Category Archives: Events

Events

January Tram Tour, Thursday, Jan. 21

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 Environmental Specialist Sophia Fonseca 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 Sophia at sophia.fonseca@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.

Activities, Events

December Tram Tour, Dec. 17

WHEN: Thursday, December 17th, 9:30am – 11am

WHERE: Main Gate Trail Entrance

DESCRIPTION: Every third Thursday of the 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 Environmental Specialist Sophia Fonseca 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 Sophia at sophia.fonseca@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.

Activities, Events

Birding at the Buffer, Dec. 25

 

WHEN: Friday, December 25th, 7:30am – 9:30am

WHERE: Deal Tract

DESCRIPTION: This event is NOT an official Audubon Christmas Bird Count (CBC).  For more information on CBC go to https://www.audubon.org/conservation/join-christmas-bird-count.

The holidays might look a little different this year, so why not start a new tradition?  Make memories with family and friends and learn about the birds seen on the Deal Tract on a bird-watching hike.  Bring binoculars if you own them, but if not, the preserve has some available to borrow.

The hike will go from the parking lot, to the bay, and back: a sandy 1 mile or so.  As the Deal Tract can be very buggy, please dress appropriately and use insect repellent as needed.

Due to COVID-19, the hike will be limited to 10 people, and masks are suggested.

Activities, Events

First Day Hike, Jan. 1

WHEN: Friday, January 1st, 10am-12pm

WHERE: South Gate Trail Entrance

DESCRIPTION: Get the new year started off on the right foot with a hike!  We will meet at the South Gate Trail Entrance and traverse Sandridge Loop for about 2 miles roundtrip.  Please contact us if you need directions to this less popular entrance to the preserve.  (Map below: South Gate is on County Road 30A, slightly east of Cape San Blas.)

Remember to bring and wear anything that will make you the most comfortable for hiking!  Good walking shoes, insect repellent, water, etc.

Due to COVID-19, the hike will be limited to 10 people, and masks are suggested.

Events

Halloween at the Buffer Preserve

Friday, October 30, 6:00-9:00 Eastern Time

St. Joseph Bay State Buffer Preserve, 3915 State Road 30A, Port St. Joe, FL

Full Moon Tram Tour and Treats

The Friends of St. Joseph Bay Preserves welcome you to our first Halloween event! At the base of the observation tower, Preserve Manager Dylan Shoemaker will host a marshmallow roast around a campfire. Up on the deck, Friends will be serving hot chocolate and candy! Across the street, Environmental Specialist Sophia Fonseca will lead visitors on a haunted tram tour.
Experience the preserve after hours in the light of the oh-so-convenient full moon, actually a blue moon! There will be scary history about the preserve and maybe some views of creatures that only come out at night. Reservations are required for the Haunted Tram. While we are limiting the number of people on the tram to abide by CDC guidelines, we will be offering the tour at two times: 6pm and 7:30pm. In your reservation, please list the number of people in your group as well as your chosen tour time.
Tram reservations can be made by contacting Sophia Fonseca at sophia.fonseca@floridadep.gov
Meet at the Main Gate parking lot at the time of your tour. We suggest driving across the street for safety reasons.
Masks are required inside the visitor center. Outside, they are required if 6ft of distance cannot be maintained.
COSTUMES ARE ENCOURAGED!

Activities, Events, News

18th Winter Bay Day – A HUGE SUCCESS!

Everyone working together . . . makes any event successful! This was certainly the case for the 18th Winter Bay Day held on February 8th at the St. Joseph Bay Buffer Preserve. Just 5 plates less than 500 served made the day outstanding and even record-breaking in some areas.

Board members, volunteers and staff at the Preserve were ecstatic at the number of participants, dedicated volunteers, and supporting agencies and organizations setting up informational displays. Winter and Fall Bay Day events have returned after a year following Hurricane Michael. It has been a long road back and thankfully a successful one.

Dylan Shoemaker, Manager of the Preserve, proudly expressed with great enthusiasm, “how pleased we are with such a great turnout. After having to postpone Bay Day for over a year we were a little apprehensive about its return to the area. Attendance exceeded our expectations for which we are thankful. Our returning volunteers, year after year, provide consistency and allows us to grow and improve. Thanks to everyone for making Winter Bay Day 2020 one of the best ever!”

Four TRAM Tours were offered and were filled to capacity. The regularly scheduled Third Thursday on February 20th was also filled to capacity. If you have not experienced the tour join us. Twenty-six lucky people who have registered tour the heart of the preserve. For Fall and Winter Bay Day there is no early registration. If interested in the March TRAM Tour call 850-229-1787 as quickly as possible as several seats are already reserved.

Jonathan Brucker, St. Joseph Bay Aquatic Preserve Manager, was also excited with the turnout and the interest in St. Joe Bay and the concern for continued watching and protecting the bay. Jon and his staff cheerfully explained maps, brochures and the mission of the Aquatic Preserve to any and all who wanted to listen. He had this to say about the event, “Educating the public is first and foremost in our mission at the St. Joseph Bay Aquatic Preserve. Bay Day visitors and locals want to know how they can help us recover from the effects of Hurricane Michael. We have been so impressed with everyone’s sincere offers to assist clean-up in any way possible. Jon reported that signage for the bay will be replaced as quickly as possible.

“What a great day we had Saturday! The weather was perfect, the music was toe-tapping wonderful, the beer was cold, the shrimp were delicious and what a crowd! I had so many compliments on our event, with most saying they had missed us and were so glad we were back”, says Board President, Lynda White.

 

Events, Meetings, News

Friends Held Annual Meeting

The Friends of St. Joseph Bay Preserves held their annual meeting January 18th at the Buffer Preserve. Attendees were updated on the state of the Preserves post Michael. Dylan Shoemaker, Buffer Preserve Manager, reported on the efforts to clean up and repair damage to the land and buildings. Jonathan Brucker, Aquatic Preserve Manager, outlined ongoing testing of water quality in the bay and other locations as well as shoreline restoration and cleanup.
Lynda White, President of the Friends Board of
Directors, thanked the Friends for their support and encouraged everyone to get the word out that Bay Day is back, better than ever, on February 8th.   Lynda White

Activities, Events

15th Bay Day! Outstanding Sponsors!

It all started in 2003 when the first Board of the Friends of the Preserves decided to have a thank you for those who had supported their tireless efforts of establishing a committed group of citizens concerned with helping the health of the bay. Charla Boggs was the first president of this illustrious group of citizens. That first group and each group who have followed have displayed extraordinary desires to restore the land, protect the water, and preserve for the future.

Lynda White is the current president who has been blessed with an outstanding board and wonderful opportunities during her term in office. Purchasing 25 lots contiguous to the Buffer Preserve will help continue to help protect the quality of the water and wildlife in and near St. Joe Bay. Lynda says, “It has been a privilege to serve on the board and as its president. Opportunities have been presented and funds from our previous Bay Days allowed us to make these purchases. The 5,025+ acres benefit the entire community. Improvements made in the buffer and aquatic preserves contribute to the mission of the Friends.”

Would you believe that over 300 attended the first “Low Country Boil”? How about this fact? There were 7 prizes donated to be given away in a drawing at that first event. Yes, you read it correctly. Seven prizes were given and of that seven — four of them are still donating prizes for the Bay Day Live Auction, Silent Auction or for the Raffle. Original sponsors were: Dead Fish Charters at the Indian Pass Campground, The Entrance, Happy Ours, Debbie Hooper Photography, Indian Pass Raw Bar, St. Vincent Island Shuttle Service and Richard and Anne Ingram.

THANK YOU to the 200+ local business sponsors for 2018!
Our Fall Bay Day, Silent Auction and Live Auction would not be possible without the generous donations of desirable goods and services made by our local business sponsors.
When you are considering making a purchase use a business who knows the value of the bay to the citizens of Gulf County and the surrounding area. Go to the Donors & Sponsors page on this website for a complete list of our donors and sponsors.

For an authentic experience (the Atlanta Magazine says), come on out to the St. Joseph Bay Buffer Preserve on Saturday, October 13th. You can participate in a great Birding Tour led by Ron Houser of the Bay County Audubon Society, beginning at 8:00 am ET. There will be four TRAM Tours: 9:30 am, 11:00 am, 12:30 pm, 2:00 pm. Twenty-four seats for each time. Both are free however, you must sign up to participate.

We will ask for a $10 donation for each shrimp plate and what a bargain that is. The first plates in 2003 were $7 so you can see they are still reasonable and most delicious.

While you are enjoying Bay Day, stop by our Silent Auction tables and check out the Silent Auction Bid Items.

You will not want to miss our Live Auction event Thursday October 11th starting at 6:30 pm ET at the Preserve Visitor Center. This is an excellent opportunity to make donations to the preserves while having a lot of fun. Our Auctioneer Frank will entertain you while encouraging you to go ahead and plan that charter fishing trip or enjoy that stay at the beach, take a day to recharge and be pampered. You can find a multitude of choices for that experience. Your house needing some repairs? Look at our home improvement section for help.

Want to see what your choices are? Go to the Live Auction Bid Items page on this website and see the entire list of donations made by our awesome sponsors. All to help protect the bay, the natural communities and wildlife in the preserve.

Look for hand-outs of the Live Auction items in retail stores in the area and check them out online. Christmas is right around the corner and you can get started early. You will be so proud of yourself for getting that head start and in such an outstanding way – helping the preserves.

If you have questions please call 850-229-1787, Ext. 1 for more information.