BRUCE, Fla., Oct 12 - Willie Hill of Ebro, Florida, gives up on the fishing as the sun's about to set on the Choctawhatchee River north of Panama City.

He's been fishing around these parts all his life, "a very long time," he says with a contemplative smile.

Has he heard about or seen a large black, white and red woodpecker, maybe 21-inches tall and with a wing span of three feet?

Photo by Glynn Wilson

Willie Hill, 81, has fished in these waters all his years, but he's never seen an ivory-bill...

"I heard all about it, but I don't recollect seeing nothing like that, nothing that big, uh, uhh," he said.

But just up river near the Nokuse Plantation preserve, some Auburn researchers say they saw it 14 times and recorded its unique "kent, kent" call.

"That plantation, it's up river, that-a-way," said Johnnie Hill, 71. Has she ever seen the elusive ivory-billed woodpecker everyone's now searching for in the waters and forests of her youth?

"Not me," she said, putting away her fishing rod for the night.

I headed over from Navarre Beach down coastal Highway 98 over West Bay, and turned left on state Highway 79, then turned left on 20 and eased into Bruce in time for a beautiful lunch at the Bruce Café. Barbecued chicken cooked on the bone, rice and gravy, butter peas, tossed salad, a large glass of water and sweet iced-tea to go, but not before the banana pudding, thank you very much, maybe the best I've ever tasted, all for $6 plus tip.

A quick check at the Bruce Bait and Tackle shop across the street brought conformation that the main channel of the Choctawhatchee River was just five miles down the road, with a free state boat ramp.

Easing into the water, I could feel the primitive nature of the land as soon as the sounds from the bridge disappeared behind me. Again, there were families of flickers every 50 yards or so, cluk, cluking from behind the tall cypress trees along the water, behind nature's mask. It makes one wonder if some birds warn others when a man comes floating up the river.

What appears to be a kingfisher guards one section of the river as I go about as far north as I dare before turning around and heading back before dark. It makes a hell of a racket and flies ahead of me, then circles back and lands on a tree at my back. Then it does it again...

There are other kinds of woodpeckers in the woods making noises. Then the shrill call of a blue jay far off makes me sit up and take notice. What does an ivory-bill really sound like?

If there are ivory-billed woodpeckers here, they ain't showing themselves today to this traveler. So we'll have to come back again early in the morning and paddle further north.

Photo by Glynn Wilson

A remote cypress swamp in the panhandle of Florida may be home to the elusive ivory-billed woodpeckers, but they did not show themselves to this traveler on this day...