The world according to me....

Where's Michael?

Part of the job here in North Carolina is to coordinate with the volunteer groups and agencies that make up the sea turtle nesting beach-monitoring program. Yesterday, I made a 12-hour road and boat trip in order to meet with four different groups and take care of some needed errands. One of my stops was Bald Head Island, to pick up some flippers from Lucy. I thought that as long as I happened to be on the island, I might as well visit Michael, who is vacationing there with his family. Lucy graciously lent me one of her golf-carts, and off I went in search of “Turtle Tryst,” the name of the house that Michael et al. are renting. With map in hand, I managed to find the location specified on my map, but there were many different rental houses around there. Suffice to say, I was completely lost and not even the kindness of strangers could help me find Turtle Tryst. In the end, I had to give up and head back to the ferry with my cooler of turtle flippers. I hope this disappointingly failed visit does not mark the start of a trend: Brendan and Annette are coming to Bald Head Island next week, and I am supposed to visit them too!

Posted by Matthew Godfrey at 11:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

In North America, tis the season for turtle migration. That includes not only sea turtles, but also land and freshwater turtles. Cars are a major source of mortality for land and freshwater turtles at this time of year, as they attempt to cross roads. Whenever I see a turtle crossing a road, I always stop my car on the shoulder and try to get the turtle to the other side before it is hit. Unfortunately, many times the turtles are crushed before I can get to them, and sometimes I nearly get hit myself. There is no easy solution, except to slow down and keep your eyes peeled for walking shells that are trying to cross the road; when you see one, give it lots of space.

Posted by Matthew Godfrey at 09:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)