Everyone,

I spoke to the team last night, and they are holding up as well as can be expected (swelling hands and suntan lotion/sweat mix in the eyes). They had a full day of rest yesterday. Currently, they are in West Ashley which is just outside Charleston S.C. This marks the half way point of their trip. They said the heat has been miserable for them because in the areas they are paddling through the reeds are blocking any wind that is blowing.

Last week they spent a night camping on Doboy Island in Georgia (see pictures on website teamvbfd.org). Right after they finished setting up their tents a thunderstorm moved in and made things interesting for a couple of hours. When they awoke the next morning the water was within a foot of their tents, and they were happy they had tied their kayaks to the tents or they would have had an early morning swim to go along with their paddling!

They are seeing a lot of small sharks 3’ to 4’ long (one supposedly followed Hundley looking for a snack!). They paddled past Hog Island which was aptly named for the amount of wild hogs they saw and of course they are seeing plenty of gators!

As we would expect they are being treated very well by the local departments they travel through. Last week in Fernando, Fl the local department fed them like Kings and then surprised them with free hotel rooms for the night. In Beaufort SC a com reporter for the Beaufort Gazette caught up with the team and did a nice video story http://www2.beaufortgazette.com/20797 (make sure you watch to the end, so you can see Grey Beard the Pirate!)

As would be expected they are sleeping well at night especially when the local departments can accommodate “Little Bear”. It seems that is the nickname Paul Gleaton has inherited for the LOUD GROWLING nature of his snoring.

The team will continue through South Carolina this week hoping for favorable winds and a break in the heat. Roger Burns is headed down to do some driving for the team relieving Ret. Fire Chief Matt Dunn of the Savanna Air Guard.

Due to some scheduling issues the team is in need of another driver beginning Friday the 13th. The team should be arriving in Myrtle Beach about then, so if one of you can free up some time to drive, they would be eternally grateful.

David Hutcheson

VBFD Battalion Chief

PIO / Media Relations

385-1075 Office

2408 Courthouse Dr.

VB Va. 23451

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