Charleston Eco Tours

Discover the low country’s natural side

- Marilyn Jones

We are barely underway when our boat captain, Mike, announces that there are dolphins nearby. All 16 passengers — six children, six parents and four grandparents — clamber to one side of the boat to glimpse the mammals coming to the surface and diving again. Our Barrier Island Eco Tour Blue Crabbing Excursion is off to a great start; we are already making discoveries along the South Carolina shoreline.

Motoring along the Intra coastal Waterway, Captain Mike makes a stop so that John, our onboard naturalist, can pull up a crab trap from the depths and onto the boat. Inside are stone crabs, blue crabs and plant life that John uses for “show and tell” — a ready-made marine classroom. John talks about each crab species, the impressive cutting and crushing power of their claws, and how a female lays millions of eggs over her lifetime. John also shows everyone how to catch crabs the old-fashioned way — with a hand line and crab net.

Our next destination is Capers Island, an undeveloped barrier island located 15 miles north of Charleston. After Mike beaches the boat, he and John provide each of us with handlines, already baited with chicken necks, and a net for our crabbing attempts.