good" book often is subtly intangi- ble: a quality of thought, a continuing turn of felicitous phrase, a de- lightful combination of means and end. And yet the difference is there, and the reviewer feels a desperate obligation to convey the importance of this particular book, to differenti- ate it from many similar books, to, finally, convince his reader that this, of all books, is one he must own. Fisherman's Spring and Fisher- man's Summer both are such books. They are as fine an evocation of the spirit, moods, and aims of fishing as anything in the vast literature that has grown up around angling in the ' 500 years. -- i he central topics fishing for -- /arious trout and salmon species in rsly) British Columbia are a irrelevant to the everyday coik ble. Au Georgia anglers as possiny Georgia sportsman will be t. er for not reading both volume ForHaigb. ously: 'cs fishing seri- (I)t is also something more than a sport. It is intimate exploration of a part of the world hidden from the eyes and minds of ordinary people. It is a way of thinking and doing, a way of reviving the mind and body . . . (I)t has become an art, ephemeral, graceful, complicated, full of traditions yet never static. It is as much a part of mod- ern civilization as most of the minor arts and sciences and probably has more direct effect on more lives than any of them. "A way of thinking and doing. ..." How many of us recognize that our sport, our minor art, at its best draws us into an old and honored tradition? That shock of recognition might help us to more ac- curately assess the value of the tech- nology that has become so important to some aspects of the sport; and it might help us think a bit more clearly about the clamor for ever more reservoirs and stocking programs. Haig-Brown sees the challenge of angling this way: We try to become one with the creature we pursue, to know its ways and anticipate its actions. Because we are different and apart, hedged in by the power of reason and man's way of thinking, we can never wholly succeed. If we could, we should kill the light that kindles in the (angler's) eyes, the thrill that stirs muscle and heart and brain; and half the satis- faction of man in his own prowess would be forever lost. For him, the logical outgrowth of this perception is the decision to make the search for fish more diffi- cult, more artful, more subtle. He shuns all the clear advances in tech- -- nology the depth finders and ther- mometers, the spinning rods and alluring baits, the very popular "put and take" stocked streams. He finds success not in the numbers, or even the size, of the fish he catches, but in the nature of the chase. His challenge, his excitement, his reward all are found in that fragile exquisite communication between man and fish. It is a tie that easily can be served by our modern im- pediments. These short articles, written, he claims, "to entertain in that brief moment of relaxation between the end of day's work and the start of a night's sleep," do much more. They completely fulfill his rigorous definition of entertainment: they provide sustenance for the mind. Crown Publishers has done us all a great service by reprinting these books. We now can look forward to the next two volumes in the quartet, Fisherman's Fall and Fisherman's Winter. TCM SHAD FISHING by C. Boyd Pfeiffer, Crown Publish- ers, 177 pp., $8.95 (hardbound). Shad fishing is just beginning to become really popular here in Georgia, although a few coastal old-timers have been enjoying these fine game fish for years. This book will help newcomers make up for their lack of experience. There's not much on specific Georgia rivers or techniques, but the general information on tackle and tactics should work as well here as anywhere. Certainly Pfeiffer covers the subject thoroughly. Although spinning gear seems the most common tool for shad, Pfeiffer obviously prefers fly fishing, and he makes it sound exciting enough to tempt the most pure trout angler. His three chapters on fly technique offer enough basic information to start anyone off right. -- The longest single chapter on -- cooking shad is an attempt to res- cue the fish from its slightly disreputable (at least in Georgia) place. He offers two detailed methods of boning the critters, and, in case they're too troublesome, several ways of cooking that are claimed to dissolve the bones. And he outlines several recipes for the "gourmet's delight" roe. All in all, this is a good introduction to a relatively new sport fish, one that is bound to receive increas- ing attention in the future. TCM 32 Outdoors ii? Georgia Corpip Next Moijtl)... Cumberland, the bejeweled islandic recluse, the southernmost of Georgia's sea islands, a very Now special island. part of it is under the control of the National Park Service. What will happen to How this one-time Victorian sanctuary of the rich? will the fall hearings to be held by the National Park Service affect Cumberland's future use? Wayne Parker and Bob Busby give our readers an idea of what Cumberland was, is and could be Aaron Pass experiences some south Georgia "jack- fishing" (chain pickerel) and tells of his encounters with swamp men and swamp fish Septem- ber opens the hunting season for rails and Joe Cullens shares his experiences being "railroaded" And who was the senior general officer of the British at the start of the Revolutionary War? The same James Edward Oglethorpe who founded Georgia ( and who refused to assume command of the British forces to put down the "rebellion"). Bill Morehead profiles General Oglethorpe with some interesting and little-known facts about the man and his image. Our magazine wants to serve all Georgians. Why not subscribe today? If you are a -- subscriber send us the name of a person you'd like to see get our magazine. We'll send a courtesy copy of Outdoors in Georgia along with a note saying that you took the time to be thoughtful. That's a lot of mileage for a post card! 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