I wrote this article for the Ocracoke Observer (Ocracoke, North Carolina publication) and it is scheduled to be published in the November, 2008 issue. It appears here with the gracious permission of the Ocracoke Observer.
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I longed for some down time in Ocracoke, especially in October when it’s cool and not congested. I ached for the beauty, tranquility and easy pace of this unique island. My husband, my dog and I packed it up and headed for the Swan Quarter ferry to spend a week in paradise.
Sunday:
Departure from Swan Quarter was 1 hour late. By the time we approached Silver Lake the sky and water were black except for a nearly full moon. This natural night light made harbor entry even more special. The stress from work and business travel drifted behind with the wake of the ferry.
Monday:
Perfect weather. We made our pilgrimage to see the ponies and to spend time on the beach. Bucky, our mixed-breed, rescue dog was ecstatic. He loves all the smells … the ponies, the shells, seaweed, birds and sea grass. The Lab in him was torn between sniffing the sand and wading in the surf. I loved seeing him so happy there!
Tuesday:
Another perfect day. We drove to mile marker 75 for beach entry. I’m ever amazed at the fragility of the island especially where the dunes are so low and the island so narrow. Herb sat on the beach with binoculars watching a real-time battle between fish and fisherman in the surf. Herb related the play-by-play to me. He got as involved as if it were a Michigan-Ohio or Texas-A&M game. The shelling was good, though it was better last April. Bucky, after great expenditure of energy, lazed in the shade of our umbrella. By 11:00 the fisherman had left the beach victorious. The beach was deserted as far as the eye could see in each direction.
Another perfect day! I went on a quest at the beach – for the smallest intact shell I could find. The little jewel I found was bi-valve, translucent white and lavender, perfectly shaped. It looked like tiny angel wings. I didn’t think it would remain intact by the time we got back to the house. As I sorted through the shells at the end of the day these fragile angel wings were still intact. They reminded me of the fragility of the sand dunes and how with the right care the dunes could survive too.
Thursday:
Another glorious day. Fishing must have been great today. There were lots of fisherman around town, on the beach and out in boats. It seems like there were as many fishermen as there were pelicans and all were involved in fishing. It’s been easy to disregard the news here. The reality of the world slipped away. My biggest concern today was the predicted change in the weather for tomorrow.
After our beach walk I went to the Ragpicker, a fun store with great selection of gifts, clothes, décor etc. On the entry steps were 2 pretty tortoise-colored cats. One of the cats had a noticeable notch in the ear signifying she’d been neutered and was probably feral. The store proprieter related the stories of how she caught the cats and had them neutered. It was clear that she loves and cares for these cats. And it’s clear that the village cares about the feral cats … we’ve seen bowls of cat food and water readily available to cats throughout the village. I made some purchases and left the shop. In the parking lot was a car with bumper sticker that read, “Someone else for president”. I love it!
Saturday:
Our last full day here and I wanted dinner to be a fresh catch from the Ocracoke Fish House. I called to ask what was the catch of the day. A male voice responded, “numerous”. I was confused. I’d seen them have drum, red fish, flounder, grouper, but I’d never even heard of a fish called “numerous”. My confusion was met with an explanation of, “Well, we’ve got numerous, too many to list. Come on in.” I laughed at my misunderstanding. I entered the fish house and I was cheerfully greeted by Pattie Plyler. I teased her a little and told her that I wanted 2 pounds of “numerous”. So now Pattie was confused! However, one look at the beautiful display of various fish in the cooler, I understood what Hardy Plyler meant on the phone – there were numerous varieties available! Pattie and l laughed about this. So tonight we feasted on grouper, scallops and “numerous”.
With a little time before ferry departure, we strolled along the Silver Lake shops. Good to see that the Community Store is open again and well-stocked. I picked up some fun t-shirts at Mermaid’s Folly. Then in classic Ocracoke fashion some ducks and geese proudly took their right of way calmly crossing the road and stopping cars in both directions. It reminded me of the ducks in Boston Common and a childhood favorite book “Make Way for Ducklings”.
As the ferry departed I looked back at Silver Lake Harbor and thought of the Jim Croce line, “If I could save time in a bottle”. I wished I could bottle up this past week and hold it close until we make the trip back to Ocracoke.
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