Danger on the
white boardwalk
HE WOKE UP SUDDENLY because Sophie was shaking him.
“Hey! What are you doing?” he
said as he brushed her away.
“We’re driving into the entrance
of the park. And besides you were flopping your arms around in your sleep and almost
hit me.”
“Sorry, Soph. So we’ve finally
arrived. Good. I’m so tired of being in this car!”
Grandma Betty had pulled off the
entrance road and parked near the check-in kiosk. They got out to stretch their
legs, while Jean walked over to talk with the ranger about camping
arrangements. Sophie followed her mom over to the registration counter.
“Hi! My name’s Sophie and we’re
camping for three nights, and we came to see the mangrove forest and all the
animals.”
“Well, nice to meet you Sophie.
My name is Henry, and you’ll probably want this map of the trails. Both of
these trails take you through mangroves, and the park naturalist will be giving a guided hike
at 10:30 tomorrow morning” he said.
“Good, that will give us some
time to explore on our own and then someone can answer all of our questions
about the mangroves!” chimed in Grandma Betty, who had also wandered over to
the counter.
“Just let us know if you need
anything. Otherwise enjoy your stay, and don’t forget about the hike in the
morning,” Henry said as they drove off down the curving park road looking for
their campsite. After Sophie and Sam had helped put up the tent, they asked if
they could go exploring.
“You all go ahead,” said Jean to
Grandma and the twins. “I’ll get things organized for dinner.”
“When we drove in, I saw a sign
that read ‘boardwalk’ with an arrow pointing that way.” Sam pointed up ahead
and to the left.
“OK, then,” Grandma said, “Let’s
go!” They headed down a short trail that took them to the boardwalk. The trail
was shady with a dense canopy of strange trees with shiny, peeling, dark red
bark.
“I wonder what these trees are!
Aren’t they cool?” exclaimed Sam.
“Look over there,” said Grandma,
“there’s a sign by that tree.”
Sophie and Sam ran over to
investigate.
“Gumbo-limbo,”
Sophie read.
“Wow, these are the trees that
mom was telling us about!” said Sam. “We’ll have to bring her down here later
and show her.”
The shady trail ended and they
headed onto the boardwalk in the blazing afternoon sun.
“Check out that sign,” Sam
cried. “Snakes and crocodiles! Yes, this is way cool.”
“Wait a minute,” Sophie said.
“How can they live in salt water?”
“The water here is brackish,”
said Grandma Betty. “Do y’all know what that means?”
“Yeah, sure. We learned that in
school. It’s a mix of fresh and saltwater,” Sam said.
“That’s right. The fresh water
dilutes the salt water so it’s easier for the snakes to tolerate.
Crocodiles live in the saltwater, anyway,” explained Grandma Betty.
Despite Sam’s constant watchful
eye, they did not see any crocodiles. There was a warm, salty breeze and the
sounds of birds in the distance.
For a while the trio walked
along quietly listening and looking, and then suddenly Sophie broke the
silence.
“Whoa, look at all the poop!
It’s everywhere!”
The boardwalk was covered with
white poop. They had come upon the edge of the park’s rookery, where birds came
to nest and raise their young.
Before anyone could say a word,
a brown pelican flapped its huge wings and took off right over their heads,
which turned out badly for Sam.
“Ewww!” cried Sophie, “you got
pooped on, Sam!!! Gross, it’s in your hair and your shirt. Ughh!”
“Oh Sam,” Grandma Betty tried to
conceal her amusement, but couldn’t stop herself from breaking into laughter.
“It’s everywhere and oh my, it smells. Let me see if I can find something to
clean you off with.”
Grandma Betty and Sophie
searched along the boardwalk’s edge for something to clean off the poop. Sam
meanwhile stood still so the poop wouldn’t drip.
“How about these sweet bay
leaves? They’re big and have a nice smell,” Grandma Betty chuckled.
They all began laughing as they
wiped off the bird poop with the bright green leaves. Once that task was
accomplished, they continued their stroll down the boardwalk.
