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Ken Budny

Ken Budny: Bayman and Carver
Ken is a resident of Bellport, where he grew up working for local fishermen, competitive sailboat racers and others who spent time on the bay, beginning a lifelong journey centered on Great South Bay. Although he did not grow up in a fishing family, he has spent most of his 64 years working on the bay, beginning as a youngster who helped Bellport bayman George Shelton as he clammed, harvested eels, and catching fish using traditional pound nets, once a common site in the bay. Unlike most “bay rats,” Ken attended college, and later joined the Peace Corps and the Army, returning to the bay in the 1970s.

Like most baymen in the 1970s, Ken worked as many days as he could, catching clams and blue claw crabs. He harvested clams using a variety of approaches including digging for clams using his feet, also known as “treading,” even during the cold winter months. He also used tong and rakes, customizing them by sharpening the fronts and the backs of the spines, and developing a “v-notch” handle that made it easier to bring the clams onto the boat. As Ken explained “Every motion has to have a purpose.”

In the winter Ken went ice fishing, cutting through thick ice using old logging saws and modern chain saws. He often went with another bayman in case something bad happened. Ken recalls that a storm could “come out of nowhere” and reach hurricane force winds in a few short hours. While most South Shore baymen worked in Great South Bay, Ken explored and began clamming in Port Jefferson in the 1980s. He also harvested oysters, a time-consuming process because oysters would clump together. Ken also harvested blue claw crabs in the bay, relying on bunker and herring for bait.

According to Ken, the bay began changing in the early 1980s, after a number of events. A number of duck farms were closed, which may have affected the level of photo plankton traditionally found in the bay, a necessary nutrient for clams. In addition the Bergen Point Sewage Treatment plant in Bay Shore opened, which led to a change in the bay’s salinity as the mixing of fresh water and ocean water changed. The current also declined in the bay. In addition, eel grass began declining, a natural habitat for clams.

Ken is also a master decoy carver and collector. He is well known for his working decoys, using wood he finds from friends in the home remodeling business. Like his parents, Ken is a natural born artist, and his work is highly valued. Although he accompanies his friends on hunting trips, he is not a hunter.

Today, Ken works for the Post Morrow Foundation, where he has worked since 2000. He also sits on the South Shore Estuary Reserve Council. Lastly he is an active member of the Brookhaven Baymen’s Association.