Dreamscapes Travel & Lifestyle Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dreamscapes.ca/i/739845
C hris Wiber from WildNative Delta Safaris pilots his boat, The Osprey, over the flooded prairie wetland into this maze of Alabama jungle edged by sinewy cattails and alive with osprey, turtles and carnivorous pitcher plants. Along the way, the naturalist's wife Jami, his trusty deck hand, reveals the preventative uses of wax myrtle to thwart mosquitoes as Chris cuts the engine to search for alligator nests. TEEMING WITH WILDLIFE Before you know it we leave behind the thick weedy alleys of coastal Alabama and hit the wide open waters of Mobile Bay passing under the longest bridge in the state. It's not every day you get to explore the second largest river delta in America with a local. "The Alabama Gulf coast is the lifeblood of this country," says Captain Chris about the mostly undiscovered area teeming in wildlife. The Mobile-Tensaw Delta spills into the Gulf of Mexico at breakneck speeds, leaving behind a seabed of riches that boasts one of North America's most biolog- ically diverse habitats. "We break all kinds of species records. One of my personal favourites: Alabama has the largest amount of freshwater fish of any- where in the nation," he says in that warm southern twang describing the roughly 350 fish species, including a list of more critter superlatives living in America's Amazon. "This one is tough to measure but it's super exciting. Alabama's new motto can be, 'Alabama, we grow on you,'" he snickers and adds Alabama might just have the most fungi varieties on the planet. Welcome to Mobile, a world unto its own, affectionately dubbed "The Promised Land." Clay-rich, a happy accident where five rivers flow into Mobile Bay, the setting is blessed by patches of white powder beaches, an abundance of critter life, his- toric landmarks, and a culinary scene that basks in good old-fashioned Southern- cooking traditions. IN THE THICK OF THE MOBILE-TENSAW DELTA ONLY 15 MINUTES OUTSIDE MOBILE, ALABAMA, THE BRACKISH WATERS ARE SHALLOW AND THE LORE RUNS DEEP. DREAMSCAPES FALL/ WINTER 2016 36 EDITORIAL & PHOTOGRAPHY BY ILONA KAUREMSZKY The Road to RICHES