This is a series of flash interviews with people I admire, people who are doing something—anything, a lot of things—for the Earth. These folks walk the walk, each of them in their own way, using their own unique skillset. They dedicate their energy, their time, and their hearts to a crucial cause: the preservation of this precious planet we call home.
Once upon a time, a pair of nature lovers discovered a glistening jewel of a lake, tucked into a mountain valley and fed by pristine waterfalls. In a twinkling of an eye, they fell in love with the place and moved there. In another twinkling of an eye, they created an eco-touring company so they could share their love of the lake with others and teach people about the unique, fragile ecosystem of the Jocassee Gorges, which was named by National Geographic as one of “50 Last Great Places on Earth.” More than 20 years later, Brooks and Kay Wade are the owners of Jocassee Lake Tours, well known in Upstate South Carolina for their dedication to nature. They’ve expanded their fleet of boats and their crew of naturalist guides. They offer a year-round roster of kayak trips, sunset and full moon tours, fishing excursions, hybrid boating/hiking trips, and more. They also launched a nonprofit, Jocassee Wild Outdoor Education, that brings groups of youngsters to the lake for a fun learning experience. The aim is to establish lifelong connections with nature among children so they will be inspired to care for their planet. For several years, JLT has lent their time and boats to national researchers who come to Jocassee every year to study the winter residency of loons on the lake. They’ve also started a program to certify citizen scientists as “Jocassee Wild Naturalists.”
Here is what this dynamic duo has to say about their lives and work in the natural world.
(Note: This is the first time I’ve featured a couple in Champions of Nature. So for each question, you’ll see two answers: Brooks’ and then Kay’s. Double the fun!)
Tell me about some of your early experiences in nature.
Brooks: I remember my first morning at Jocassee. Kay and I were the new campground hosts at Devils Fork State Park. We moved in in late February 2010. I rose early that first morning and, coffee in hand, went down to the shore to watch the day begin in our new home. And what did I hear? The wail call of a loon, wafting over the lake and right into my spirit. Despite my decades-long love of loons, I had no idea they wintered on freshwater lakes and reservoirs. I knew then this would be my new home.
Kay: “Nature,” in my young life, was a deep drainage ditch that separated two fields of agriculture. One year one side would be planted in corn, the other in tobacco. The following year, the sides would swap. The land was overworked, the crops were living on commercial fertilizer. But that ditch was a wild place, full of briars, dog fennel, ragweed, and goldenrod. Between its banks I could disappear from the view of my mother when she looked for me out the kitchen window. There was a flat spot where I could sit and indulge my imagination. It wasn’t much but it was untamed, and it made me feel like queen of the world.
How did those early experiences shape your relationship with the natural world?
Brooks: Since that first morning, my life with loons has grown into a professional and personal direction I never expected to happen. We are starting our eighth year of loon research here, working with two of the world's most knowledgeable loon scientists. This experience has taught me how to look, how to carefully, patiently watch how animals behave. It continues to be an extraordinary learning experience. The research itself is drawing attention to the importance of inland reservoirs across the Southeast and to the well-being of loons as a species. It’s important work and I am proud to be a part of it.
Kay: We may not know what we’ve got ‘til it’s gone, but we also don’t miss what we don’t know. I was in college before I really understood how little of a natural world I grew up in, despite the fact that it was a small town with trees and grass and flowers. In college I had my first car, and it opened the world for me. The first time I sat beside a rocky creek and listened to the song of water was an epiphany. Rock. Water. Wind. I fell in love with being outdoors, so that is where I spend my life.
How do you connect with nature now … through your work or leisure or both?
Brooks: The simple answer to this question is both! We work on and live by Lake Jocassee. We see the Jocassee Gorges every time we leave our house. It is our home and our “office.” Admittedly I wander in pursuit of birds at times, but I know where home is and always find my way back.
Kay: With every breath I take, but that is kind of a LOL answer! There is really no "disconnect" from nature anymore, I'm happy to say. Our home is surrounded by a young woodland, last cut over some forty years ago. Of course I wish this would be an old growth forest with a bold creek coursing through the bottom, but over the past decade I've grown to love -- and appreciate -- watching these youngster trees grow and develop, just as I appreciate the tiny stream just beginning its trip to the Atlantic Ocean. I spend as much time in this woodland as I'm able. When I'm not here, I'm out watching weather over Lake Jocassee, nestled into that curve of mountains which is the Jocassee Gorges. I don't get to spend as much time on the lake these days, but when I am out there I am immersed in a land of ancient rock and water, where one ecosystem blends into another. Nothing makes us feel more alive or more a part of nature than being out in the middle of rain or wind or thunder and lightning, doing what one would call "work."
What are your biggest fears for the future of our planet?
Brooks: My biggest fear is not the demise of our species. We are but one among millions. I fear the continuing loss of all forms of life on earth. I fear humans will never stop being the destructive force that we are. To quote a favorite writer of mine, “Where humans go, extinction follows.” I fear this will never change.
Kay: My biggest fear is that as we learn better, we don’t do better. We are too invested in creature comforts to take even the smallest steps of driving less, or turning down a thermostat and wearing a sweater, or recycling. I’m afraid we’re all frogs in a pot, knowing the water will boil but not wanting to leave the warmth.
What is your biggest hope for the future of our planet?
Brooks: My biggest hope is that somehow, we humans will change. I hope we will bend towards our better nature, one governed by cooperation, empathy and compassion.
Kay: My biggest wish is that cooperation would win out over competition on our planet, but I don’t see that happening. My biggest hope is that our grandchildren’s grandchildren will not feel the pain of what they never knew.
Thank you, Brooks and Kay, for being Champions of Nature!
Their eyes are still twinkling. How lovely is that?
Brooks & Kay are two earth-gems, for sure. I admire very much their devotion to Jocassee and to the earth. Thank you for featuring this dynamic duo, Jeanne.