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I often grab a quick lunch at a deli near my office. The majority of the employees who handle my orders have worked there for an extended period, which allows them to be familiar with what I do and do not typically order on my sandwiches and other items that go along with familiar questions at an eatery.
On the rare occasion that a new cashier is working, they will always ask if I need a bag as I grab my items off the counter near the register. That is when the owner will jokingly say, "He doesn't get plastic bags. He is trying to save the sea turtles."
Years earlier I hired the owner to make a custom birthday cake for my daughter Bella. She did an amazing job, giving it the appearance of a beach with a wave crashing over the grains of sand. I later added a lifelike rubber sea turtle.
While ordering this cake, I informed the baker about my daughter's obsession with sea turtles. Over the years she had spent time at a sea turtle hospital, donated money to various causes to protect them, visited many aquariums to see these large reptiles and acquired quite the collection of clothing and stuffed animals.
Bella was also constantly informing friends and family members that plastic bags and straws were very harmful for sea turtles. Once these items inevitably make their way to the ocean, they are mistakenly eaten by turtles who believe they are jellyfish.
Unfortunately, she had never witnessed a sea turtle in the ocean despite her passion to help protect them anyway she could. This made it worse when I had to tell her about my encounters with them while she was not with me. My first two occasions were with loggerheads while fishing near Hatteras Village on the Outer Banks. Both times the turtles emerged and spent some time near the surface while I was out fishing in the sound.
The other encounter took place when my wife and I took our only vacation without our two kids to celebrate our 15th wedding anniversary in the Florida Keys. We went snorkeling during this trip, and as luck would have it, I spent several minutes swimming along a hawksbill sea turtle. Spending time with this critically endangered turtle was something I will never forget, but the entire time I thought to myself, "Bella would love it. I wish she was here."
Every summer we spend a week on the southern tip of Outer Banks around the Independence Day holiday. During those times, it was common for sea turtles to come up on the narrow beaches and lay eggs during the late hours of the night.
These nests were always marked by the Parks Service to make people aware they needed to stay away from that specific area. Early every morning during nesting season they drive the beach to look for drag marks made by the female turtles to ensure those areas are protected by beachgoers.
This year due to some scheduling conflicts, we spent our week in OBX later in the summer. When we arrived in August the nesting sites were once again roped off up and down the beach. However, we noticed black plastic around a few of them.
While speaking to someone who came to check the nest, we learned those runways are installed the week that the eggs are predicted to hatch to keep them from heading the wrong direction towards the dunes as they occasionally mistake the beach house lights for that of the moon and stars reflecting on the water.
Sea turtles typically hatch around day 60 and we were happy to find out three different nests near the house we rented had the possibility of activity during the final days of our stay. I hoped this would be Bella's opportunity to finally see some turtles in their natural environment.
Every day we checked with the volunteers to get an update on the possibility of that evening being when they would emerge. The biggest telltale sign would be a depression in the sand showing the turtles starting to dig through toward the surface.
A few days passed without any signs of the impending appearance of the tiny loggerheads showing up on the beach in Hatteras Village. Our time table to see this magical event was creeping closer to the end, as was our time to fish.
I was out on our boat with my father and brother trying to land red drum as the sun started to set when I got a phone call from my wife on our second to last day of the trip. She excitedly informed me they were hanging out near the nest when several burst through the sand and quickly made their way into the crashing waves of the open ocean.
Hearing this news put a huge smile on my face knowing my daughter was able to experience something she truly wanted to witness. However, I will be honest, there was some jealousy on my part. I had caught drum before like those we were casting to that night, but had always wanted to watch newly hatched sea turtles scamper across the sand.
Typically, the majority of turtles will appear together as they work their way through the sand before finally getting their first glimpse of the sky and water. It happens quickly, so if you are not within sight of the nest you will probably be too late to arrive thanks to a phone call.
After the first night, only about a dozen had made their way to the surf. With an expected nest of over 100 eggs, I assumed my chances were good to catch the next wave of hatchlings if I spent time nearby.
This nest proved that you never know what will happen in nature. I spent hours there late that night, early the following morning and returned at dusk. During all three visits it was evident by the sand none had emerged without me. Volunteers constantly monitor the nesting sites and always rake the sand so it is easy to count the number of turtles in case no one is there to witness the activity.
On my last night in Hatteras my wife and daughter joined me in the evening for our final watch party. You may think I had wasted a lot of time up to this point. But remember, we were sitting on an empty beach in August watching the waves, wildlife and relaxing in a comfortable beach chair. Turtles would only be a bonus.
As the Knepp women were talking to the volunteer by the dunes, I noticed something black on the sand. Soon I confirmed it was what I had been waiting to see. The tiny reptile pulled itself across the sand as I motioned for everyone to come to get a better look. It took about 15 seconds for the 50-cent-sized turtle to reach the water and quickly disappear.
Eight more turtles would make their way to the ocean before activity stopped. Those would be the last to emerge before the Park Service would excavate the nest. They do this to count how many eggs were laid and try to find the cause why any that did not hatch failed to do so. The report stated that eggs were found in various stages of development, but no more survivors were found. This may have been due to high water or several other common circumstances.
While I hoped Bell and I would be able to see a rush of dozens of hatchlings crossing the beach, I can honestly say we were both very happy to have our 2022 encounter that will be a fond memory for years to come.