I watched in awe as a 900-foot container ship passed by. As impressive as the ship was what amazed me more were the expressions of the 6th grade DeRenne Middle School students I had on the boat. This past week I had the opportunity to take these students on a "Fish Gotta Swim" series of field trips as part of a partnership with Wilderness Southeast, a local environmental education group.

These field trips are unique in many ways. The primary goal was to explore the mysteries of fresh water rivers meeting the salt water of the oceans. Our roles were to assist in the learning processes and of course captain our vessel. Well, let me tell you, I learned a whole lot during the time spent with these kids.

It was the first time on a boat for many of these children; some excitedly climbed aboard while others were a bit timid about the whole boat and water thing. We carefully explained that there were rules to follow and the location of the lifejackets. For some reason they really paid attention to this part of the safety briefing.

We started our journey from the public docks on River Street. As soon as we left the docks there was so much to see; tug boats going by, the gold dome on city hall shining brightly and the Talmadge Bridge so high above. We worked on measuring salinity and dissolved oxygen at different levels and locations in the river. (Note: sorry to all the commercial traffic for being in the way.) We made our way up the port. Roll on, roll off (RO-RO) ships had tractors and trucks moving cargo. Kaolin, a native white clay, was being loaded as Georgia tries to keep a steady flow of exports to balance the import of goods in the containers destined for the shelves of Wal-mart. Cranes were unloading these containers in a manner so efficient and mesmerizing that the boys had a hard time paying attention to the coursework.

The kids asked so many questions about everything they saw; logs being turned into paper at International Paper and dredges working to keep the river deep enough for ships to navigate. For many it was a chance to see where family worked. This was especially true when we went by the sugar refinery. They all knew about the tragedy of just one year ago when so many were injured or killed in an explosion. Many of the kids had relatives employed there.

We were getting ready to leave the port but there was one thing that stood in our way - the Houlihan Bridge. They all guessed different ways we might get to the other side but were so excited to see it swing open just for them. (Note: Thank you, bridge tenders and GA DOT for your patience.) On the other side of the bridge we left industry behind and entered another whole world, a world of nature and history. Stories of Mulberry Grove, Eli Whitney, George Washington and the Widow Greene were told, the history of the slaves and Irish working the rice plantations, signs of which are still evident if you look closely. It is amazing that the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge is within yards of the bustling port of Savannah.

We ended our trip back at the Houlihan Bridge Landing. I hope though that the trip doesn't end there for these children. My hope is that they learned from what we taught but also learned the feeling of exploring waterways, seeing new areas and how fun it was to be on the water. Many dismiss these field trips as a waste of time and money. This could be no further from the truth. We not only worked on the processes of scientific reasoning and the actual testing of said processes but also how our local economy is globally linked, the history of the founding of Georgia, how important the link between the port and the Wildlife Refuge is and much more. I hope I continue to have the privilege of sharing our waterways with a new generation of boaters.

Captain Michael (Mike) Neal, owner/operator of Bull River Cruises, boater, and naturalist, has been exploring the waters of Coastal Georgia for the past 10 years. Contact Mike at Bullrivercruises@aol.com.

This article was originally published in The Waterside News.