Let’s Go
The J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge will celebrate National Public Lands Day and Urban National Wildlife Refuge Day on Sept. 28 with special activities, plus free Wildlife Drive admission.
From 9:30 to 11:30, refuge staff will lead a beach clean-up of its Perry Tract area adjacent to Gulfside City Park Beach. Participants will receive a free nationwide Public Lands Pass, good for one year.
City parking fees will apply.
Those who are unable to attend can post a picture of themselves on social media cleaning up a local public land, using #NPLD. Email the photo to Toni_Westland@fws.gov to receive the free pass.
At 1 p.m., refuge staff invites the public to a free showing of the 56-minute documentary “The Forgotten Coast: Return to Wild Florida” inside of the Visitor & Education Center.
Following in the footsteps of a wandering Florida black bear, three modern-day explorers leave civilization and enter a lost wilderness on a rugged thousand-mile journey by foot, paddle and bike. Traversing Florida’s vast and seldom seen “Forgotten Coast,” the expedition encounters stunning and rare wildlife in a fragile corridor stretching from the Everglades to the Florida-Alabama border.
Premiered in 2017, the PBS documentary captures manatees, alligators, ancient river fish and endangered woodpeckers. On the wind, in the waves, through the trees, and under the stars, the film offers a chance not just to look back in time but to look forward to a future filled with new hope.
Wildlife Drive will open at 7 a.m. for free touring and will close at 7 p.m.
Narrated tram tours will run at their normal cost at 10 a.m., 12:30 p.m. and 3 p.m.
Always free, the Visitor & Education Center will open at 9 a.m.
For more information, contact refuge Ranger Monica Scroggin at 239-472-1100, ext. 237.
The J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge is at 1 Wildlife Drive, Sanibel.
Let’s Go
The community is invited to join the Sanibel-Captiva Conservation Foundation to help clean up the beaches of Sanibel and Captiva on the morning of Sept. 21 for the annual Coastal Cleanup.
SCCF will provide the trash bags, data cards, gloves, water and a T-shirt to all participants before they head out for their beach assignments from 9 to 11 a.m.
After collecting, documenting and disposing of their trash at the SCCF Nature Center, at 3333 Sanibel-Captiva Road, Sanibel, volunteers will be offered complimentary lunch items starting at 11 a.m. Doc Ford’s Rum Bar & Grille is the SCCF’s first lunch partner for the 2019 Coastal Cleanup.
Individuals and families are most welcome to participate. Neighborhoods, workplaces, houses of worship and other groups are encouraged to form teams before signing up.
The local Coastal Cleanup efforts are coordinated in partnership by the SCCF and Keep Lee County Beautiful as part of the Ocean Conservancy’s International Coastal Cleanup.
To work Gulfside City Park or Bowman’s Beach, sign up at www.klcb.org/coastal-cleanup.html.
For other island locations or more information, contact Alex Horn at ahorn@sccf.org or call the SCCF at 239-472-2329.
Let’s Go
The public can try its hand at saltwater fishing on Sept. 7 without needing the required license.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Foundation reported that license-free fishing days are a way for residents and visitors to get out on the water and discover why Florida is known as the Fishing Capital of the World. The day is one of eight license-free fishing days that the FWC offers each year.
All bag limits, closed areas and size restrictions will apply.
For more information on fishing licenses, visit MyFWC.com/License.
For regulations and tips about fishing, visit MyFWC.com/Fishing.
To renew or purchase a fishing license, visit GoOutdoorsFlorida.com.