Category Archives: Events

Join Us for our Winter Bay Day Celebration – Saturday, February 1st, 2025

Join Us Saturday, February 1st, 2025 for our popular Winter Bay Day!    9am – 3pm EST

Friends of St. Joseph Bay Preserves present a day of education, shrimp and music.  Learn about the preserves and life along the bay.  There will be lots to see and lots to do. Best of all, the Low Country Shrimp Boil will be delicious – as always! Meet you on the deck of the Visitor Center! … no admission fee!

3915 State Road 30A, Port St. Joe, Florida 32456

On the Deck: The Visitor Center Deck will have the low country boil and drinks, picnic tables, a silent auction, live music, and stunning views of St. Joseph Bay.
Low Country Shrimp Boil:   11am – 2pm EST    $15 Donation
Live Music Throughout the Day: Crossroad Bluegrass Band – music for saints and sinners.

Guided Tram Tours: The Buffer Preserve staff will have tram rides throughout the day that will showcase the backwoods trails of the Buffer Preserve. Explore the preserves on a guided tram tour through the backwoods trails of the Buffer Preserve and learn about the native animal and plant life. Tours depart from the Visitor Center. Reservations are recommended and will be available on the deck at the Bay Day event. Bay Day tram tour seating will be first come first served. Departure Times: 9:00am, 10:00 am, 11:00am, 12:00pm, & 1:00pm EST.

Exhibitors & Demonstrations: Exhibitors at Bay Day will have displays set up to share information about water quality, recreational opportunities, seagrass research and monitoring, urchins, scallops (touch tank), updates to the State Park, turtles, fossils, shorebirds, and so much more of the great environmental work that is done in and around St. Joseph Bay! All the environmental displays will be located down on the grass by the observation tower and along the back of the lodge.
Winter Bay Day Exhibitors Include:
Central Panhandle Aquatic Preserves, St. Andrews & St. Joseph Bays Estuary Program, St. Joseph Peninsula State Park, Rish State Park, Gulf County UF/IFAS, Audubon Florida, Indian Pass Turtle Patrol,
Florida Coastal Conservancy/Forgotten Coast Sea Turtle Center,
Friends of Gulf County Library, International Dark Sky/Capture the Dark, FWC/Fish and Wildlife Research Institute – Bay Scallops
FWC/Fisheries-Independent Monitoring Program.

Silent Auction and Raffle: Our silent auction and fun raffle have lots of donations from our community partners that support our Mission to advocate for the St. Joseph Bay Aquatic Preserve and State Buffer Preserve, and to support the education on those key issues that are important in keeping the bay and preserve one of the most pristine areas in the world. These silent auction items cover a wide range of things such as chef at home experiences, fishing charters, art, dining gift certificates and much more! We have options to bid on the specific item or buy it now pricing.  Either way, you take all items home that day and have a chance to be a raffle winner.

Silent Auction and Raffle: Our silent auction and fun raffle have lots of donations from our community partners that support our Mission to advocate for the St. Joseph Bay Aquatic Preserve and State Buffer Preserve, and to support the education on those key issues that are important in keeping the bay and preserve one of the most pristine areas in the world. These silent auction items cover a wide range of things such as chef at home experiences, fishing charters, art, dining gift certificates and much more! We have options to bid on the specific item or buy it now pricing.  Either way, you take all items home that day and have a chance to be a raffle winner.

Birding Tour at Salinas Park Bayside:  Collette Lauzau, Shorebird Program Manager-Audubon Florida, will be leading the 2 hour bird tour around St. Joseph Bay during Bay Day. Participants meet at Salinas Park Bayside (280 Cape San Blas Rd, Port St. Joe, FL 32456) at 8:30am EST.
We will bird that area and potentially drive a short distance to a second location that I will scout before the birding walk just to see if there will be birds foraging the flats. The meeting time will be at 8:30 am and if the second location is active, we will probably end at 10:30 am. Regular walking shoes should be fine.  It would be great for participants to bring binoculars.”

The Bay Day events are located at the St. Joseph Bay State Buffer Preserve Visitor Center, 3915 State Road 30-A (C-30), Port St. Joe, Florida 32456.
Bay Day is presented by Friends of St. Joseph Bay Preserves, Inc., Central Panhandle Aquatic Preserves, and the St. Joseph Bay State Buffer Preserve. All proceeds to benefit the Friends of St. Joseph Bay Preserves.
For more information: Call 850-229-1787 or Send Us an Email

Join us for our Fall Fest in the Preserve – Saturday, November 16th, 2024

Fall Fest in the Preserve
Join Us Saturday, November 16th, 2024, for our Fall Festival in the heart of the St. Joseph Bay State Buffer Preserve.
3pm – 6pm EST
Friends of St. Joseph Bay Preserves present an afternoon of outdoor fun and activities including hay rides through the preserve, interpretive hiking, scavenger hunt, face painting, hot apple cider,  campfire with marshmallow roast, walking tacos and more … no admission fee!
Live Music Throughout the Afternoon: The “mixed acoustic” sounds of Marilyn and Tyler Freeman, …. “a little old country, blue grass, and rock n’ roll”.
The Fall Festival events are located within the Buffer Preserve on Treasure Road. Turn in at Treasure Rd off 30A, “across the street” from the Buffer Preserve Visitor Center (3915 State Road 30-A, Port St. Joe, Florida 32456). Follow the signs and volunteer parking guides.
The Fall Festival is sponsored by The Friends of the St. Joseph Bay Preserves in Partnership with Buffer and Aquatic Preserves staff.
For more information: Call 850-229-1787 or Send Us an Email

 

Join the Sea Urchin Roundup – Saturday, September 9, 2023

 HELP DEP AND FWC REHOME SEA URCHINS – SEPT. 9, 2023

St. Joseph Bay, located in Gulf County in the Panhandle, once contained extensive beds of seagrass and supported an abundant scallop fishery. Residents and visitors enjoyed extensive, pristine seagrass beds and clear bay waters. Summertime recreational scallop harvesting contributed greatly to the local economy. Seagrass beds in the bay are dominated by turtle grass which also provide food for abundant green sea turtles. The scallop fishery has become depleted in recent years, algal blooms are more frequent, and the acreage of seagrass beds has decreased. An overabundance of sea urchins (Lytechinus spp.) continues to destroy turtle grass beds through overgrazing. This project will jump start natural recovery of seagrass by installing exclosures over grazed areas to allow seagrasses to grow back without sea urchin grazing pressure. In addition, sea urchin roundups, public outreach events, will involve citizens to remove sea urchins from active grazing fronts. The animals will be released in deeper areas of the bay at a distance from grazed areas.

Festival of Trees at The Joe Center for the Arts, through Dec. 12, 2021

See the Friends of St. Joseph Bay Preserves Christmas tree at the Festival of Trees, at The Joe Center for the Arts!  Many organizations and businesses have decorated beautiful and original trees for this display.  Vote for your favorite!  Plus there are special events including a Silent Auction.  For the schedule, see https://thejoecenterforthearts41.wildapricot.org/

201 Reid Avenue, Port Saint Joe/ Wednesday-Saturday, 11-6, except Thanksgiving weekend (closing at 3 on Weds., reopening on Sat.)

Friends of the Preserves 2021 Festival of Trees

Guided Tram Tours

The third Thursday of every month, the Buffer Preserve offers a tram tour through the preserve. The tour will begin with a separate history talk inside the Visitor Center at 8:00 a.m. EDT. Attendees will then proceed to the Main Gate parking lot (across the street from the visitor center) to board the tram.
The tram moves slowly, and our staff will interpret the surroundings while you ride down Treasure Road and Sandridge Road. Remember to bring anything that will make your ride more comfortable: hat, sunscreen, water, insect repellent, raincoat, camera, binoculars, etc. The tram has no roof so be prepared for sun or possibly a light shower. We will not cancel if the rain is light and no lightning is present.

To reserve your spot please email Sandra Chafin at Sandra.Chafin@dep.state.fl.us , or phone her at 850-229-1787. Include the names and number of people in your party.
Masks are suggested on the tram.

Join the Sea Urchin Roundup – May 22nd

Participate in the Sea Urchin Roundup on May 22, 2021

The FDEP/Central Panhandle Aquatic Preserves and FWC/FWRI are hosting the St. Joseph Bay Urchin Roundup on May 22nd. We are looking to recruit volunteers to help collect urchins to relocate out to deeper water to help reduce grazing pressure on seagrasses in St. Joseph Bay. See the information flyer.

Check-in is at the Frank Pate Public Boat Ramp in Port St. Joe.  We will also have a registration tent and outreach tent at Frank Pate Boat Ramp all day for the event.

Bring your own boat, gloves and snorkeling gear and join us in removing sea urchins from seagrass beds! We will provide maps and gps locations showing where to collect urchins and buckets to put them in. Return buckets filled with urchins to our check-in station and get some swag. We will relocate the urchins to deeper water away from seagrass.

Check-in begins at 8:00 AM, and all urchins must be turned in by 5:00 PM. Please check in with an FWC or DEP employee to get your bucket and sign a volunteer waiver. Urchins should be returned in this bucket with seawater to be safely relocated by FWC or DEP employees.

Rain date is June 5, 2021.

St. Joseph Bay, located in Gulf County in the Panhandle, once contained extensive beds of seagrass and supported an abundant scallop fishery. Residents and visitors enjoyed extensive, pristine seagrass beds and clear bay waters. Summertime recreational scallop harvesting contributed greatly to the local economy. Seagrass beds in the bay are dominated by turtle grass which also provide food for abundant green sea turtles. The scallop fishery has become depleted in recent years, algal blooms are more frequent, and the acreage of seagrass beds has decreased. An overabundance of sea urchins (Lytechinus spp.) continues to destroy turtle grass beds through overgrazing. This project will jump start natural recovery of seagrass by installing exclosures over grazed areas to allow seagrasses to grow back without sea urchin grazing pressure. In addition, sea urchin roundups, public outreach events, will involve citizens to remove sea urchins from active grazing fronts. The animals will be released in deeper areas of the bay at a distance from grazed areas.

This project is a partnership between FWRI and the Central Panhandle Aquatic Preserves of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Staff from both agencies are maintaining the exclosures, monitoring the abundance of sea urchins quarterly, assessing sea grass abundance by in-water and mapping surveys, and measuring water quality monthly.

 

April 2 Let’s G.O. Walk in the Preserve

Let’s G.O. means “Let’s Get Outdoors.” Join a volunteer for a walk on the Island Road, about 1.5 miles round trip. We will meet at 9:00 a.m. Eastern time in the Island Gate parking area on County Road 30 (C30). Unfortunately the sign for Island Gate has been lost. The gate is located 0.9 mile east of the intersection of C30 and Cape San Blas Road, and 0.6 mile west of Money Bayou.

Maps are on our website:   “Maps.”

We’ll learn about interesting native plants and look out for birds and signs of other animals that live in the Preserve.

Children and dogs are welcome. Dogs must be leashed. Please wear a mask and comfortable shoes, bring sunscreen, water, and a hat, and be aware that we may encounter shallow pools of water or mud at spots along the trail.

For questions or reservations, use the Contact Us button on the menu across the top of our home page, or email admin@stjosephbaypreserve.org . Hope to see you this Friday!

April Tram Tour, April 15, 9:30-11:30 a.m. Eastern

The third Thursday of every month, the Buffer Preserve offers a tram tour through the preserve. Due to the spike in COVID-19 cases, our visitor center is closed again, and this tour will not include a separate history talk. Attendees will meet directly at the Main Gate parking lot (across the street from the visitor center) at 9:30am.
The tram moves slowly, and our staff will interpret the surroundings while you ride down Treasure Road and Sandridge Road. Remember to bring anything that will make your ride more comfortable: hat, sunscreen, water, insect repellent, raincoat, camera, binoculars, etc. The tram has no roof so be prepared for sun or possibly a light shower. We will not cancel if the rain is light and no lightning is present.
To reserve your spot please email Sandra Chafin at Sandra.Chafin@floridadep.gov. Include the names and number of people in your party.
PLEASE NOTE: Since the visitor center is closed, our bathrooms will not be available. As well, masks are suggested on the tram.

Let’s G.O. walk in the Buffer Preserve, Friday, Feb. 5, 9:00 Eastern

Island Road Trail

Let’s G.O. means “Let’s Get Outdoors.”  Join a volunteer for a walk on the North Spur Road, 1.9 miles round trip.  We will meet at 9:00 a.m. Eastern time in the Main Gate parking lot across the road from the Buffer Preserve Visitor Center, 3915 State Road 30A.  We’ll learn about interesting native plants and look out for birds and signs of other animals that live in the Preserve.

Children and dogs are welcome.  Dogs must be leashed.  Please wear a mask and comfortable shoes, and be aware that we may encounter shallow pools of water or mud at spots along the trail.

Let us know if you plan to attend: use the Contact Us button on the menu across the top of our home page.  Hope to see you this Friday!