Turning of the Tide Local Shrimping in Richmond Hill becoming an Abandoned Craft
Stepping onto the Grey Ghost, you cannot help but feel the mystery and inexplicable
intrigue that surrounds her. It is indeed one of the most attractive shrimp boats
to be found at sea—with beautiful lines and bright green nets, rustic and salty, the
Grey Ghost is a boat that’s rich with character.
Captain of Richmond Hill’s Grey Ghost shrimp boat, Hinton Arnsdorff, grew up
here on the River and has been shrimping since he was just 15 years old. Now 58,
Captain Arnsdorff (known as “Cappy”) is essentially the last native shrimper in
Richmond Hill.
THE WAY IT WAS
Once the home of a bustling shrimping industry—professional shrimping in
Richmond Hill is now a dying art. Living near the coast, many Georgia natives
assume that they are eating fresh, wild, Georgia shrimp when they go out to local
seafood restaurants. The reality is, however, in most cases they are not.
Imported, farm raised shrimp are being dumped onto the American market at a fraction
of what it costs to catch wild, fresh, domestic shrimp—and the restaurants are
biting.
According to Arnsdorff, shrimping in Richmond Hill is very different now. Ten
years ago these waterways could be seen covered with shrimp boats. Radio’s buzzing
with chatter; a camaraderie was shared between them all. Captain Arnsdorff was
among many boats casting for Georgia gold.
Today, however, the Grey Ghost sails the seas without much company. “It’s just
not the same,” Arnsdorff says. “There are no other boats out there cause’ it’s hard
to make it anymore. A lot of people have gotten out of it. The imports have taken
us over.”
American shrimpers claim that the burst of imports, some of it tainted, is
devastating their industry.
A SHRIMP IS NOT JUST A SHRIMP
Although to the untrained eye, all shrimp—whether purchased at the market or
piled high on a steaming hot plate at your local restaurant—may appear virtually the
same, this is far from true.
As we set sail from Kilkenny marina heading out to the ocean for a full day of
shrimping, I ask Arnsdorff about the differences between the imports and his local
catch. He politely smiles at my ignorance. I immediately realize that I am among
the many unknowing natives that are actually allowing this to happen.
Arnsdorff educates me. “There is no taste in them. I mean people run in there
to the restaurant or grocery store and buy shrimp,” he says with a pause, “they’re
usually buying something they have to put antibiotics in to make legal to sell in
this country. I mean people don’t know it, but they are eating that.”
Arnsdorff goes on to speak passionately about the subject, explaining some of
the undesirable conditions that pond raised shrimp are exposed to. “These
countries, some of them, the ponds they’ve got there have sewage ditches dumping
into them,” he says. “And people eat that.” Additionally, these shrimp don’t get
out into the fresh water and work for their food, so its not a natural process.
“They feed them pellets made of whatever, thrown in the water like feeding chickens
or something,” he says.
According to CBSnews.com, Arnsdorff is correct. It is reported that over 80
percent of America’s shrimp is imported, mostly from Asian countries, which have
been known to use the powerful antibiotic chloramphenciol in their feed for years.
Despite an American ban on chloramphenciol—a suspected carcinogen that may cause
anemia and leukemia in humans—shrimp that is imported into the United States still
frequently tests positive for the drug.
Arnsdorff points out that “a lot of the restaurants have just quit with the
local seafood” explaining that they are able to buy the imports already peeled,
de-veined and headed. “It’s cheaper and faster to them.”
NATIVES IN THE KNOW
While there may always be a market for imports, many natives understand the
difference and prefer the taste of wild caught shrimp. They are quick to tell you
that the texture of wild caught shrimp is softer and more appealing.
“Cooked with just a little salt and pepper,” Arnsdorff says, “and our shrimp
have a soft texture and a taste that’s out of this world.” He points out that if
you pay attention, the imports are always served breaded or in a sauce, “cause’ it
has no flavor and it’s a different texture.”
Awakening today to the widespread problem of artificial and modified foods
being served and sold nearly everywhere, people are becoming increasingly more
interested in all natural products. “You can’t get a more natural product than a
wild caught shrimp,” Arnsdorff exclaims.
FRESH OFF THE BOAT
Shrimping is a hard life. To make ends meet, shrimpers like Arnsdorff may be
out for days or weeks at a time depending on the winds, the tide and the catch.
This along with the strain of service and maintenance of the Grey Ghost which
Arnsdorff attends to his self is a lot to manage. Arnsdorff shares his secret to
staying so able, “I eat plenty of fresh seafood”.
In addition to the in’s-and-out’s of everyday shrimping, Arnsdorff and his wife
Traci peddle the shrimp from their home. There are some advantages to being the
lone shrimper in Richmond Hill—they typically have a waiting list. “A lot of people
come right here to the boat and meet me when I come in,” says Arnsdorff, “and others
meet me at the house.”
Arnsdorff runs a steady seafood business from his home. It helps that there
are fewer boats; he is now able to catch the same quantity in just a couple of days
that it took him several days to catch back ten years ago. “The shrimp settle, so
they are easier to catch,” he explains.
Arnsdorff takes great pride in keeping a fresh market. “I keep a fresh market,
no additives, no preservatives, nothing on the shrimp,” he says. “I sell them just
like I caught them on the boat.”
A walk in cooler at his home, customers regularly call and place their order
with Traci while Arnsdorff works to have them bagged and waiting for them on ice
when they arrive. “They get what they want, five pounds or 100 pounds, I’ll have
them weighed up, iced and ready,” he says. “They don’t have to wait, they’re ready
for them and they’re gone.”
SOME THINGS NEVER CHANGE
Although shrimping off the coast of Richmond Hill has indeed changed
drastically, there are some things about it that remain the same. The romance of
the sea, the breath taking beauty of nature, the feeling of freedom and anticipation
while heading out in the morning—the day I spent on the boat with Arnsdorff and his
crew was all of this and more.
Dolphins at our fingertips, following the boat all day long as they enjoyed the
feast of fresh fish being discharged from the nets; hundreds of seagulls surrounding
us, many coasting on the upper rails of the boat as if having the ride of their
lives; all of this while bearing witness to earnest men working hard to harvest wild
American shrimp from the changing tides. Shrimping is surely a craft worth
preserving.
“I’ve always loved it,” Arnsdorff says. “Being your own boss, being on the
water and getting to breathe this fresh air everyday.” Arnsdorff was also a
pipefitter for a while, shrimping part-time on the side. When he got laid off
several years ago he went back to shrimping full-time. He says that after working
in those mills, it was the fresh air that kept him on the boat. “You only have one
life.”
THE GREAT GREY GHOST
A legendary boat, the Grey Ghost was built in 1963, designed as a cutting edge
ship in that era. She has held her own against the hard knocks of the seas,
rebounding from several near-death experiences. She has sunk four times, blown up
once and also caught afire. Those who love her say that she has nine lives.
Named after the famous Confederate soldier, John Singleton Mosby, who was given
the nick name of “grey ghost” due to his stealth attacks on the Union enemy in the
dead of night—the Grey Ghost shrimp boat has a certain mystery surrounding her.
“She’s a handful,” laughs Arnsdorff, who works tirelessly to keep her in
working order. He spent the night before our outing sewing a big hole in one of the
large nets. “It’s a lot of work.”
The fact that Captain Arnsdorff can operate and maintain the boat his self
(with the help of his two strikers John and Billy) has saved him a lot of money and
allowed him to stay in the business despite hard times and major changes in the
industry. “I’ll be out here for as long as I can,” he says with a smile, “shrimpers
don’t retire, they just die on the water.”
As for the Grey Ghost, she’s sure to be haunting these waters surrounding
Richmond Hill for many years to come, so long as people within the community demand
fresh caught, wild Georgia shrimp. “I’ve been on a bunch of boats, some of them
that have sunk, much younger than the Grey Ghost,” Arnsdorff says fondly. “This old
boat, she has seen a bunch of them come and go.”
The Grey Ghost’s fresh Georgia shrimp will soon be offered exclusively at the
restaurant “Marker 107” (formerly Outriggers Grill) located on Kilkenny Creek which
plans to open its doors at the end of this summer. For more information on Grey
Ghost Seafood, call 756-3216.
