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was surrounded by small trees, and the birds that fluttered in and out of the branches captured Bob's attention right away.
     
    He looked up at me, purred a bit, then said, "Murrrph." He was a happy camper.
     
    Since it was late in the afternoon, with only another hour of daylight left, I decided that instead of hitting the beach with my metal detector, I'd just take a walk around the park and get familiar with the layout.
     
    Satisfied that Bob was occupied, I put on my ball cap, grabbed my camera, and slipped out the side door.
     
    Having checked the park brochure, I knew the campground was on a very narrow strip of land, surrounded by water on three sides.
     
    The Indian River to the west, the wide expanse of the Atlantic ocean to the east, and the Sebastian Inlet to the north.
     
    It was a perfect location for a campsite - as long as the weather was good.
     
    In bad weather, there was a good chance there'd be no escape off the island. Something I would discover before the week was over.
     

     

15
     
    According to the campground map, a fishing pier on the east side of the park extended three hundred and sixty feet out over the Atlantic ocean.
     
    The pier ran parallel to the Sebastian Inlet, the body of water which connected the Atlantic to the Indian River. The tidal flows of the Atlantic would bring large fish though the inlet and near the pier.
     
    The prospect of catching ocean going fish from the pier was one of the reasons Sebastian Inlet State Park was so popular with tourists and locals alike.
     
    To me, the pier sounded like a good place to get my first look at the Treasure Coast beaches. I figured I could walk out to the end of the pier, and have a long view of the beaches on either side.
     
    It took about ten minutes of walking to reach the pier from my campsite. Normally, at this time of the year, the parking lot by the pier as well as the pier itself would be crowded with tourists and fishermen.
     
    But not today. The parking lot was deserted. Just one older pickup truck. And on the pier itself there was only one person. An older black man with three fishing lines in the water.
     
    As I made my way down the wooden deck of the pier, the lone fisherman turned in my direction and said, "I hope you're bringing me some luck, because I sure could use some today!"
     
    I nodded and pointed to his rod, "I don't know about bringing you luck, but it looks like you got a fish on your line."
     
    He turned, saw the tug on his line and said, "You're right! First bite I've had all afternoon. Let's see what we've got."
     
    He grabbed the rod and began reeling in his line. Slowly at first, then picking up speed as the fish fought to get free. After about three minutes, the fisherman finally brought his catch to the surface.
     
    "It's a snook," he said. "and a good fighter! Look at the size of this one!"
     
    I checked the fish out. It was about thirty inches long, silver in color with a black stripe running the full length of it's body.
     
    The fisherman expertly removed the hook from its mouth and held it up toward me, "You want it? It's good eating."
     
    I shook my head, "Thanks, but no thanks. I've got food back at my campsite."
     
    "If you're sure . . .", said the man. "But if you don't want it, I'm going to put it back in the water."
     
    "Aren't you going to keep it?" I asked.
     
    "No, I mostly fish for the fun of it. So if I'm not going to eat it, I put it back in the water. That way there'll always be something to catch when I come back."
     
    I nodded and started to walk away.
     
    "Hey, don't be in such a hurry to leave. You brought me good luck. As soon as you walked up, I catch a fish. Stay and maybe your luck will wear off on me."
     
    I smiled, "You don't need my luck. You'll do fine without me."
     
    Pointing toward the end of the pier, I said, "I'm going out to end. Check to see what the beaches look like."
     
    The fisherman nodded. "Be careful. That end gets pretty slippery."
     
    I