Isle of Palms Magazine Winter-Spring 2017-18

31 www.IsleOfPalmsMagazine.com | www.ILoveIOP.com | www.IOPmag.com Ecosystem Education and Relaxation Barrier Island Eco Tours T he undeveloped barrier island 15 miles north of Charleston was a home away from home for Shane Ziegler when he was growing up. One day in 1997, while the IOP resident was roasting freshly-caught oysters on Capers with a buddy, he realized that the island could be even more. “Everybody’s coming here [to Charleston] for history and restaurants, but there was nobody going out on boats at that time,” said Ziegler. “We’ve got these beautiful salt marshes and barrier islands. I wanted to do something special for people to experience and learn about them.” In 1997, Ziegler started Barrier Island Eco Tours with a six-passenger vessel. A year later, he added a 40-person pontoon. Now Eco Tours is four vessels strong and takes tourists and locals alike on dolphin cruises, fishing trips and beach-side cookouts year-round. This year alone, Eco Tours led 10,000 local school kids around Charleston’s waterways. “One of my favorite things is the custom tours,” said Ziegler, who hosts trips where kids learn to cast nets, fish from the boat, go crabbing and even stop to explore Capers and enjoy their fresh catch. “We catch fish like sea trout, flounder and ladyfish. If they want, we’ll do a cookout right on the beach.” Imagine a private fishing trip, nature tour, intimate cookout and a wildlife cruise all in one – that’s essentially what Ziegler created with Eco Tours. Headed by Ziegler and a team professional naturalists, many of whom have a master’s in Marine Biology and a decade of experience, the tours balance ecosystem education with relaxation. “Locals who have lived here their whole life learn new things about the salt life, barrier islands and animals,” said Ziegler, a Clemson graduate who worked at Hunting Island State Park before returning to Isle of Palms. Take one of Charleston’s most sought-after dishes, for example: oysters. Foodie tourists get a new perspective on the menu item when Ziegler explains how one oyster filters two gallons of water an hour – that’s 30 to 50 gallons a day. Getting so close to marine life is a rare experience, by Enid Spitz even along the Carolina coast. Passengers have the ocean brought right to them on board Ziegler’s two 49-passenger pontoon boats, the Caretta and the Delphinus; the 16-passenger Carolina skiff, the Marsh Mama; or the six-passenger Cut Mullet, a bay style fishing boat. Thanks to the vessels’ touch tanks and specimen tables, everyone gets to peruse shells, skulls and creatures like blue or stone crabs straight from the sea. Like Charleston’s tourism, Eco Tours operates year-round. There are some extra special times to join a tour, though. “In the fall, we get great dolphin shows nearly every day. That’s when we see them breach and even jump out of the water,” said Ziegler. “They like that feel of the fresh air, just like we do. It makes them real spunky.” It’s hardly any wonder that Ziegler fell in love with Charleston’s barrier islands as a boy growing up in Isle of Palms. Now he gets to share this oasis of dolphins, oysters and fresh fish with curious couples, classes of schoolchildren and entire boats full of family members. “On our ecotours to Capers Island during oyster season, we will check out an oyster bed and shuck them right there on the boat,” said Ziegler. “These are the freshest oysters you’ll get.”. To learn more, visit www.barrierislandecotours.blogspot.com . Photos courtesy of Barrier Island Eco Tours. [ Feature ]