Bikes and flowers and markets and autumn leaves

On Sunday we woke up to a beautiful, crisp, sunny day and headed down to the market.  Sarah and Emmett and I have been impatient to get back on the Waterfront Trail and do some more exploring, so instead of parking at the market, we parked at the Children's Garden on the far side of Cayuga and road over the inlet and around to the Farmers Market.

We're really happy with the bike trailer.  Em. C. Harrington fits in their nicely inside his carseat and the seat snugs in tightly with the lap strap across it.  I'm surprised at how smooth the ride is.  The Dude was awake and looking around for some of the ride, which is super cute, and then he fell asleep in his chariot.

The market was busy, but we managed to get all the food we wanted anyway.

Cormorant on the lake.  Waiting for a fish to swim by.

Friends ride bikes together.

Boo had to head home at noon on Sunday, so we said goodbye to him in the parking lot, but we hadn't had enough bike riding yet.  Sarah says, "Let's go!"

These are some photos I took in the Children's Garden.

I like this one a lot.

On the way home, we had to stop and take a picture of our bucolic valley. 

Getting ready for the next season.

After a long, wonderful day, we're ready for bed.

Capt. Duvall and the Windfall II

On Monday evening we all went out for a short cruise on a beautiful little schooner called Windfall II with a man who called himself Capt. Rob Temple.  I believe he was actually Robert Duvall in disguise.  Anyway, the cruise was quite pleasant and filled with conversation.  Capt. Temple is something of an authority on Blackbeard and shared some stories.  His first mate was his son, Emmet, who is a playwright and director who shared stories about his adventures as well.  We were accompanied by one other couple who had ridden their bikes from the mainland and around Ocracoke with their surfboards on bike racks like you might see in a Patagonia ad.  They were very pleasant.

First mate Emmet and Capt. Duvall! (Photo by Sarah)

Unfortunately, none of us thought to shoot a picture of the Windfall II.  Stay tuned, maybe we'll wander back by the dock at some point.  Anyway, we motored out of the harbor and quickly went under sail.  The silence that fell over the ship when the engine cut was incredible and wonderful.

The dude was appropriately attired in his blue and white strips, anchor logoed carrier, and anchor patterned hat.  He was so pleasant for the ride, even when he was awake ;-)

There were LOTS of pelicans.  They never get old.

There was lots to watch.  Emmett in the rigging, the fleets of pelicans, other sail boats, the moonrise, the sunset, and the ever evolving conversation.

Sorry this one is sideways.  I can't fix it, but I like it, so you'll just have to turn your device. Emmett watched the sails and the waves a lot.  He's very smart.

We returned to the harbour as the sun set on a quite moonlit night.

The kid looks much more alert than his papa.  That bodes ill.

Ocracoke Lighthouse.  On the list of sites to see today.

Return to Ocracoke!

As y'all know, we headed back to Ocracoke this weekend after a couple or few year hiatus.  Sarah vowed that, "There will be beach!"  She made it so.  And it is good.  -Bassman 20:16

The Dude was a real trooper in the car.  We stopped every couple or few hours for feeding, gassing, and bathroom.  I'd like to blame all the stops of the Chopper, but honestly, half of them were me and my small travel bladder.  The toys that Andy and Gayle got for his car seat really came in handy this trip... he spent a lot of time just quietly staring at them.  We're certain that;s an indication of his extreme intelligence.

Eva and Jonas are along again; it feels a little like having the band back together to all be headed south on 12.

Honestly, how are we gonna make America great again when we can't even get our bumper stickers on straight?

Ocracoke Coffee Company!  Still here.  Still great.

Ok guys, enough goofing around.  When do we go to the beach?

 Prepping the beach wagon!

Setting up camp.

Emmett seemed to love the warm breeze and sound of the waves.... (I'm mostly basing that off of the limited amount of screaming and crying rather than anything he said explicitly.)

The usual crowd.

The bird watching has already been good.  I have been running each morning and come upon many birds that way.  I even ran a couple miles down the south point, where, to my knowledge, I have never been.  Saw green herons, ibis, egrets, and pelicans down that way.  There was a beautiful pine warbler (my first ever sighting!) at the nature center near Manteo.

Yup.  This'll work.

Welcome to the family, Emmett.

Swim.

We're really happy with our camera choice.  This shot was taken from 20 feet away!  I didn't even have to get out of my beach chair :-)

More to come.  We went on a schooner trip last night!  Headed to the Historic Center today and the beach, and maybe a nature walk if time permits... then back to the beach.

New Years, or there abouts

 Saturday I helped my friend Sam move some stuff into storage.  Across the tracks, over a one lane bridge tucked away on a no name street, I found this!  Sarah and I returned later in the day to check it out.

 Inside we met Frederic Bouche who is a fourth generation vintner, and the first to move the operation stateside.  He makes just two ports.  A red and a white.  But he has a beautiful and interesting collection of artifacts from the old winery in France.  Above is a home made smugglers belt.  It would hold 18 bottles worth of moonshine.  We both were enamored by Frederic and really appreciated his time and the incredible port that he makes.  I wish we'd've taken more pictures, but I guess we'll just have to go back again.

 We took a break from running errands to have a bite to eat at the new and improved Ithaca Beer Brewery.  Sarah and I have already begun saving bottles to make a clever up-cycled decorative divider like the one they have.  Yes mom, if it works out we'll build you one, too.

 This is the patio that is going to be so fun and entertaining come spring.  There are hop plants all over out there and the beams, poles, and strings will act as an elaborate hop trellis.

 Sarah enjoyed a flight of their heavier, winter beers, and looked lovely doing it.

 We drove past Buttermilk Falls on the way home.  It is apparently hibernating.

 Ummm... Sunday(?) we went skiing.  It was a lot of fun and already better than all of last season.

 Monday we went out for a little ride.  The horses are unshod and the ground is a little precarious.  I thought we were going to call it quites, but then Sarah saw the sled.

We had a lot of fun working with Rambo.  We remembered from the lariat days that just because the rider thinks the rope is not a snake does not mean the horse thinks the rope is not a snake.  And let me tell you, a horse reacts just like you would if you came upon a 30' snake that was striking at your neck! We got to work with the rope and dallying and pulling and backing and not freaking the heck out and jumping sideways... LOTS of fun!

So as you can see, after a little bit of time, things were going well enough to add a rider to the sled!

 Here is Sarah having a go at it as well.  We started with just the sled, then added the rim for some weight, then added a rider.

 Rambo was such a good sport!  You'd never suspect he was gonna be 30 this year!

 This is Erik's kid, The Bandit.  I think he's been introduced on the blog before, but he's acting more and more like a human being.

 A pretty cute one too.  He really likes my hat and kept putting it on and running around even though it comes down over his eyes.  He didn't scream or poop much while we were over for the New Years dinner and drinks which was cool, too.

 We took a potato soup that Jennifer gave us a recipe for.  Everyone found it delicious!  Sam grilled some moist and flavorful venison and made a great cashew chili.  We also took a bottle of port that we'd picked up for the occasion.

 This is from this morning after the dogs and I went out and played in the yard and brought in some firewood.  Indy had to warm her tootsies.

 So she could go back out and play some more!

 And go for an awesome hike.

This little guy is a common redpoll!  He is at the very back of my bird book and there was a whole flock of them on the feeder that Sarah was watching.  The red spot on their crowns is brilliant!  There were eight of them on the feeder a moment before I took this picture, but you'll have to just enjoy this guy and know that he is the bravest (or hungriest) in his flock.

Looking forward to another great year.