Historic canoe unearthed from Weedon Island Preserve (Florida)
The excavation of a 1,000-year-old canoe began at dawn Tuesday with a long trek through shallow water.
Rain poured. Smelly muck filled with sharp shells covered everything. Flesh-hungry sand gnats did what they do best.
And this was the fun part.
After years of anticipation, paperwork, fundraising and waiting for the tides to ebb just right, a small team of experts were finally ready to pull the prehistoric vessel from its grave at the Weedon Island Preserve.
The digging began early.
Oyster shells and goop were piled up one delicate trowel scoop at a time, revealing the outline of a long, narrow craft. At 40 feet, the vessel would have been large enough to travel across Tampa Bay....
Read entire article at St. Petersburg Times (FL)
Rain poured. Smelly muck filled with sharp shells covered everything. Flesh-hungry sand gnats did what they do best.
And this was the fun part.
After years of anticipation, paperwork, fundraising and waiting for the tides to ebb just right, a small team of experts were finally ready to pull the prehistoric vessel from its grave at the Weedon Island Preserve.
The digging began early.
Oyster shells and goop were piled up one delicate trowel scoop at a time, revealing the outline of a long, narrow craft. At 40 feet, the vessel would have been large enough to travel across Tampa Bay....