BOOK 



MARKET 



a member of the North Carolina Moratorium 

 Steering Committee that convened from 1994 

 to 1997 to tackle difficult fisheries management 

 issues. Their deliberations led to the N.C. 

 Fisheries Reform Act of 1997. 



Garrity-Blake, on the other hand, took an 

 academic route into saltwater fishing matters. 

 Her doctoral research focused on myriad 

 pressures on the menhaden fisheries. She was 

 hooked. 



Like West, Garrity-Blake was on the 

 moratorium committee and continues to 

 serve on the N.C. Fisheries Management 

 Commission. She is married to a boat-builder/ 

 musician and lives in Gloucester. 



In the book's prologue, Garrity-Blake 

 reminds readers that in spite of hardships, the 

 commercial fishing industry provides "the only 

 wild food product on the U.S. market." 



The book offers insight into a disappear- 

 ing way of life, including a glimpse of the now 

 defunct Carteret County Boom Truck Festival. 

 The event was staged to lift sagging winter 

 spirits when weather limits fishing time — 

 and incomes. 



Readers also meet Clammer Bob, who 

 rode a bus to Raleigh in 1996 with other fishing 

 colleagues to let lawmakers know their feelings 

 about reform. They feared that reform might 

 mean a ban on commercial net fishing. It was 

 rumored that recreational fishing groups were 

 behind a net-ban push. 



"I don't think those politicians realized 

 what it took for some of us just to get there," 

 Clammer Bob tells the authors. For his part, he 

 waded in icy waters from his boat to a waiting 

 bike. He pedaled on the snowy February 

 morning "over the Gallant's bridge, through 

 Beaufort all the way to that grocery store 

 parking lot where the buses were waiting." 



In the book's epilogue, readers learn that 

 Clammer Bob has traded his clam rake for 

 construction tools to make ends meet. ". . .his 

 concerns about the far-reaching effects of 

 governmental control are shared more than ever 

 throughout the fishing industry." 



While the elders in traditional fishing 

 families may have a pessimistic view of their 

 future, the younger generation has a different 

 perspective and seems determined to adapt to 

 change. 



Take teen-aged Zack of Marshallberg 

 who has been shrimping Core Sound since he 

 was in kindergarten and soloing his skiff since 

 he was 12 years old. He tells the authors: "The 

 old-timers say there's no future in commercial 

 fishing. . .I'm used to all the rules and 

 regulations. I don't get discouraged about it like 

 the older crowd." 



Still, Zack is realistic. He says he plans 

 to go to North Carolina State University and 

 major in agriculture. "It's good to have a 

 backup in case they do close it down," he 

 says. 



Fish House Opera is a factual book 

 that reads like a novel. 



• The Natural Traveler 

 Along North Carolina's 



Coast. 2003, by John Manuel; 

 John E. Blair, Publisher; Paper- 

 back, $16.95. ISBN 0-89587-272-2. 



Put away your compass and 

 turn off your onboard GPS. All you 

 need to explore North Carolina's coastal plain 

 is The Natural Traveler Along North Carolina 's 

 Coast, by John Manuel. Manuel takes the fear 

 out of leaving the well-worn beach access paths 

 to discover the wonders of nature. 



In his preface, Manuel notes that he has 

 seen the coast undergo change through the 

 years — hurricanes, development and time 

 have rearranged many familiar sites. "So much 

 is changing that even veterans of the coast 

 could use a guide to keep up." And so he sets 

 out to share with readers the natural gems of the 

 coastal region, as well as the culture, outdoor 

 dramas, museums, historic sites, restaurants and 

 lodgings to enjoy along the way. 



Manuel introduces readers to the natural 

 history that shaped North Carolina's coast 



— including ancient seas that stretched across 

 the coastal plain 60 million years ago to the 

 last ice age that ended 17,000 years ago. What 

 remains are endless possibilities for exploration 



— open water, barrier islands, inlets, tidal 

 rivers, saltwater marshes, maritime forests, 

 sounds and swamp forests. 



The author divides the book according 

 to geographic regions — the Outer Banks, the 

 Sound Country and the Southern Coast. For 

 each of the geographic regions, sites are listed 



from north to 

 south. Maps and driving directions 

 are easy to navigate. And, for each town, 

 readers will find listings of important natural 

 features, historic sites or districts, as well as 

 the selection and costs for local restaurants and 

 lodgings. 



His descriptive narratives help tourists 

 know what to look for at each place and how 

 best to access certain natural attractions. For 

 example, the entry for Currituck National 

 Wildlife Refuge/Currituck Banks National 

 Estuarine Research Reserve notes that the 

 combined tracts "encompass all the natural 

 habitats of the Outer Banks, including beaches, 

 dunes, tidal flats, shrub thickets, maritime 

 forests, and freshwater and brackish marshes." 



He also notes that views of both the 

 Atlantic Ocean and Currituck Sound are 

 spectacular. Facilities include a handicapped- 

 accessible boardwalk. Hiking and bird 

 watching are available free all year long. 



Manuel writes: "For every place I have 

 been, there is another to explore. And that will 

 keep me visiting the coast for years to come." 



Until his next installment, The Natural 

 Traveler offers plenty of places to explore. □ 



COASTWATCH 29 



