Kayaking Garrett Marsh

An eco tour through another world, minutes from home

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The eco tour was headed deeper into one of the cuts in the Garrett Marsh, located off the coast of Barnum Island in Oceanside, when an army of terns suddenly appeared overhead, squawking at full volume at the trespassers who dared cross their territory in kayaks and neon orange life vests.

“This time of year, they’re yelling at you, saying, ‘Get out of our territory! We’re raising babies here!’” said Matt Sherman, a marine biologist who leads the Marsh Madness tour for Empire Kayak in Island Park.

On select Saturday mornings through the end of August, Empire offers a guided, one-and-a-half hour eco-tour through the marsh with Sherman, which leaves from its waterfront store on Empire Blvd. The tour explains Garrett’s unique ecosystem while pointing out the many marsh birds that live in the bay — like the terns that were about to dive-bomb our kayaks if we didn’t leave their territory. “Hundreds will show up sometimes and patrol the area when it needs it,” said Sherman.

Our tour began on an overcast, windless day at high tide, with me seated in the front of a two-person kayak — without a paddle — and my driver in the back seat doing all the work. He “accidentally” bonked me in the head a few times with the paddle while rowing. I’m thinking he may have passive-aggressive issues.

A group of nearly 30 kayakers showed up for this tour, an impressive number considering the overcast skies and the fact that it was July 4. They listened attentively as Sherman explained the story behind the marsh:

“The marshes here are formed slowly, as the high tide brings in detritus, which is a fancy name for ocean muck,” said Sherman. “It’s made up of broken down leaves and grasses and organic matter coated in fungus and bacteria. It sounds kind of gross, but it’s super important for the system,” he said. As the tide goes back out, the organic matter gets caught in the grasses and roots, and slowly builds up the marshes a little bit more.

If we were paddling during low tide, we would’ve seen thousands of ribbed mussels along the edge of the marsh, which provide another type of “glue” to hold the marsh together, thanks to their byssal threads. These fibers attach themselves to grass roots, stems, and large, hard objects in the sediment.

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