Surfrider Foundation and the Barrier Island Center teamed up and planted 2,000 sea oats on the south side of Sebastian Inlet State Park. Looking at the pictures the volunteers had a grand time planting the sea oats! Sea oats are the primary dune’s frontline defense against erosion. The roots of sea oat plants are legendary for holding the upper reaches of the beach together. Also, shorebirds like to nest amidst the sea oats.
The Florida Pro Surf Contest was a weeklong event held at Sebastian Inlet State Park in January. The cash purse for the women’s division is the largest ever in the United States. 14 of the top 22 female surfers in the world completed in the Florida Pro. Melbourne Beach’s own 15 year old Caroline Marks won first place!
Florida Tech University students from Melbourne, Florida came to Sebastian Inlet State Park to make a different and they sure did! Park staff cut woody plants in the dune area near the north jetty. The Florida Tech students hauled these plants, mostly sea grapes, a long distance and then loaded them into a one ton dump truck. They filled 15 dump truck loads in three hours! That is a dump truck load every 12 minutes including drive time. The students were amazing and under the wonderful leadership of Lexi Miller. Lexi did a safety talk and provided water, gloves and safety glasses. This work helped improve our dune habitat for the southeastern beach mouse and nesting shorebirds. Project A.N.T. Member Conner Wagner put this student work day all together.
In August, Sebastian Inlet State Park rangers found a very young and weak juvenile brown pelican that would not eat. It was taken to the Florida Wildlife Hospital in Melbourne, Florida with help from Wild Florida Rescue. They got the young pelican to eat on its own. After a month of tender, loving care it was released back at Sebastian Inlet State Park. It flew over the cove a couple times and landed on the cove rocks with his other pelican buddies.
Learn how to fish at Sebastian Inlet State Park! Click on our new page “Fishing at Sebastian Inlet”.
Located at Sebastian Inlet State Park is the McLarty Treasure Museum. The McLarty Treasure Museum is a National Historical Landmark Site of the 1715 Spanish Plate Fleet Survivors’ & Salvaging Camp. On April 8, a program told the rich history of the Spanish Plate Fleet’s disaster with exhibits. Dr. John DeBry fascinated folks with facts of the lost fleet. The McLarty Treasure Museum is open daily from 10 AM to 4 PM and is located two miles south of Sebastian Inlet.
A Great Horned Owl made a nest in a group of cardinal air plant, on a branch of a live oak tree, at Sebastian Inlet State Park. During a powerful storm one of the two babies fell out of the nest. A basket was attached to the tree and the baby owls placed in it. The mother owl did not like all the commotion but soon after everyone moved away, mama came back and took good care of her babies. The babies recently took fight to start a new stage of their life.
When the Friends of Sebastian Inlet State Park found out the camp host’s old golf cart needed to be replaced, we came to the rescue. The Friends purchased a new 2017 Cushman Hauler 800 for $6,600.00. The campground hosts are thrilled to have this wonderful, new mode of transportation to do their assigned duties.
St John’s Wood rocked the park with the British invasion music of the 1960’s and 1970’s. Setting a Night Sounds concert attendance record with over 600 people enjoying the music and dancing into the night.
The Friends of Sebastian Inlet operate both the Nautical Nook Gift Shop at the Fishing Museum and the Treasure Gift Shop at the McLarty Treasure Museum. Select the Gift Shops tab above to see information on the gift shops including gift cards and monthly sales.
