remember is to keep calm. "Don't panic. 

 Don't try to swim against the current," she 

 warns. "Swim parallel to shore until you are 

 out of the current. They are usually no more 

 than 30 feet wide." 



A walk across the low-profile dunes is an 

 opportunity to inventory adaptive vegetation 

 that helps capture moving sand and anchor the 

 shifting island: grasses, yucca, sea rockets, 

 seaside evening primrose, seaside goldenrod, 

 and poor man's pepper. Bird watchers look for 

 brown pelicans, black skimmers, American 

 oyster-catchers and willets. 



Even waiting for the boat for the 

 return trip is not wasted. Spence explains 

 that the marshes and surrounding waters are 

 nurseries for juvenile shrimp and fish. The 

 sound area of the island accounts for about 

 $350,000 in commercial fish and shellfish 

 annual production. 



There's also time to demonstrate the 

 art of keyhole clamming at the water's 

 edge. This technique involves spotting the 

 unique-shaped holes left in the sand by 

 clams as they filter water. No special gear 

 is needed — just a keen eye and a willing- 

 ness to get a little muddy. To spare hands 

 or feet from sand abrasion, some prefer to 

 use a rake. 



Clark also has time to talk about the 

 jetties — one on the northern end of 

 Masonboro and its mate on the southern 

 end of the Wrightsville Beach island. The 

 jetties keep the channel open from the 

 ocean to the Intracoastal Waterway. Sand 

 pulled along the Wrightsville Beach 

 oceanfront is trapped by the north jetty at 

 the expense of Masonboro Island. In- 

 creased erosion contributes to the island's 

 susceptibility to overwash — resulting in 

 an ever-changing island profile as sand is 

 carried over and deposited onto the 

 landward shore of the narrow barrier island. 



He uses the dynamic nature of 

 Masonboro Island to discuss coastal 

 building policies. According to the Coastal 

 Area Management Act (CAMA), single 

 family homes must be set back from the 

 first stable line of vegetation at a distance 

 equal to 30 times the historic annual rate of 

 erosion. Buildings with more than 5,000 

 square feet must be set back at a distance 

 equal to 60 times the erosion rate. 



The Shell Island 

 Conundrum 



After the brief charter boat trip across 

 the channel, the class reconvenes at the 

 Shell Island resort on the northernmost tip 

 of the Wrightsville Beach island. They see 

 a dramatic illustration of what happens 

 when human plans collide with the forces 

 of nature. Since the high-rise complex was 

 built in 1 984, Mason Inlet has migrated 

 southward, threatening the nine-story 

 building and other nearby properties. 



Clark explains that one proposal on 

 the table is to move Mason Inlet 3,000 feet 

 to its 1986 position. Such a project involves 

 a host of environmental, legal and financial 

 issues. 



Nature has written many chapters in 

 the history of the Wrightsville Beach 

 island, which has been a mecca for fishing, 

 boating and beach lovers for more than a 

 century. Its popularity soared in the late 

 1800s with the construction of a road and 

 trolley line connecting Wilmington and 

 Wrightsville. Since then, the great hurri- 

 cane of 1899 and hurricanes Hazel, Bertha 

 and Fran claimed lives, sheared back dunes 

 and leveled homes and businesses. 



Hurricanes and nor'easters have 

 contributed to the ever-changing configura- 

 tion of not only Wrightsville Beach, but all 

 of the state's barrier islands. 



Almost paradise 



The day on the primitive, no-frills 

 Masonboro Island was a marked contrast to 

 the previous day's journey to a 2,000-acre, 

 active resort island community — Bald 

 Head Island. 



The island is endowed with a maritime 

 forest, salt marshes, miles of ocean beaches 

 and a rich, but stormy, maritime history. 

 Bald Head Island is part of the historic 

 Smith Island complex, which includes 

 Bluff Island and Middle Island. 



Located between the Atlantic Ocean 

 and the mouth of the Cape Fear River, the 

 forested barrier island is the northernmost 

 subtropical island on the Atlantic coast. It is 

 accessible only by private boat or ferry 

 service. On the island, transportation is by 

 golf carts, trams, bicycles or foot. 



The Encore entourage boarded a 

 convoy of golf carts for the short drive to 



Encore members rest and enjoy nature amidst 

 the low-profile dunes on Masonboro Island. 



the east end of Federal Road to reach the 

 Bald Head Conservancy headquarters. There, 

 Gil Powell, conservancy executive director, 

 spoke of ways the organization is working to 

 preserve the island's natural resources and to 

 promote stewardship of the surrounding 

 coastal environment. The conservancy 

 sponsors scientific research and provides 

 environmental education programs. 



It is known nationally for the Sea Turtle 

 Protection Program, Powell said. From May 

 through October, Bald Head beaches are 

 nesting sites for sea turtles. Interns from 

 university marine studies programs and 

 volunteers patrol the beaches to record and 

 protect nesting sites. Bald Head volunteers 

 have helped collect scientific data to track 

 turtle nesting trends for nearly two decades. 



The conservancy also conducts camps 

 for youngsters and trains volunteers to 

 become part of the protection effort. 



Though Powell claims not to be a 

 professional naturalist, he can rattle off turtle 

 facts with the best of graduate students. 

 Conservation has become his avocation and 

 he hopes to learn more about sea turtles from 

 a joint project with the U.S. Army Corps of 

 Engineers. Researchers will do pre- and post- 

 beach nourishment surveys to determine 

 what — if any — impact sand placement has 

 on sea turtle nesting habits along the coast. 



"Turtles and humans have a lot in 

 common," Powell quipped. "We both like 

 oceanfront property. It seems that more and 

 more they are in competition with humans 

 for habitat." 



Research, he believes, is essential. 

 "Think about it. Turtles have been around for 

 more than 50 million years. They managed to 

 survive whatever killed the dinosaur. It's 

 only within the past 50 years that they have 

 been in trouble." 



14 AUTUMN 2000 



