Boats and boaters: On the water
Meet a modern naturalist
by Abi Nicholas
Abi Nicholas/Tideline Magazine
Chris Crolley
Lowcountry guide wants you to reconnect with the outside world
NAME: Chris Crolley
AGE: 37
OCCUPATION: Owner-operator of Coastal Expeditions
EDUCATION: Bachelor’s degree in fine arts with a concentration in environmental installation sculpture and a minor in performance art from the College of Charleston; independent graduate study through the University of South Carolina, Clemson University and The School of the Art Institute in Chicago.
ACHIEVEMENTS: USCG 50 ton Masters Captains license; Ameri- can Canoe Association and British Canoe Union kayak instructor certifications; wilderness first aid; lifeguard certification.
Chris Crolley is well-versed in the ways of the warbler and the vegetation of the black water banks. He can discuss strand-feeding dolphins with incredible detail and knows all the best places to spot manatees in the summertime.
During an interview at his company’s head- quarters on Mount Pleasant’s Shem Creek, Crol- ley’s eyes twinkle as he talks about the natural world: tidal creeks, alders and asters, manatees, dolphins, tupelo gums and herons. As the bril- liant afternoon sun bounces off his face, a bald eagle circles overhead, as if to say, “This man is one of us; this man is of the Earth.”
Crolley, owner-operator of Coastal Expedi- tions, is more than just an encyclopedia of Low- country flora and fauna. For nearly 15 years, he has made it his personal goal to take each bevy of Coastal Expedition kayakers under his natu- ralist wing and help them foster a passion and appreciation for nature that rivals his own.
WHEN DID YOU START WORKING AT COASTAL EXPEDITIONS? I was actually the first employee in 1994. In 2001, I became the sole owner/operator.
WHAT MAKES COASTAL EXPEDITIONS DIF- FERENT FROM THE OTHER KAYAKING TOUR COMPANIES? Coastal Expeditions was found- ed in 1992, with about six or seven boats and no competition. Now, kayaking is everyone’s thing. So in order to continue to achieve our mission statement, we’ve had to diversify. And it’s not a mission statement specific to kayaking; it’s a mission statement specific to environmental education. We reconnect people to the envi- ronment in an otherwise technologically driven culture that has people in front of TVs more often, a lot more pavement, a lot more instant gratification-type stuff.
That’s our mission: To get you back outside, re- connect you with the outside world — its flora, its fauna, the natural history, the geology — all of those things that make you realize that you’re living on a planet that you’re saving.
IS THERE ANYWHERE AROUND CHARLESTON WHERE YOU ESPECIALLY ENJOY PADDLING SOLO? It’s got to be Cape Romain, and around those tidal creeks. And Bull’s Island specifically. It’s just a magical island.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE TRIP OR EXPEDITION THAT YOU LEAD CLIENTS ON? There are a number of opportu- nities right here locally with the three stores, but they’re all saltwater. It’s sort of a monoculture, with the same grass, the beautiful abundance of birds specific to the saltwater. And the dolphin are so amazing, and the manatees swim right by here in the summertime… I love all of that.
But I’m inundated with that on a daily basis. So if I can get into the black water, where the cypress tree and the tupelo gum grow, and all of a sudden the water is fresh, sweet — it’s tannic, tea-colored — and it’s so botanically diverse with all the different alders and asters and roses and everything growing on the banks, where instead of dolphins you might see alligators, instead of egrets and herons and pelicans, you see the warblers and finches and thrushes and woodpeckers, it’s almost magic for me.
SPEAKING OF ALLIGATORS, HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE LEGALIZATION OF ALLIGATOR HUNTING IN SOUTH CAROLINA? I’m mixed on it. Alligator mississippiensis is a previously endangered species due to over-hunting. They’ve been around 10 million years, and we’re apex predators. It’s only a rock-paper-scissors game — human beats alligator. And they’re previously endangered because we eat them, not because they eat us.
Then again, hunting is natural and it’s especially a Southern heritage. So as long as it’s regulated, as long as the regulations are followed, and as long as the population is managed, it’s probably OK.
Alligators enjoy a large clutch of eggs, and a large percentage of those eggs typically survive.
WHAT IS THE MOST REWARDING PART OF YOUR JOB? When you get somebody, whether on the Bull Island Ferryor in a kayak or canoe, out in nature and the cell phones are off and you find that spot where you can’t see any- thing, and something happens.
Like the strand-feeding dolphin at the Folly Beach loca- tion. You can see this kind of light come on, and they make a connection. You’re the conduit that allows that connection to be made, and it’s that magnificent glimpse, or epiphanic happening that you help facilitate.
GOT ANY CRAZY EXPEDITION STORIES? There are so many different crazy stories that you accumulate after doing this for so long.
Let’s see... Back in the day when we first got started, we’d do tours in the afternoon in the summertime. You know, the forecast in the summer is always a chance of thunderstorms late in the afternoon, and conditions can change like that. All of a sudden you can barely see the end of your boat because it’s raining so hard. And there’s lightning cracking down and thunder right on top of you. Everybody in a power boat is trying to get back in, and you’re trying to get back in, and you know they can’t see you.
At that point you’re trying to make sure you keep all your clients corralled, and you’re asking yourself, “Is this worth it? Why don’t I have health insurance? Or would it matter if I did? Why don’t I have life insurance?”
So we don’t even offer tours in the afternoon in the summertime anymore. Just a morning tour and evening tour.
WHEN AND WHY DID YOU GAIN SUCH AN INTEREST IN THE OUTDOORS? I think I was a hyperactive kid, like ADD or whatever, that they didn’t have the medication for it at the time. So most of the day I recall how difficult it was to have to go to school and sit down and be still and pay attention and yield some work.
I remember the door opening and just rushing for the crack in the door, and just — BOOM — being outside. I was forced to be inside, so I wanted to be outside the rest of the time.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE PIECE OF EQUIPMENT, OR FAVORITE SETUP? An expedition-style sea kayak. One that’s between 16 and 18 feet long, about 21 inches wide. Composite — Kevlar would be the best. And flat water and a following wind, or calm, just cut-the-glass conditions, coupled with a real light carbon-fiber paddle and water for days.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE SOUND? Any sound generated by water. And my favorite thing to see? What my son and I call “sundance,” when light reflects off the water.
Reach staff writer Abi Nicholas at abi@tidelinemagazine.com or 958-7375.
U.S. COAST GUARD REPORT: SEPTEMBER 2008
The U.S. Coast Guard reported the following incidents for August 2008. Reports and “lessons learned” have been edited for length and content:
SEPT. 13: A naval vessel reported spotting a 10-foot johnboat about 70 nautical miles southeast of Charleston. After investigation, the vessel was deemed abandoned. Lessons learned: If you lose or abandon a vessel, report it to the Coast Guard so it can be logged as a derelict vessel. That way, when it is reported, it will be deemed non-distress.
SEPT. 13: A parent reported to Sector Charleston that his 17-year-old son was supposed to have gone fishing with someone and had not been seen for 24 hours. The parent did not know who his son was going out with, for how long or where from. Coast Guard began a search plan, but the parent later located his son. Lesson learned: If your child is going out on a vessel, know where from, where to, how long and with whom.
SEPT. 18: Sector Charleston received report of a 406 MHZ Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon activation near Seabrook Island. A helicopter was launched, and the vessel was located safely moored. The EPIRB had been inadvertently activated. Lesson learned: Know how an EPIRB works. (An EPIRB is a small, battery-powered transmitting device that is used only in case of emergency and usually only as a last resort when your marine radio is inoperable or out of range.) In the case of an accidental activation, report it to the Coast Guard immediately.
SEPT. 19: USCG received report of 20-foot pontoon boat on an oyster bed with two on board. The operator of the vessel sustained multiple cuts on his foot and leg while attempting to free his boat from the oyster bed. USCG towed the vessel safely back to the boat ramp. The injured man declined medical assistance. Lesson learned: When you go out on a vessel, know your draft and the tides. If you become grounded, call for help either by cell phone or VHF radio. You could be severely injured from lacerations from an oyster bed.
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