Oriental (NC) Daily Photo

5.23- Low waters uncover Oriental history

2010-05-23T22:56:00.001-04:00

Scraps from the Roper Lumber Co. mill at the end of Midyette St.

When the wind blows hard out of the Southwest for several days, our local water levels go way down, as they get pushed out into Pamlico Sound.

Extremely low waters reveal a field of "slabs" off the end of Midyette St. - They are the round outside portions of logs that were sawn off (and discarded) in the initial stage of processing at the vast John L. Roper Lumber Co. sawmill that inhabited the site before burning down in the 1920's.

Also visible are the stumps of many pilings that made up the Co. docks at the present site of the NC Wildlife Ramp and the Oriental public "kayak" dock.

I was very careful walking around the normally submarine artifacts, as the shorelines of local creeks are habitat for water moccasins (and other less dangerous critters.)

Here I caught a shot of one snake slithering away amongst the slabs (at right)...

As I was processing these pics, however, I noticed that this snake (center of pic below) was not the only one around... in the water in the lower right corner, maybe a foot or so from my bare legs, was another one I had not noticed.

(click images for full size)

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5.20- s/v "Rotop" at future Town Dock II

2010-05-20T22:45:00.002-04:00

s/v "Rotop" tied up to the ruins of the old "Neuse Ways" piers at the South Avenue terminus, in the shadow of the still un-finished Point Pride Seafood fish-house (alleged) on Chadwick Point

Oriental fought a long legal battle over the terminus of South Ave. where it enters Raccoon Creek and Oriental harbor, but finally prevailed.

The land had long been leased to the "Neuse Ways" company, which ran a marine railway at the site.

"Rotop" captain Martijn Dijkstra (vessel and capt. are Dutch) apparently heard the news on his latest visit to Oriental, and decided to move her from the notoriously shoaly town dock at Hodges St. to what many hope will be the future site of a second public town dock, which better accommodates her six foot draft.

You can read more about "Rotop" in this excellent Dec. 2008 report from the "Shipping News" column at TownDock.Net.

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5.19 - Following the light of the sun

2010-05-19T22:10:00.003-04:00

A brace of caravels makes its way up the ICW

While riding past the South Ave. waterfront, I saw this rather anachronistic sight on the River Neuse.

Guessing these vessels were headed north on the Intracoastal Waterway, I took a little drive up to Hobucken, hoping to intercept the pair and get a closer look.

Turns out they are the Niña and the Pinta, home port Wilmington Delaware, replicas of their namesakes built by The Columbus Foundation. You can read all about them and see plenty more pics at The Columbus Foundation website. The schedule on the site shows that the ships were on their way to Philadelphia from their last stop in Georgetown SC.

Here are a couple more I took from the banks of the ICW ditch at Hobucken as the caravels headed past the R.E. Mayo & Co. fish-house docks, the Hobucken bridge and the Hobucken Coast Guard station:

(Click on any image for full size)

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5.18 - New New Bern drawbridge

2010-05-18T23:31:00.003-04:00

Traffic backs up as workers scramble to solve a problem with the new New Bern drawbridge

Today I had my first opportunity to cross the new drawbridge in the nearby Megatropolis of New Bern, NC.

Unfortunately, I was thwarted by apparent technical difficulties, and had to go back around through the city to get back to Hwy. 17.

The old swing bridge that used to service this road was removed in 2007.

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5.15- s/v "Vagrant Gipsy"

2010-05-15T19:22:00.004-04:00

Vagrant Gipsy visiting Oriental harbor

I went out sailing in the Bauer today and found this impressive 50-ton ketch on the hook in the harbor. Fabulous vessel, and a really great name for a sailboat (see the poem by John Masefield below.)

I got the following info from a SailBlog her third owners created during a Caribbean cruise two years ago:

Vagrant Gipsy a custom built monohull, built in Belize in 1969 on a custom design by Sparkman Stephens. She is built of solid rich mahogany with a custom fireplace with copper hood. The interior consists of two large staterooms both with king size berths. She will comfortably sleep 7 people... She is an ocean going vessle and has been across the Atlantic twice and spent time in the Mediterranean. Captain Skip, spent eight years restoring the Gipsy on the Tennessee River near his home. She was brought down the Tom Bigby Waterway to Mobile and then by intercoastal waterway to Appalachicola, FL, where she crossed the Gulf to Tarpon Springs, FL and spent her first hurricane season there.

There are a couple nice pics of Vagrant Gipsy under sail in a Regatta at George Town on this page of their SailBlog. From there you can explore their other pages, which include some other photos of her cockpit, cabin, etc.

I Must Go Down to the Sea

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by,
And the wheel's kick and the wind's song and the white sail's shaking,
And a grey mist on the sea's face and a grey dawn breaking.
I must go down to the seas again, for the call of the running tide
Is a wild call and a clear call that may not be denied;
And all I ask is a windy day with the white clouds flying,
And the flung spray and the blown spume, and the sea-gulls crying.
I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull's way and the whale's way where the wind's like a whetted knife;
And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over.

- John Masefield

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5.12- The one that got away

2010-05-12T23:36:00.001-04:00

Hooked cow-nosed ray resisting at the breakwater

(click image to enlarge)

This guy hooked a cow-nosed ray (also known locally as a "skate," which it is not, or a "pancake tarpon" due to frequency tarpon anglers hook them) and fought a forty minute battle, beginning at the end of the Lou-Mac fishing pier and ending on the South Ave. breakwater nearby.

His buddy came down with pliers ready, but a couple seconds after this photo, the ray succeeded in parting the line, and swam off with the fisherman's rig still hooked in its mouth.

You can just make out the flat head of the ray and its right eye amid the splashing.

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5.10 - Feeding time

2010-05-10T22:11:00.001-04:00

Sophie succumbs to her hungry litter

OK, this doesn't really qualify for the City Daily Photo criteria, but I simply couldn't resist.

Remember, I am the Godfather of this litter, and I thought it was time to check back in with them.

The kittens are growing, and it looks a bit like Sophie is shrinking a bit. Little wonder, considering the litter does this to her at every opportunity.

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5.10- Oriental in the battle zone

2010-05-10T16:59:00.000-04:00

U.S. Marines perform "urban environment" targeting

(with an assist by the entire Oriental Police Force)

Oriental has been inundated with small teams of Marines from Camp Lejeune to practice forward targeting for airstrikes in an "urban environment." Hmm... Oriental, population 875... Go figure.

Lots and lots of aircraft overhead (sometimes barely) and groups of Marines sprinkled around town, including this team at a picnic table on the lawn of the Neuse Suites hotel.

I had read in the local paper an announcement that the maneuvers would be taking place, but I swear it also said they would not be in uniform... I'm no expert, but seems to me BDUs and Flak jackets should count as "uniforms."

Plenty of choppers, but since I didn't hear the Ride of the Valkyries blasting from them, I wasn't too worried.

Until I saw in the Marine's van parked the South Ave. waterfront this crate marked "WPNS":

At that point I decided to head indoors and leave the field of battle.

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4.17 - The front row

2010-04-17T22:45:00.002-04:00

Evening view of the Oriental harbor anchorage from the Oriental Yacht Club building

The northern migration of cruising sailboats continues to keep Oriental's anchorage a busy place.

If you know the right people you can get one of these front row seats for all the anchoring action plus a great sunset view.

I love the "Mad Men" chairs.

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4.12- Crimson Permanent Assurance

2010-04-12T00:37:00.007-04:00

Commercial trawler undergoing extensive repairs at Chris Fulcher's Point Pride Seafood docks (located on Chadwick Point)

Local shrimp-baron Chris Fulcher has been renovating some trawlers at his docks during the past couple of years... Looks like he buys pretty decrepit vessels, guts em and puts in all new everything.

When it comes time for sandblasting, painting, or installing super-secret shrimp boat technology, the boats are enshrouded in these canvas/dacron sail-looking cloths ...

When the wind blows and the wrappings shiver, it always make me think of "The Crimson Permanent Assurance" building after its aging clerks mutiny and go pirating through the financial district in the short Terry Gilliam film at the beginning of Monty Python's "Meaning of Life":

SEE THE VIDEO OF THE CRIMSON ASSURANCE MUTINY HERE.

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4.11- Reef construction

2010-04-11T21:33:00.002-04:00

Dredging barge working on the construction of an artificial reef in the Neuse River just off from Oriental

(click image to enlarge)

An old artificial reef about half a mile off of Oriental's Whitehurst Point (mouth of Pierce's Creek) is undergoing a major expansion thanks to the Town's raising donations and grant funding for the project.

The old artificial reef at the site was built during that unfortunate era when it was common to use old automobile tires as the reef material - 22,000 tires were dumped in the river at this location.

The idea was we could get rid of all those old tires that would go to a landfill or tire mountain, and at the same time create a fish-friendly reef... Turns out tires reefs don't provide good platforms for immobile organisms and therefore don't end up attracting many fish - also the tires don't stay in place very well, and get spread out all over the place by storms.

The new expansion project will be using marl and concrete "reef balls" - kind of like giant concrete wiffle balls - to create the new hard-surfaces immobile creatures and oysters enjoy, and plenty of hidey holes that fish will hopefully adopt as their new homes. It also looks like there are some large concrete structures like highway dividers or hog slats on the barge.

The yellow buoy demarcates a corner of the reef area. The green buoy in the foreground is one of the new buoys recently added to the channel into Whittaker's Creek.

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4.10- s/v "Kava"

2010-04-10T20:50:00.003-04:00

Kava sails out of Raccoon Creek into Oriental Harbor

Sailing students on board "Kava," one of vessels in the Oriental School of Sailing fleet, were performing quick-tack and jibe maneuvers in the narrow confines of Raccoon Creek today.

Here she is running out of the creek past Chadwick Point.

The Oriental School of Sailing has a small fleet of sailboats, all the same color (matching the trademark red of shrimp-baron Chris Fulcher's fleet of trawlers, background), and one or two or more of them are out almost every day during the spring and summer as part of their Basic Keelboat Certification training.

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4.3 - Fresh cats

2010-04-03T22:39:00.000-04:00

Another sure sign of spring

Today my neighbors went off on their annual visit to Swan Island, and left me in charge of hundreds of seedlings and small plants, as well as three cats.

Within two hours after they left, I found that the three cats were now seven.

Luckily momma cats pretty much take care of it all, so I think I can bear with the unexpected extra duties.

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2.23 - Olympics at the Orietnal Steamer

2010-02-23T00:08:00.001-05:00

Olympics at the Oriental Steamer

Winter Olympics means it is the slow times for the local visitor-oriented businesses, including this one, the Oriental Steamer Restaurant and Bar.

Like the B&Bs, hotels, other restaurants etc., the Steamer depends on the visitor-heavy summer months to support staying open during the slow off-season. If you do visit hear in the off-season, the Steamer is pretty much the only place you will find people outside of their homes past 10:00 pm.

"The Steamer" as it is universally called, is pretty much the only bar in town that remains open nightly until the NC state law 2:00 am closing time (others close at nine, ten or midnight). It has a fully stocked bar, a selection of decent wines, and a mediocre standard selection of draft and bottled beers. Three TVs behind the bar make it perfect for viewing sporting events.

After the restaurant closes at 10:00 the Steamer continues to serve a small but tasty bar menu... This is your only choice for prepared food without driving 45 minutes to New Bern. Chef Jeff serves up pizza, buffalo wings, nachos etc. pretty much up till 2:00 am if you ask him real nice.

... but if you are headed to ONC and want a post-midnight beer, drink and/or knosh at the Steamer, you may want to call them ahead and let them know you're coming, cuz they will close earlier if it looks like nobody is.

The draft Yeungling is a good deal at $2.00, and is my drink of choice when there.

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2.22- Oxyura jamaicensis

2010-02-22T21:21:00.003-05:00

Rainy day and Ruddy Duck on Oriental harbor

Today's pic brings yet another avian migratory sign of springtime on its way.

The blue bill of the Ruddy Duck indicate that it is a breeding male on his migration to breeding grounds up north or out west.

Ruddy Ducks winter across the South, Southeast and Mid-Atlantic U.S. States, and they live year-round in the Southwest.

Breeding primarily takes place out on western planes, sierras and mountains along a great swath from the Texas panhandle to the Canadian border with Alaska.

Some populations also breed along the St. Lawrence waterways between New England and Canada, but apparently chances are good this particular bird is taking the longer migration out west.

That's one new bird for my list, and two birds in a row with "jamaicensis" in their scientific nomenclature.

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2.18- Buteo jamaicensis

2010-02-18T20:30:00.001-05:00

Juvenile Red-Tailed Hawk perched on the small boat pier on Smith's Creek
(click image to enlarge)

Right next to the NC Wildlife Resources Commission public boat ramp at the end of Midyette Street.

A lot of kayakers and dinghy sailors prefer to avoid the traffic of the bigger boats putting in and hauling out at the Wildlife ramp, and instead use this Town-owned small boat pier 30 yards across the parking lot.

The hawk tolerated me from a distance while it (and I) awaited some prey to scurry across the parking lot ... unfortunately the first mammal to happen along was a dog, and the bird apparently had not enough taste for dog to attempt any violence, and instead took flight.

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2.15- Breakwater repairs

2010-02-15T20:24:00.000-05:00

Boulders being dropped at the end of the Oriental harbor breakwater

The Army Corps of Engineers has begun repairs to Oriental harbor's breakwater.

I knew they were scheduled to build up a subsided length of the breakwater (which disappears in high water) but was surprised to find them apparently lengthening the structure.

The gap between the end of the breakwater and Oriental Marker No. 8 (beyond the crane you can see the red light attached to the marker) is known to many locals as "Ralph's Channel," owing to Capt. Ralph's propensity for sailing boats between the two unforgiving obstacles rather than rounding outside the marker.

When he returns from his current sea voyage, Capt. Ralph will find a little less room for error in his channel.

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2.14- Snowmelt

2010-02-14T20:52:00.003-05:00

Icicles form as snow melts from a roof of the Oriental Yacht Club

Unfortunately I missed the big snow day here in Oriental yesterday.

But there was still plenty of snow around today, though it was quickly reverting to a liquid state as the day progressed.

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1.10- Two+ years of Lou-Mac fishing pier

2010-01-10T18:23:00.009-05:00

A piling being placed to support the fishing pier

Today's feature photo comes from November of 2007, as Broad Creek Construction continued work on the town's fishing pier at Lou-Mac Park in Oriental.

Construction began in October of 2007 - at right and below left, and was completed around the end of November.

For over two years, Oriental residents and visitors have been drawn to the pier, whether to fish or to gaze at the broad expanse of the River Neuse from the vantage point 120 feet from the shore.

The pier has proven to be a popular addition to the Oriental's list of public water access points... a list I certainly hope will grow in the future.

Here are a couple more shots of the pier under construction, followed by some links to my prior postings with pictures taken of or from the pier.

(click any image to enlarge)

6.10- washing the fish guts

Jun 10, 2009

10.15- great blue heron at sunset
Oct 15, 2008
7.15- flying fish lure

Jul 15, 2009

11.19- snow flurries

Nov 19, 2008

10.16- "skywatch friday" - sunrise and moonrise

Oct 16, 2008

6.30- Fresh Croaker
Tuesday July 1, 2008

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1.07- ... on a river far, far away...

2010-01-07T21:32:00.003-05:00

Commercial trawler coming up the Neuse from Pamlico Sound

Today's ODP Classic comes from December or January of 2007.

The "X-wing" effect is caused by refraction of the trawler's extended outriggers.

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1.04- Free-climbing the mast

2010-01-04T21:42:00.018-05:00

Oriental Daily Photo - Classics & Out-takes Series

(read more about this series here)

Free-climbing the newly-stepped mast
(click on any image to enlarge)

Two years ago this past November, this French Captain and his crew arrived in Oriental after acquiring an impressive Wharram-designed but never-completed catamaran (at right) in Canada.

Mission: pick up boat, find a mast to fit it, and sail back to France.

They ended up at Sailcraft Service boatyard here in the ONC to re-furbish, re-rig and step a suitable mast they had located.

While this was the first sailing adventure for the crew (the Capt.'s wife, young toddler son, baby daughter and a complete lubber friend), the Captain was a salty fellow, indeed.

Sailcraft's professional riggers used a crane mounted on the Travel-lift to raise the impressive spar (at left) and gently lower it into position (at right), with active assistance by the Capt. and the usual crowd of Oriental's un-paid but very expert volunteers watching from the dock with appropriate advice.

Once the mast was stepped and its rake properly adjusted, some of the crane rigging became fouled in the shrouds... The Sailcraft riggers had a ladder on hand, and climbed to its top to try and un-foul the line, but alas it was too short to reach.

(click on any image to enlarge)

There was some discussion of fetching a taller ladder, but the Capt. merely "oh-lah-lah"'ed, then leapt onto the mast and shimmied up a good twenty feet to free the line (left).

A couple weeks later, Capt. and crew were out in a fresh breeze on the River Neuse for a brief shake-down (below) and by January they sailed off for the rest of their adventure. Godspeed.

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1.03- Hate it when that happens

2010-01-03T22:46:00.004-05:00

Oriental Daily Photo - Classics & Out-takes Series

(read more about this series here)

Dock-side sinking

This ODP classic disaster shot comes from fall of 2007... I'm pretty sure I was the first person to notice this submarine Catalina at the Oriental Yacht Club that day, but others quickly followed.

OYC dockmaster and "Girlfriend" Captain Les Evans (grasping the port shrouds, above) and crew were quickly on-site, and got to work fothering the open transom and pumping out the distressed vessel, whose captain was away in Croatia at the time.

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1.01- Avec les Bons Voeux

2010-01-01T23:29:00.003-05:00

My traditional New Years meal

Black-eyed peas for good luck; collard greens for prosperity; ham-hocks, corn-bread, Texas Pete (from NC) and vinegars of choice for added flavor; and "Avec Les Bons Voeux" ("With Good Wishes") from Brasserie Dupont to wash it all down.

Happy 2010 to all!

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12.29- Woody and Bernie Ride Around Oriental

2009-12-29T09:00:00.000-05:00

Oriental Daily Photo - Classics & Out-takes Series

(read more about this series here)

Acclaimed author and adventurer Bernie Harberts riding up South Ave.

Bernie comes through Oriental every year or so, usually with at least one equine companion...

Here he is in December of 2007, when he was in town visiting, selling books, and preparing for his "Lost Sea Expedition" (since completed), traveling from Canada to MX in a home-made mule-drawn wagon that included many parts and design-elements borrowed from vessels that travel existing seas.

In addition to the "Lost Sea Expedition," Bernie has circumnavigated in a 34' steel-hulled sailboat (1998-2003) and walked across the U.S., from North Carolina to California with a mule and a pony, a journey on which he based his GREAT children's book, "Woody and Maggie Walk Across America."

The book is fancifully illustrated, and includes actual and imagined stories about the states he traversed...

He discusses the giant "fish bird" of the NC coast, a bird so large it cannot fly, but can carry two men on its back, which it does daily so that the men can pull trapped fish from the bird's giant wing feathers and feed the bird.

The book is full of charming humor, as illustrated in this small excerpt describing NC commercial fishermen:

Please take a few minutes to learn much more about Bernie, Woody, Maggie and their adventures (and Books!) at:

RiverEarth.com

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12.26- Santa's Got a Brand New Bag

2009-12-26T19:51:00.009-05:00

Oriental Daily Photo - Classics & Out-takes Series
(read more about this series here)

Santa often hangs out reading at the corner of South Avenue and Freemason St.

Looks like Santa has dozed off while reading... and knocked over his reading lamp.

One might think it was because he has just finished up his years work... But this picture was taken before his big workday in 2007.

Perhaps there are clues on the table? *

(click on the picture to enlarge it)

* (A: Santa has a drink on the table... just to the right of the sand-filled baggie that failed to hold things down)

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12.26 - ODP begins "Classics & Out-takes" series

2009-12-26T19:34:00.007-05:00

(not my pic, NOT near Oriental)

Yours truly is headed inland for a while... Maybe just for a couple weeks, but maybe a bit more than that. Hard to tell.

In the mean-time, ODP will be featuring some "Classics & Out-takes."

Some of the upcoming pictures were taken before ODP went on-line... Some were taken since then, but didn't make the ODP cut for various reasons.

Many of them I only have approximate dates for, since I took them and downloaded them before ODP, when I was much more careless about keeping pics organized by dated folders.

Also, many were taken with a Kodak digi-cam that reset its date recorder to 1/1/2006 every time the battery was removed for recharging. I guess that is when the digi-chip inside was born, and the geniuses at Kodak failed to put in something that would keep track of the current date while the battery was out of the camera.

Whatever the cause, I religiously failed to re-set the date when inserting fresh batteries, so I will have several postings with pics from very vague and quite-possibly-inaccurate dates.

I hope you all will enjoy these pictures, even though they won't be Fresh Daily snaps.

And I will try to bring some current pictures from generous contributors...

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12.25- Peace

2009-12-25T13:45:00.010-05:00

Winter festivity star on the flag mast at Oriental's town dock on Raccoon Creek

I wish everyone merriment, peace and love during whatever winter festivity they may celebrate!

For my Futurama fans, Merry Ex-mas:

(see a classic Xmas song from Futurama here: Xmas Eve

For those in the Church of the FSM:

Happy Holiday!

RAmen

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12.24- Tamales

2009-12-24T22:26:00.001-05:00

Tamales in the making

What better way to spend X-mas eve than making tamales?

Masa, pork, chile ancho, manteca (lard), a dash of salt and baking soda, corn husks plus a little elbow grease (ok, a LOT of elbow grease) results in this wonderful cholesterol-filled hunk of holiday fun.

Good with beer. Best when shared.

Not to brag or anything, but they got rave reviews at the Millers' annual X-mas party. Obviously some very discerning consumers.

My brother Fred and I will assemble another two dozen or so in the morning for X-mas dinner.

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12.23- Supermercado Jalicience

2009-12-23T22:54:00.002-05:00

Alliance, NC, on Highway 55

Today I went to Supermercado Jalicience in nearby Alliance to get some supplies to make tamales for the winter solstice holiday season.

The store, run by a family that immigrated from the Mexican state of Jalisco (Pacific coast, central MX, capital is Guadalajara), is the nearest tienda to Oriental, and the only tienda in Pamlico County, so far as I know.

I just cannot have X-mas / New Years without tamales, having lived in south Texas for twenty years. Unlike San Antonio, TX, there are no tamale manufacturers around Oriental, so I have had to start making them myself.

Supermercado Jalicience is well-stocked with foods and ingredients necessary for a variety of Mexican cooking styles, not just Jalisco... which is good because I like the "norteño" Mexican cooking prevalent in the Rio Grande region, up to and including San Antonio.

The store also recently added a coin-op pool table, and have plans to add a second due to popular demand... The only other pool table in the county is at a private Bingo Hall, ever since the new owners of the Silo's (formerly Hard Tail Saloon) removed theirs a couple of years ago.

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12.14- Spirit of X-mas

2009-12-13T23:53:00.003-05:00

Exhausted candelaria await pickup in the rain at the Factory St.-Hodges St.-Wall St. turnabout

The Spirit of X-mas festivities are over... lighted boat flotilla Friday night, open houses offering X-mas food and drink to all comers on Saturday, the Saturday evening parade down the town's main streets and, topping it all off, the beautiful candle-lined streets after sunset (see a picture of the candles last year here.)

It takes a lot of folks a lot of time, effort and even gold to make these kind of community events all come together.

The advance preparations for Spirit of X-mas are the most fun part of the celebration... The work done by all the folks who come out to work with their neighbors, families, friends, and strangers on the grunt work of putting together a party ... At every step, folks from Oriental and our surrounding neighbors all pitch in together, chatting and laughing and sometimes even moaning and groaning together.

Of all the elements that make up the Spirit of X-mas celebration, my favorite part is the lining of the streets with 4,000 candles in 4,000 paper bags. The end result is stunning, and constructing these "candelaria" requires a lot of person-hours from volunteers...

On Tuesday folks show up at the Toucan Bar & Grill do two tasks: to light all 4,000 candles for a few seconds, then blow them... this makes them easier to light at the final stage; 2) fold the tops of all the bags down with two one-inch folds, then re-stack the bags... this makes the bags stand up straight and resist the wind. On Thursday volunteers head to Town Hall to put dirt in 4,000 little bio-degradable baggies, stick the 4,000 candles into the 4,000 baggies of dirt, place the baggies into the paper bags, and prepare the finalized candelaria for distribution. On Saturday morning, volunteers place the 4,000 candelaria along the streets, and Saturday afternoon they light each of the 4,000 candles. On Monday the bags in todays picture, and many more clusters just like it, will be collected and disposed of.

One thing I like about the candelaria project is that so many of us work together for so long and have a such good time together during the process... the same is of course true for those who work together putting on the parade and other events that so many visitors come to Oriental see.

But what I really like about the candelaria project is that the final after-sunset impact of the project is that those that get to enjoy the full beauty of the candles are, well, "ourselves"... "our community" ... "us."

And "us" includes: those who live here whether they got here last week or were born in Dr. Purdy's office; those of our loved ones and friends visiting from out-of-town; those who run our local businesses, and those who work in them; and those who started the weekend as visitors but have been inspired to stay in town for the full weekend or longer...

... and it is all these type of folks who pitch in to make it happen in the first place.

... And it is the most-committed of these who take on the responsibilities and not-insignificant personal sacrifices to round us all up to do this kind of "barn-raising" several times a year here in Oriental.

The core body of the real heavy-lifter volunteers behind these events work all year, many of them year-after-year, raising funds from donors, scheduling and accomplishing all of the preparations, and recruiting from Oriental's seemingly unending pool of "part-time" volunteers.

In today's picture of soggy paper bags piled in the middle of the street, I see all the work, fun and most importantly the family friends and neighbors who do it all.

And thinking of all this, I believe that when I wrote my last post concerning the apparent cancellation of one of the Dragon Runs on New Years Eve, I was in one of those however-many "stages of loss" where one feels anger at the loss, and maybe lashes out a bit...

In short I must apologize for the tone of the post. I am indeed upset at the news. I do indeed feel a sense of personal loss, one might say even selfish loss, because I have so much enjoyed the annual Dragon Runs, particularly the one closer to midnight.

I am not sure I quite understand why the second running was cancelled, but I generally know better than to rely on brief newspaper stories, whatever their source, to provide a complete picture of the problems involved in putting on such an event.

But I am sure that the organizers of the Dragon Run deserve my thanks, rather than my sarcastic criticism.

To them I apologize for the harshness of my rather emotional response. And I thank them for all their hard work.

They are, after all, "us."

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12.11- Dragon Run cancelled due to Dragon Hooligans

2009-12-11T23:58:00.013-05:00

The "Parade of Lights" flotilla passing out of Whittaker Creek channel

Tonight the traditional "Parade of Lights" boat flotilla kicked off Oriental's annual "Spirit of X-mas" festivities... I will soon have more photos from all of the Spirit of X-mas festivities, so keep a lookout here.

THE BIG NEWS around town today, however, is that another Oriental holiday tradition, the Dragon Run welcoming in the New Year, has been CANCELED.

According to the local weekly Tea-Party-Hannity-Palin 2012 broadsheet, "The County Compass," the Oriental Dragon Society (ODS) has decided that the pre-midnight Running of the Dragon has become too raucous and unruly.

Apparently the unruly mobs of "Dragon Hooligans" that invade Oriental's quiet thoroughfares each New Years Eve caused some damage to the Dragon during last year's run, prompting the ODS to limit the Dragon's appearance this year to its usual warm-up run at 8:00 p.m. ... the early run is popular among the under-10 and over-95 sets due to their early bedtimes.

Last year, the Dragon returned from the 11:30 p.m. run (more popular among the 11-94 y.o. population) missing a few teeth. (see that story as reported by TownDock.Net here)

In the past there was a tradition that touching the Dragon's teeth would bring good luck - but for a number of years this activity has been discouraged by new prophetic revelations that touching the delicate teeth would bring one bad luck.

Old beliefs are hard to change, however, so teeth-touching has continued and last year escalated into teeth-snatching by some of the notorious Dragon-Hooligans who show up for the late-late-late night 11:30 p.m. run.

I whole-heartily condemn those who engaged in the destructive behavior... the Dragon has been a truly wonderful part of Oriental's New Years celebration for about forty years, and the dummies who thought de-toothing it was a good idea were truly idiots. That said, I think ODS has WAY over-reacted, and in the wrong way...

I guess the organizers figure the "raucous" midnight crowd of Dragon-Hooligans is simply too dangerous for the Dragon... I also guess the very impressive Dragon, which the ODS website describes as being constructed of "Styrofoam, sailcloth, paint and sequins" is a lot more valuable an inanimate object than one might suppose from the ingredients...

It must simply be too valuable to actually use in a street celebration...

... even though it was constructed to be used in a street celebration.

Perhaps the ODS could put the Dragon someplace even safer... maybe on permanent display in the Oriental History Museum behind some bullet-proof glass so that everyone can still SEE the Dragon without risking damage to the Dragon or fun for the spectators. Visitors could come and see the Dragon before the 5:00 p.m. museum closing time and still make it to Beaufort or New Bern (or Raleigh or D.C. for that matter) for some NYE fun.

Here is a photo of the type of riotous pre-midnight throng of literally hundreds of Dragon-Hooligans the ODS is worried about:

Literally hundreds of "Dragon-Hooligans" rioting on Hodges St.
(click to enlarge)

It has been speculated that the cancellation of the midnight run is a form of collective punishment by the organizers, who have apparently been shocked, SHOCKED to find out that people touching the Dragon can lead to damage.

The ODS spin on the cancellation is that they "plan to make the 8 p.m. Running of the Dragon an even bigger and better event" and "focus on keeping the New Year's festivities more of a community event," an apparent hint that the ODS suspects the Dragon Hooligans came from outside of Oriental (no further hints of perp profiles have been given.)

Well, good luck with that... In my opinion, making the 8 p.m. "New Years EARLY Eve" celebration "bigger" than the REAL midnight Dragon Run will require busing in several hundred primary school students with their parents... to make it "better" than the REAL midnight run will require some truly innovative thinking and marketing. I personally cannot think of any reason I would want to wind up my celebration of the New Year four hours before it happens.

Of course, the ODS might want to re-think the whole 8 pm run after seeing this evidence of rampant pre-pubescent Dragon-Hooliganism:

A juvenile delinquent Dragon-Hooligan during an "early" Dragon Run two years ago
(click to enlarge)

So all you folks who were thinking of coming to Oriental for a truly fun New Years celebration should start making new plans... Apparently ODS wants to make this an event for 12-and-unders, locals only thank you very much.

I suggest to would-be New Years Eve Oriental visitors instead go to nearby Hobucken to watch some midnight barges hauling phosphate down the ICW... that would be a more exciting New Year's Eve than strolling along an empty and desolate Hodges St. here in the ONC. At least something would be moving.

Local bar/restaurant staff have been disheartened by this latest news, as the Dragon Hooligans have historically provided a much-needed off-season spurt of business while fueling their masochistic anti-Dragon rages with tasty food and beverages.

Rumor has it, however, that the local "Town and Country" grocery store IS stocking up on diapers and juice-boxes in hopes of reaping some profit from the 8 p.m. crowd... if there is one.

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12.09- Oriental's "Drumming Dragons"

2009-12-09T23:58:00.004-05:00

Weekly drum circle meeting at Oriental town hall
(iPhone photos today... but you can still click to enlarge)

Walking back from the Town and Country grocery this evening, my brother and I heard percussive beats emanating from town hall...

My brother Fred, being a musician (albeit a guitar player), soon found himself joining in on some trance-inducing jams - that's him background-right wearing the hoodie in the photo above.

The "Drumming Dragons" are an integral part of Oriental's New Years Eve festivities - they lead the rhythmic drumming and pot & pan-banging that summons Oriental's Dragon out of its lair for the annual "Running of the Dragon" street celebration of incoming new year.

(see great pictures of last year's Dragon Run at TownDock.Net... I'm generally inside the dragon after enjoying some festive bevs, so I don't have any of my own pics)

Others in tonight's weekly drum circle meeting were (starting to Fred's left, going clockwise) Roger, Pat, Charlie, Noel and Doug:

(click image to enlarge)

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12.08- "Bye Polar," homeport North Pole, AK

2009-12-08T23:19:00.008-05:00

50+' sailing vessel at the town dock, fresh in from North Pole, AK

The NEy breezes brought Santa into Raccoon Creek, Oriental NC, aboard this vessel today.

Don't worry, kiddies... Despite Senator John McCain's best efforts, Santa's elves are still busy back in North Pole (near Fairbanks) reading all your letters and ranking you on the Naughty/Nice scale (read about Scrooge McCain's views on Santa's home town here) ...

No doubt this fine S/V will make it back with plenty of time to spare before the big day!

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12.07- "Old Reliables"

2009-12-07T18:09:00.013-05:00

Henry H. Stephens, 47th Inf Regiment, 9th Inf. Division,
the "Raiders" regiment of the "Octofoil" Division

Oriental local Henry H. Stephens was 26 years old when the Empire of Japan attacked Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.

Today his remains rest at peace in the old town cemetery just outside of Oriental.

I have no information about Stephens' personal service or his death... only the impressive record of his combat unit that marched across Algeria-French Morocco, Tunisia, Sicily, Normandy, Northern France, Rhineland, and the Ardennes.

Stephens was in the U.S. Army's 9th Division, 47th Inf. Regiment.

The 47th was among the first U.S. units to engage in offensive ground combat during the war - on November 8, 1942 it was one of the 9th Div. units that landed at Algiers, Safi and Port Lyautey in French Algeria. The 47th's 3d Battalion took Safi, the first liberation of a city from Axis control in World War II.

In March-May of '43, the unit saw action in Tunisia, where it fought its way north to Bizerte on the Mediterranean.

August of '43 brought the 9th to the invasion of Sicily, with combat at Randazzo and Messina.

The 9th then went to England to prepare for the Allies great invasion... On D-Day+4 (June 10, 1944) the unit landed at Utah Beach in Normandy and fought in the successful liberation of the French port of Cherbourg, whose capture was integral to the supply lines as the Allies began the push-back of German forces on the continent.

9th Div. GIs with some happy locals at Cherbourg
(borrowed from The 9th Div. Society)

The 9th continued with the Allied advance, crossing the Marne river into eastern France on August 28, 1944... by November, when Henry H. Stephens died, the 9th was holding down defensive positions on Germany's western border with Belgium.

Stephens' buddies went on to fight alongside the 101st Airborne against the German counter-offensive on Bastogne (Battle of the Bulge), and burst across the Rhine at Remagen on March 7, securing parts of the Rhineland until V-E Day, May 8, 1945.

The men of the 47th at Ft. Bragg, NC, March 22, 1941

(borrowed from The 9th Div. Society)
(click image above to enlarge)

Henry H. Stephen's forefathers were among Oriental's earliest founders, and he serves as a fitting tribute to all the local boys who served in the U.S. armed forces and merchant marines after the infamous Japanese attack on U.S. soil 68 years ago today.

Remember to thank a WW II vet for all they did for us... before they aren't around to thank anymore.

No doubt many local lads never made it back... and I have met one life-long Oriental resident WW II vet still living here in town... but I did find 42 WW II veterans currently at rest in the cemeteries outside of town, both in the larger historically white cemetery, and in the smaller pre-desegregation black cemetery a few hundred yards away...

Of the 42 WW II vets in the cemetery, most made it back home to live after the war, with only Stephens and Lewis Bracy Midyette (another descendant of town founders) dying during the war:

Here are some of the men of the 9th's 47th Inf. Regiment... Perhaps Henry H. Stephens is among them? If you recognize him (or anyone else), please go to Vincent Whaley's "Tribute to the 47th Infantry Regiment 9th Infantry Division web-site (from whence I borrowed these)... He is trying to ID these brave fellas who fought with his Papaw:

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12.05- Feature Attraction

2009-12-05T23:15:00.006-05:00

Saturday Matinee: "Jana and Ian Got Married"
(click images to enlarge)

Jana Weichel and Ian Crawford were married this afternoon in Oriental's historic Old Theater... the theater's first ever wedding.

Here we see the happy couple after the wedding and post-wedding photography session, no doubt quite ready to get to the reception and begin celebrating!

The wedding guests had already long departed to the reception at the Oriental Women's Club - even the couple's wedding carriage had left due to the post-sunset arrival of rain and cold winds:

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12.03- Some smart turkeys

2009-12-03T23:29:00.005-05:00

Wild turkeys

As far as I can tell turkey hunting season doesn't come around until April and May... But better safe than shot, plucked, roasted and eaten, I always say.

I spotted these wild turkeys feeding in a field next to Kershaw Rd.

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12.2- Full Foulies and a folding bike

2009-12-02T22:49:00.016-05:00

A rainy day in the ONC

Foul-weather gear and a folding bicycle... sure signs that this guy is a cruising boater running errands while ashore in Oriental.

The transient slips in the harbor have been rather empty lately, as autumn's southward boater migration is on the wane...

But not today: the crowd of boats at town dock and the Oriental Marina & Inn is reminiscent of November. Looks like a lot of late migratory vessels which probably would otherwise have been underway or spread out among many nearby rustic anchorages but-for the ominous weather forecasts.

And I'll bet those Capt.s and crews are feeling pretty good about their decision right about now... Over an inch of rain today, 20+ knot winds gusting to 30+, and this evening we even had a tornado watch.

I myself opted to do today's ODP shot from the lee (and dry) side of a windshield (you can see a blurred wiper, upper left corner.)

Those who rank high on the Salty Scale, like today's ODP subject, are of course always fully prepared to be out in windy and much wetter conditions than today's, be they on sea or on land...

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12.1- Homemade Stealth

2009-12-01T11:57:00.005-05:00

Cap'n John and crew take his home-built "Stealth" for a sunset run

(click image to enlarge)

Today I found Capt. John and crew putting-in his fast and sleek home-built water rocket at the Wildlife Ramp on Midyette St. in Oriental just as the sun set.

John has spent the last six months building the un-named vessel... He told me the NC Wildlife Dept. (in charge of registering boats and classifying home-made vessels in the process) has deemed it a "2009 Stealth."

She is a mere 16 feet long, and John reports he has had her up to 95 m.p.h. so far... but the boat IS still under construction, as evidenced by her primer colored hull, so he may yet be able to get her up to a respectable velocity.

I figured I could google the boat design and find more about it... I found a speedboat manufacturer named "Stealth," but their models do not resemble this one...

I'm hoping John will see my post and drop me an e-mail so I can get a bit more info.

You can see some additional pictures of John's 16 foot Stealth speed boat here at my Oriental Daily Photo-EXTRA blogsite.

One more shot for the ODP... the Stealth doing something better than half of her top speed leaving Smith's Creek's green Marker No.3 just of her starboard beam:

click image to enlarge

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11.29- FREE: one lightly used head

2009-11-29T23:57:00.003-05:00

An "Ecolet" composting head at town dock

Oriental residents have long debated the pros and cons of offering public restroom facilities for visiting cruisers and aliens...

Today a cruiser seems to have weighed in by offering up this fully-functional "Ecolet" composting head, left next to the public trash and recycling bins by Oriental's public town dock.

No doubt the unidentified head-dropper has opted to install a "Nature's Head" composting head on board, and discarded the bulky Ecolet... a guess, based on the fact that there is an authorized distributor of the fine "Nature's Head" products here in Oriental...

While Sun-Mar has apparently dropped the "Ecolet" model name, they still offer a range of composting heads.

Whether it's a "Sun-Mar" a "Nature's Head" or an "Air Head," composting heads are the way to go on your cruising sailboat... few parts to fail, no toxic chemicals, compact waste storage... and they produce good fertilizer for your on-shore ornamental gardens!

Or you can safely empty them into local sewer treatment systems via any on-shore water closet.

And no, they don't stink. In my experience, holding tanks stink a lot more, never mind the inevitable pump-out catastrophes.

For my non-sailing readers, please pardon this somewhat scatological posting... as a wise sailor once explained to a me when I was yet a tyro:

"Sailors always end up talking about shit!"

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11.28- Buzzard Bay / Lukens Cemetery

2009-11-28T20:21:00.010-05:00

Lukens Cemetery on South River, Carteret Co., NC

Today while boating around with my brother, I dropped by Lukens Cemetery on the banks of South River.

Formerly known as "Buzzard Bay Cemetery," this small cemetery once served the small, remote and now extinct community of Lukens on the eastern side of the South River. (see map below)

The oldest dates I could find among the many well-worn markers was Samuel Pittman's birth date of 1823 (died 1848) (at right, click to enlarge)

Lukens is still an active burial ground, and there were gravestones dating to at least 2006.

It is clearly a well-visited memorial, despite its remote location and limited access (by water) many plots were decorated with recently-left flowers and other symbols of endearment and remembrance left by relatives and loved ones.

Also among wooden and stone monuments were a number of graves of Confederate soldiers (on left, click to enlarge.)

Visible in the background at left are some folks from three boats anchored in South River... they had dinghied ashore to check out the cemetery.

South River is a popular anchorage for boats going up and down the ICW... It is a rustic, quiet and dark spot to park overnight, and the folks who want to avoid the hustle and bustle of Oriental often drop their hook here, a good seven miles across the Neuse River from this busy metropolis.

While the South River anchorage and Lukens Cemetery can be a peaceful place, BEWARE OF HUNTERS WHEN GOING ASHORE AT LUKENS!

The cemetery is on land of "Open Ground Farms," the largest farm in the U.S. east of the Mississippi River (see green shaded area on map below)...

While 35,000 of Open Ground's 45,000 acres are active crop-land, Lukens island is largely comprised of pine timber forest, and is mostly used for hunting leases... so when deer and ducks are in season, there are usually active hunters around.

Just make sure you stay on the cemetery grounds (which you would want to do anyway due to some thick undergrowth surrounding the site.)

Lukens Cemetery as seen from the water of South River... there is a small-boat dock to the right of the grounds (click to enlarge) :

Location of Lukens Cemetery on South River, Carteret County, NC:

View Lukens Cemetery, South River in a larger map

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11.27- "Melodeon"... and thinkin' of Joe

2009-11-27T23:13:00.014-05:00

Melodeon, home port Halifax, spreads her wings while tied up to town dock in Oriental
(click any image to enlarge)

Melodeon, a steel-hulled junk-rigged three-master, was largely built by her owners... something like thirty years of welding.

The distinctive sails are constructed from awning material the owners got from a friend in that business.

As I was shooting, I noticed Melinda, from TownDock.Net aboard, taking notes and pictures... (seen at right leaning on the railing for a shot as TownDock.Net staffers loiter on the dock)

That means Melodeon is sure to be featured in TownDock.Net's "Shipping News" column, so check back here and I'll have the link as soon as they publish. I look forward to the story.

Melodeon has started a travel blog here, though there are only three entries at this point... check back for updates of her voyage.

Below you can see the ship's dog, Ginger Bear, hamming it up to the many visitors who have come by town dock to check out yet another of Oriental's interesting itinerant vessels:

click to enlarge

ODP wants to give a big shout-out to Capt. Joe, laid up in the hospital after a scary A&E down to the Bight at Cape Lookout...

Get Better, Joe!!!!
we're all pullin' for ya

(and for you, too, Shari... Capt. Ralph has proposed, and all agree, that you are henceforth to be known as "Salty."

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11.26 - Stuffed silly

2009-11-26T19:47:00.002-05:00

Another Laura Turgeon original artwork
(click to enlarge)

... Having renowned local artist Laura Turgeon as a guest means not only her delightful presence during the event, but also a signature thank-you doodle, suitable for framing.

This is the latest addition to the collection.

Happy Thanksgiving all!

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11.22- Ben's Chili Bowl revisited

2009-11-22T19:10:00.001-05:00

Redskins vs. Dallas at Ben's

Went to Washington (the big one, not the little one) to bring my brother down to the ONC for the holidays.

Of course, while in DC I had to make my semi-annual pilgrimage to Ben's Chili Bowl for a chili-half-smoke.

We watched the heart-breaking end of the Redskins-Cowboys game... several Ben's employees were actually openly rooting for Dallas, which blew my mind.

See some of my prior photos of Ben's:
Line outside Ben's on January 19, 2008;
The "line" inside Ben's on March 1, 2008

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11.21- PEA cans

2009-11-21T23:59:00.001-05:00

Gill-boots make pecan gathering more comfortable after recent rains

It is the pecan-gathering time of year in these parts.

I approached the woman featured in today's photo, and asked if she minded me taking some shots of her gathering "p'CAWNS," as they are called in Texas.

She said I couldn't do that, but she wouldn't mind if I took pictures of her gathering "PEA-cans."

However you say it, they sure make great pies! Not bad straight-up, either.

I've seen a variety of tools and methods employed on this task... some folks are ok with the bend-down-pick-up-place-in-bag method, while the more serious gatherers use tools as featured today.

This woman was using a "slinky" style gatherer... push it down on top of a nut, and the nut springs into the slinky trap.

Others use hamster-style balls on the end of a stick... push it along, the nuts pop through the wire into the ball.

I have also seen a number of sticks with "grabbers" on the end, linked to a lever on the handle of the stick... grab the nut, dump it in the bucket without bending over.

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11.18- Frequent Stop

2009-11-18T23:04:00.015-05:00

Cable trucks at South Ave. / Lou-Mac Park waterfront.

The noon hour usually brings at least a couple of out-of-town work trucks to the parking spots on South Avenue facing the river Neuse.

This being a rather small town, many contractors, utility workers, cable installers, etc. come from a ways away to service local homes and businesses... those crews who are frugal or enjoy a lunchtime view find this a nice spot for brown-bagging.

Many locals and aliens alike come by and park along here facing the river throughout each day... some stop for five minutes, some for hours...

It is a soothing place... the ever-changing light on the river, the open skies, the variety of human and animal activity playing out upon the three-mile-wide expanse of river.

Some folks get out and walk around the South Ave. breakwater and the diminutive but comfortable and scenic Lou-Mac Park and fishing pier... but many more simply sit in their vehicles chatting, daydreaming, listening to the radio, or putting their seats back for a siestita.

I often am parked here, watching the river, birds, boats, barges, USMC aircraft, fishers, fish, dolphins, and even a mink or two, while I am at least pretending to read a newspaper or my latest book.

On rainy days like today, of course, most folks are satisfied with the view from behind the windshield.

Today I cruised by to watch the incoming rain as it moved up the Neuse towards Oriental.

You can't really see much of the river in today's photo, but to the left of the trucks you can see one sailboat heading into Whittaker Creek, and one Pelican looking for its own noon-time meal. (click image to enlarge)

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11.17- Gaff-rigged weathervane

2009-11-17T17:12:00.006-05:00

Weathervane near Smith's Creek.

But of course, you don't need a weathervane to know which way the wind blows... (apologies to Dylan)

Boats at anchor work just as well. (background - click image to enlarge)

The gaff-rigged sloop weathervane in today's photo is located along Smith's creek near Oriental.

You can order one just like it from Country Weathervanes.com

"The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails." -William Arthur Ward

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11.15- Horn cleats

2009-11-15T19:41:00.007-05:00

Cleats on the Dinghy Dock

Several days of continuous N'y to NE'y winds of course means local high waters as Pamlico Sound gets blown up into the river Neuse.

As a result, most of Oriental's public Dinghy Dock lies just beneath the surface, with only the cleats poking up, doing their best imitation of the anchored boats in the harbor.

NOAA indicates winds will continue from the North to Northeast until at least next weekend, so there should be some extra z-axis room in the harbor this week.

A lot of people ask me where I look for weather (it being a common topic among boaters)...

I always direct folks to NOAA's hour-by-hour Interactive Graphical Marine Forecast page for Newport/Morehead City.

You can mouse-over the times and the map will show wind strengths and direction (and other weather conditions) in Pamlico Sound and the Neuse River, with color-codes and helpful little vectors.

I find it is better at predicting what will be happening right on the Neuse River, with hourly changes, while textual forecasts for Pamlico Sound and Morehead City might not.

Check it out at : http://www.weather.gov/forecasts/wfo/sectors/mhx.php

And they have the same thing available for other places around the country.

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11.11- Lost Maple

2009-11-11T23:14:00.010-05:00

Norwegian Maple tree on Kershaw Road

As I rounded a familiar bend on Kershaw Rd., I was awed at the sight of this vibrant maple among the drab pines dominating the roadside.

The lone explosion of fall color along the drab pine roadside reminded me of "Lost Maples," a small state park in the Texas Hill Country, the only place I saw real-no-kidding fall foliage in TX during my 20 years there...

Even on this gloomy day, this maple actually glowed... I continued driving past, thinking "I should come by tomorrow and take a picture."

Then I thought about how we might see 30+ mph winds tonight as the remnants of former-hurricane Ida pass over... I stopped, u-turned and snapped some shots.

One of the homeowners came out as I was snapping... she said the tree hadn't been in full glory this year because we haven't had a frost yet.

The leaves on the ground, she assured me, have all fallen since yesterday... all will have fallen tonight or tomorrow night.

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11.10 - Southern exposure

2009-11-10T23:45:00.001-05:00

Solar array atop Hwy. 55 bridge over Oriental harbor

The solar panels that power the red and green passage lights on the NC State Road 1308 bridge across the mouth of Smith's Creek onto the river Neuse...

The solar panels face south, towards Adam's Creek on the other side of the river Neuse... Adam's Creek is the southern continuation of the Intracoastal Waterway leading to Key West.

The anchored boats face into the north-easterly winds that have brought us a taste of autumn and elevated water levels as the wind blows Yankee air and Pamlico Sound waters up into the river.

Tomorrow morning the boats will head south down the Adam's Creek ditch to Beaufort, Morehead City or Swansboro... or maybe they will stay at anchor and wait for the rains from the remnant former-hurricane Ida to pass before weighing.

Godspeed.

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11.7- "Low Rider" under way

2009-11-07T22:59:00.004-05:00

Low Rider's mascot keeps constant vigil

(click images to enlarge)

I have featured the Chesapeake Bay crabber-cum-party-boat Low Rider in a couple recent posts...

Today I got to go cruising aboard her, on Green's and Smith's Creeks.

"Nemo," the stuffed fish, kept watch from the pilot-house.

Here is another shot from inside the pilot-house:

While "Nemo" was on duty, "Chico" enjoyed the ride as pampered passanger... some sun, a tennis ball, and what a view:

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10.6- "Peace" headed south

2009-11-06T23:39:00.000-05:00

Co-Capt.s Annie and Neville of Peace take on provisions

The James Wharram designed, marconi-schooner-rigged catamaran Peace continues to grace Oriental harbor as she does twice a year during the north-south migration seasons. Currently headed south, of course, towards the islands.

See my previous post of "Peace" in the harbor in April 2009 on her way north... the posting includes an additional photo of her in the harbor in April 2008. I have a feeling we will see her again in five months.

Godspeed!

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11.5- Mustang parts

2009-11-05T21:29:00.003-05:00

Soybeans awaiting harvest near NC 55

According to the NC State University College of Agricultures and Life Sciences, soybeans are NC's largest acreage row crop, with 1.2 to 1.5 million acres grown annually.

Average farm-gate value of the state's soybean crop is approximately $200 million, ranking it 3rd behind tobacco and cotton.

There are many varieties of soybean plant grown in the area, with different colored flowers and different colors in their ready-to-harvest stage... I couldn't tell you whether these particular beans are "Croplan 4955," "Dyna-Gro 33C59," or "Progeny 5650RR," but these are a bit more of a rusty color than many of the fields around here.

The NC Soybean Producers Association http://www.ncsoy.org/ explains that in addition to "multitude of edible products [and] animal feed applications," soy beans produce oils and meal products used to make tractor body parts, newspaper ink, crayons, candles, machine lubricant

... and even the seat-foam in your brand-new Ford Mustang.

In 2008, North Carolina farmers were expected to plant nearly 1.6 million acres of soybeans. In 2006, North Carolina farmers produced 43 million bushels of soybeans on 1.4 million acres.

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11.4- Migrant season

2009-11-04T23:36:00.002-05:00

Vessels at anchor in Oriental harbor as the sun sets

The fall boat migration season is in full swing...

Folks headed south to FL, Central America, the Caribbean, and other warm winter lands, are travelling down the Intracoastal Waterway this time of year, with cooler weather on their heels (or stern or transom, I suppose.)

For the past week or so, I have counted between 6 and 15 boats anchoring in Oriental harbor every night. Lots of boats from New England, Canada and Europe have been keeping Oriental harbor and area marinas busy lately.

Many cruisers can be seen walking and riding folding bikes for provisions, boat parts, or just to tour the town while stopping over, and the bars and restaurants are seeing a lot of new folks with odd accents each night.

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11.3- E-Day

2009-11-03T20:26:00.000-05:00

Polling station for Oriental municipal elections

Nine candidates were competing for five slots on the Oriental Board of Commissioners... The current mayor ran unopposed.

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11.1- "Wan Fu"

2009-11-01T23:32:00.004-05:00

Wan-Fu at the Fuel Dock

(click to enlarge)

While returning the Bauer Dinghy to the OYC today after last night's pirate festivities at town dock, I found this very pirate-y looking vessel tied up to the Fuel Dock at Oriental Marina & Inn on Raccoon Creek.

She is a 58.2 foot, three-masted, gaff-rigged, steel-hulled recreational vessel built in 1977. Word around the harbor is she is headed for Guatemala.

That is all I know about her... If you know more, please post a comment to this posting, or drop me an e-mail! (captainbenonc@gmail.com)

Here is another view of Wan Fu:

(click to enlarge)

11.2 ADDENDUM: Wan Fu was designed by naval architect Thomas Colvin, famed for his steel boat designs, many of which are junk-rigged, as, it turns out, is the Wan Fu (not gaff-rigged, as I had earlier guessed without seeing the sails up) ... Here is a picture of her under sail (no, not taken here in Oriental, nor by me) -

(click to enlarge)

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10.31- Sheet-faced

2009-10-31T23:51:00.002-04:00

"Sheets to the Wind" celebrating Halloween at the Tiki-Bar

Pirates dominated the harbor area this evening, but this other nautical-themed costumed group cracked me up.

There were originally going to be only "Three Sheets," of course, but apparently the idea caught on...

There were a total of nine "Sheets" at the Tiki-Bar, but I could only fit six of them in the photo.

A hundred or more Pirates swarmed the shores and vessels along Oriental harbor and Raccoon Creek ....

One band of pirates created a new chapter in Oriental history by holding what is believed to be the first ever Beer-Pong tournament on Raccoon Creek, held aboard Low Rider (see yesterday's post) :

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10.30- Low Rider

2009-10-30T21:55:00.002-04:00

Low Rider

Low Rider, a converted forty-foot Chesapeake Bay style fishing boat, tied up to town dock in Oriental this afternoon.

I dropped by to visit while sailing the Bauer Classic (background.)

Low Rider's lengthy working deck will host plenty of grog-swilling pirates tomorrow night.

Capt. Ralph says "bring your own chair."

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10.27- Barefoot Wade

2009-10-27T23:19:00.000-04:00

Barefoot Wade's steel drum

Barefoot Wade, known for his lack of footwear, brings his one-man, many-instrument act to Oriental's Broad Street Grill every Thursday night.

Check out Wade's web site, and go to his facebook page to hear some of his music:

http://www.barefootwade.com/index.php

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10.24- Pig-pickin' and Hot Buttered Grits

2009-10-24T23:47:00.004-04:00

Tennessee Ronnie choppin' up the pig
(click to enlarge)

Traditional eastern NC style Barbecue is often served up here in Oriental by Tennessee Ronnie... Tonight the occasion was a fundraiser for "Girls on the Run" held at the Oriental Marina & Inn.

"Hot Buttered Grits" performed excellent "experimental/funk/bluegrass" grooves on the Tiki-Bar deck while hundreds lined up for their chopped pork butt smothered with a spicy vinegary dressing under the tent nearby:

(click to enlarge)

I have featured "Hot Buttered Grits" before in my posting of Dec. 6 2008, when the weather was a bit cooler... You can see and hear more about Hot Buttered Grits and their "Cosmic Acoustic Soul & Funktional Trance-Missions" on their MySpace page.

... I have to repeat my comment then about how nice it is to hear a band that does not perform all of the classic rocks songs from the 60's-90's that is the usual fare... And this is indeed the only band I have ever heard play at the Tiki-Bar that does not do a version of "Sweet Home Alabama."

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10.23- Four-Armstong aux. motor

2009-10-23T23:29:00.000-04:00

Paddling to the Wildlife Ramp

This crew found themselves a bit a-lee of the Wildlife Ramp at the end of Midyette St. in Oriental, and had to break out the four-armstrong motor to get back this afternoon.

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10.17 - Capt. Ben defeats Capt. Ben in Greens Cr. Challenge

2009-10-17T23:23:00.012-04:00

Capt. Ben defeats Capt. Ben in Greens Cr. Challenge

Capt. Ben Bruno proved both a gracious and wise vanquisher (and a budding young naval architect) when he approached me after the race was done:

"First of all, Good Try!,"

the young gentleman said to me, with an earnest eye...

"But one thing..."

(pause, to ensure no offense...)

"She needs a bigger sail,"

... another pause...

"... Oh... and only one sail,"

he said, referring to the admittedly troublesome and superfluous jib I added to the previous cat-rig ...

I'm thinkin' that's pretty much dead-on advice.
Hmmm... Back to the drawing board.

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10.14- Cutting corners

2009-10-14T23:26:00.005-04:00

Yours truly pushes the nascent mast through the table saw, while Capt. Dave mans the "chicken stick"

Construction continues on the new mast for the Bauer Classic 10' (see prior post below, or here).

After allowing an extra 24 hours for the glue to cure due to the cool damp weather, it was time to cut the corners off of the laminated mast stock.

Cutting the square stock into an octagon helps save a lot of work and time on shaving the mast into its final round form.

Time is ticking down to the Greens Creek challenge, so this mast needs to be near final form by tomorrow if I am going to use it... otherwise I will have to stick with the current mast and hope it doesn't break during the race.

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10.12- New mast in the making

2009-10-12T23:01:00.009-04:00

Gluing up the new mast for the Bauer Classic 10'

This evening I laminated three pieces of fir together to build a new mast for the Bauer Classic 10', hoping to get her all rigged up for the "Greens Creek Challenge" this upcoming Saturday. (See my Daily Photo of the race from last year)

The race is for boats 20' and under, and many of the racers are 5' and under, it being a popular race for the younger sailors. I'm hoping not to be beaten by a 10 year old in an Optimist, but I wouldn't bet any money on it.

The Bauer Classic 10' (see my profile picture near the top of the page on the left) has been out of commission for some months since losing one oar and her rudder in a mysterious dockside sinking (see me looking for her rudder.)

The oar has been re-built, and a replacement rudder is in its final stages of construction, but I also decided to build a new mast because the current one is showing some cracks under load, and because I want to change some of the rigging a bit, particularly by raising it all by at least six inches with a taller mast so I can see under the foot of the mainsail more easily.

The glue will set for the next 24 hours, then I will begin shaping the square laminate into a round mast.

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10.8 - Cement sailboat

2009-10-08T22:25:00.001-04:00

Ferrocement ketch at former Tom Thumb Seafood fish-house

I've heard of "chicken-wire and cement" boats before, but never saw one that I knew of until today...

When I found myself on a lunchtime fishing trip (aah, life in Oriental!... I, by the way, was not fishing, but hoping to capture a bald eagle on camera), the Capt. of the vessel I was on took me by the old Tom Thumb fish-house to see this one. He had met the owner last week, so he knew it was a ferro-boat.

Sure enough, cement boats can float! Though it looks like the un-stepped mainmast needs some work, and maybe a name on the transom.

Learn more about ferrocement boats at http://www.ferrocement.org/

The old Tom Thumb Seafood fish-house on Camp Creek has recently been turned into a marina... Not sure of the name, but I think it is Caroon Marina, named after the property owners.

Location of Tom Thumb / Caroon Marina just across Camp Creek from Oriental:

View Tom Thumb Seafood in a larger map

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10.7- Airborne Aviator

2009-10-07T23:30:00.010-04:00

Burglarized Lincoln Aviator being lifted onto a tow truck

(click images to enlarge)

Just yesterday I e-mailed a couple or potential Oriental imigrees about how safe our town is, and how people leave their cars running while they duck into the store...

Then the town awoke this morning to find a wheel-less Lincoln Aviator resting on cement blocks outside my local tavern, right at the main intersection in the town.

Last night a young marine (at right, behind vehicle in below photo) had left the vehicle there after having too much to drink for driving... He decided to stay with a local friend (center, wearing desert BDUs in below photo) for the night instead of driving back to Camp LeJeune.

An admirable and intelligent move, no doubt, but it turned out a bit rough for the vehicle, which was stripped of its custom wheels, CD player and TV screens in the wee hours this morning.

Oriental residents have long debated the merits of having a municipal police force (the only one in the county,) and whether one or two or more police are appropriate for the town of about 900 souls.

Some say the town should simply rely on the Pamlico County Sheriff's department, as it did until some years ago... some say one officer should be enough, as it purportedly was with one fondly-remembered former Chief... and some say we need at least two police (so that at least one is on duty most of the time,) as was more recently the case until half of the department resigned a few months ago.

This vehicle burglary, which was seen by the many Oriental residents who drive past this spot several times a day, has already prompted some renewed discussion of the matter.

The Pamlico Co. Sheriff's Dept. was first on the scene (photo above left), dusting for fingerprints and talking with the owner at about 10:00 am.

The Sheriff's Dept. had long finished its investigation and left, and the owner was awaiting a tow truck when the entire (one-man) Oriental police department showed up on the scene at about 12:40 pm... Seemingly without having been contacted by the Sheriff's Dept. about the incident.

The thieves did leave one wheel behind... the non-custom spare mounted underneath the Aviator (click on image to enlarge)

[addendum: Still and all, this type of incident is extremely unusual here... On the day after these photos, one of the county's newspapers ran a front-page, above-the-fold story and photo on the burglary, which would never have even merited a mention by papers in other places I have lived.]

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10.5- Harkers Island Flare

2009-10-05T23:49:00.007-04:00

Capt. Hodges circles Jenny back around in Raccoon Creek
(click on image to enlarge)

I have mentioned the 40-foot F/V "Jenny" in a couple of prior postings, where she appeared in the background... but today I decided to take my last opportunity to feature the boat as the subject of the daily photo.

Jenny is a prime example of a Down-East NC heritage treasure... the flare-bowed wooden workboat style known as "Core Sounders" or "Sink-Netters," developed since the advent of gasoline engines by the boat-builders of Harkers Island, NC.

Boat building has taken place on Harkers Island (see map, right or View Larger Map) since 1730, when the island's namesake, Ebenezer Harker, purchased the island and set up a plantation and boat yard there.

There are currently three boat-builders on the island, all small operations... one boat at a time, hand built, and without plans - only tried and true "rules of thumb" for achieving the shallow drafts and flared bows that make the boats perfect for navigating the "thin waters" above the shoals of NC's Bogue, Back and Core Sounds, and for taking on the steep waves stirred up in the sounds by frequent squalls.

Jenny was built by Clarence Willis, who learned his craft from the master of the style, boat builder Brady Lewis.

Lewis is credited with developing the "Core-Sounder" archetype in the 1930s, particularly the signature flared bow. He is the "grandfather" of the style, and his methods have been passed down to the current generation of Harkers Island builders.

I was really lucky that Capt. Hodges circled Jenny back around after leaving the dock at the Oriental Yacht Club, or I could not have gotten the above shot of her head-on... A friend of the crew was lucky, too... He had forgotten his beer, cigarettes and lighter on-board, so Capt. Hodges came back around and First Mate "Fuzzy" made the hand-off:

(click on image to enlarge)

... Then Jenny and crew (including the ship's dog, Belle) left in search of green-tail shrimp:

(click on image to enlarge)

Some links related to Harkers Island style boats:

photos of Brady Lewis' boat yard from the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum
history of "Jean Dale," a Harkers Island style F/V donated to the Core Sound Waterfowl Museum
Lots lots more history, paintings and photos of "Jean Dale" at site raising funds for her restoration
article about and photos of Jenny's creator, boat-builder Clarence Lewis on WRAL.com
A photo of a Harkers Island boat yard at work (but no other info) from HarkersIslandBoats.Com

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10.4- Red Drum

2009-10-04T22:23:00.009-04:00

Sandy shows off the Red Drum she and husband Robby caught today

As I was pedaling past her house, my neighbor flagged me down to get me to take some pictures of two Red Drum (sciaenops ocellatus) she and her husband caught this morning from their Mako (background).

They were caught in a local creek, though of course I can't reveal exactly where... The largest measured 25 inches, the smaller 23. Not sure which one was hers and which was Robby's, but both were pleased with the morning's catch!

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10.3- Net-working

2009-10-03T23:46:00.009-04:00

Shuttles, twine and electrical tape at the ready for net repair

For the past couple of days, First Mate "Fuzzy" of the commercial fishing vessel "Jenny" (like in Forrest Gump, he explained) has been repairing "mongoose trawl" nets on the deck of the Oriental Yacht Club in preparation for white shrimp season.

Jenny has been docked at the OYC for the past couple of weeks while Capt. Dave Hodges and crew repaired the bulkhead between the OYC building and Fulcher Seafood Co.

Jenny is a 40 foot "Core Sounder" wooden commercial fisher, capable of operating in less than three feet of water, thanks to a shallow draft and a tunnel-mounted prop.

Capt. Hodges is particularly proud of Jenny's hydraulic system for controlling the outriggers and warp cables, pointing out that very few vessels in her size-range sport such equipment, instead relying on engine-driven pulley linkages.

The Capt. and crew have stayed a little longer than planned because Jenny's starter fritzed out... They hope to have it repaired and re-installed soon so they can begin the white-shrimp season.

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10.1 - SkyWatch Friday - "Cong Thanh"

2009-10-01T23:43:00.002-04:00

"Cong Thanh" heads into Oriental harbor

Today's SWF photo shows the commercial fishing vessel "Cong Thanh" in the channel into Oriental harbor, under an evening sun shining through a mackerel sky.

"Cong Thanh" is a 63.5 foot, 97 ton commercial fisher built by A W Covacevich Shipyard in 1971. The vessel began life as "Capt. Jim," and has been named "Ando One" and "Jessica J." before its current moniker.

The Covacevish shipyard, located in Biloxi, Mississippi, was started in 1896 by "Jacky Jack" Covacevich, a Croatian immigrant.

Covacevich yard had a storied history of building commercial vessels (fishing, cargo, ferries, etc.), and introduced gasoline auxiliary-powered schooners to the Gulf region in 1909... The schooners would dredge for oysters under sail, but could power up the gas engine to go into the wind.

Though commercial vessels were his bread and butter, apparently Jacky Jack found time to build some smaller boats, like the cool 1933 17 foot catboat at right (much more my style!) and the 1911 30 foot power racing boat below.

The Covacevich yard ceased building boats in 1982, but continued in the repair business until it was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Currently, the shipyard property is slated for 28-story, 286 unit condominium development...

HAPPY SWF EVERYONE!

I look forward to seeing the other Skywatch pictures from around the world on the other SWF sites listed at:

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9.30- Fishing the ditch

2009-09-30T23:10:00.009-04:00

Fishing in the ICW at the Hobucken Bridge
(click image to enlarge)

This couple was fishing from a dock at the R.E. Mayo & Co. fish-house, just across the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway from the community of Hobucken (see map below)

The bridge on the left side of the photo crosses the ICW from the Pamlico County "mainland" to Goose Creek Island (also in Pamlico County)

This modern bridge was completed about eleven years ago, replacing an old 1920's vintage steel truss swing-span bridge... you can see the old swing-bridge abutment on the other side of the ICW, also with a couple of fishers on it.

The new Hobucken fixed-span bridge was constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and was completed under-budget and ahead of schedule.

In order to avoid interfering with the heavy traffic on the ICW (or having the traffic interfere with it), the bridge was designed to span the ICW with no piers in the water, resulting in the longest bridge span in North Carolina.

Here is a USACE photo of the bridge nearing completion (you can see the Mayo docks, lower right of the bridge, and the U.S. Coast Guard Hobucken Station in the clearing to the left of the bridge... click image to enlarge), followed by a map of the location:

(Click image to enlarge)

Hobucken bridge over ICW, and R.E. Mayo & Co. fish-house locations:

View R.E. Mayo & Co. fish house, Hobucken NC in a larger map

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9.29- Smith's Friendly Mini Mart

2009-09-29T23:48:00.012-04:00

The old Smith's store in Mesic, NC

Mesic is an incorporated town in Pamlico County, NC with a population of fewer than 250 folks. It is just across Vandemere Creek from the town of Vandemere (see prior two posts) on the Bay River (see map, bottom of post)...

The information below is a summary of info I learned about Mesic and its families from the research and writings of Bill Smith (a.k.a. "Poppa Bear") of Mesic - my source is a very intriguing (if somewhat enigmatic) genealogical/history web site put together by Bill Smith bout his 11 year quest "In Search of Rodger - 1710-2009."

The above store (no longer in operation) is owned by the Smith family, descendants of "Maricay," b. 1710, a mestizo slave from Maracay, Venezuala who ended up as a slave of the Midyette family in Hyde County. (No doubt part of the same Midyette family which subsequently produced Oriental's founder Ropert P. Midyette, who in 1873 migrated from Dare County to purchase the land that eventually became the town of Oriental.)**

Maricay's son, Charles, married Elizabeth Jennett, who "was said to have been on the English slave ship Good Intent and ended up in Hyde County after the ship was wrecked near Cape Hatteras in 1767."

Charles and Elizabeth gave birth to their son "America" on July 4, 1776.

America, who was legally granted freedom by the Midyette family in 1808, was Poppa Bear's great-great-great-grandfather... America had 10 children, four of whom had been born before or during 1808... I have not yet found any mention about whether America's wife or children were also given their freedom in 1808.

It seems that many of Mesic's current residents, about 70% of whom are African-American, are descendants of slaves held by some of eastern NC's earliest European settlers (at least the ones that didn't mysteriously disappear) - including McCotter, Credle, Midyett, Green, Blunt, and O'Neal - whose surnames were adopted by their former slaves upon gaining their freedom, before and after the Civil War.

According to Poppa Bear;

"After the Civil War was over, some time in the late 1860's. Old man
Jacob McCotter needed farm hands to work his farms, so he hired a
large boat to bring some of our ancestors from Hyde Co. this boat
landed in Lowland. [Another ancestor,] Rodger [Smith] and his family
migrated to Pamlico Co. in the early 1880's. They also came by boat
and landed in Lowland...

"They worked on the area farms, clearing farm land digging drainage
canals and in the lumber camps. They worked hard from sun up to
sunset and saved what they could so that they could buy land and build
their homes..."

Mr. "Poppa-Bear" Smith's web site is chock full of fascinating documents (including copies of wills conveying his ancestors), historic photographs, oral histories and anecdotes related to his 11-year effort to to trace his family's ancestry to its African roots... As Mr. Smith quotes his Aunt Louisa (b. 1896.), "We've come a long way, children."

See Mr. "Poppa-Bear" Smith's family history web site at http://poppabear.org/

The official Town of Mesic website is at http://www.mesictownof.com/

Smith's Friendly Mini Mart location in Mesic, NC:

View Smith's Mini Mart, Mesic, NC in a larger map

** Yes, I know the "official" Oriental history published by the Oriental Tourism Board credits Louis B. Midyette with founding the town, but my research strongly suggests otherwise.

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9,28- Summons to Ophelia?

2009-09-28T22:09:00.014-04:00

"Exit" sign leading to a boat ramp in Vandmere

This sign made me think of Shakespeare's "Ophelia," Hamlet's love interest who escaped her hopelessness and Hamlet's increasing madness by descending into the waters of a stream, singing a last song as the weight of her clothing pulled her under.

Luckily, this boat ramp is used for much more cheerful purposes, like going fishing!

It is located at the end of First St. in Vandemere, between two fish-houses, the Pamlico Packing Co. (see yesterday's posting) and McCotter's Seafood Co.

I have read in various places that, at least in NC, where a public street ends at water it is normally presumed to be usable for public (i.e. free) access to the water.

It certainly appears that this ramp is at the terminus of First St. on the water (see photo, left)...

And the Pamlico County Tax office map shows First St. extending to the waterline (see below, click to enlarge, red parts added by me).

The Pamlico County tax map has, however, been known in the past to offer misleading depictions of taxable properties and street-ends) The map shows the property to the east of the ramp belonging to Pamlico Packing, and that west of the ramp to the heirs of H. Carawan, and the public right-of-way is shown going all the way to the water where the ramp is located.

But this ramp has an "honor-box" next to it (see below,) a sure sign that someone considers it to be a private ramp... no indication on the box as to who that might be - just a faint etching of "$5.00 RAMP FEE" (hard to see - click on image to enlarge)

Another Pamlico County street-end mystery... well, the deed searching on this one belongs to someone else.

Here is the spot on Google Maps:

View Ice house at Pamlico Packing Co. in a larger map

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9.27- Vandemere fish-house

2009-09-27T23:53:00.010-04:00

Ice-house at the Pamlico Packing Co. complex on First Street in Vandemere

(click on image to enlarge)

Today I took an afternoon drive to some parts of Pamlico County I have not previously visited by land.

This is one of the buildings at the "Pamlico Packing Co." fish-house complex on First Street in the town of Vandemere (population 289)(Vandemere town web site here), at the confluence of Vandemere Creek into Bay River (see map below). A "fish-house" is a place where commercial fishing vessels can dock and unload their catch for processing, packing and loading onto trucks for trans-shipment.

This building was (is?) apparently the ice-house on the complex... Commercial fishing vessels need vast quantities of ice in their holds to keep their catches fresh until they get back to the fish-house, so ice production is a standard function at fish-houses.

According to this New Bern Sun Journal article about Vandemere, the "Pamlico Packing Co." was formerly the "I.J. Packing Co." until purchased and renamed in 1941 by Earl Holton and his brother-in-law Robert Whorton (who also once owned a packing and canning company here in Oriental.)

I can find nothing about "Homer Wall," whom the sign on this building identifies as the owner of "Wall's." According to Pamlico County tax records, the part of the complex on which this building stands is owned by Pamlico Packing and "Vandemere Ice Co.," which NC Sec'y of State in turn indicates is still owned by the son-in-law of Earl Holton...

A local informed me the fish-house is still operational, though it looks to me like some of the buildings are not used very much, if at all.

The ice-house building is marked on the map below:

View Vandemere fish house in a larger map

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9.26- Seafood Chili

2009-09-26T23:00:00.009-04:00

Mike's Seafood Chili

The annual Chili Cookoff was held today on the Tiki-Bar deck at the Oriental Marina & Inn. The cookoff is a fundraiser for Oriental's historic Old Theater, a really cool 1940's movie theater that has been converted into something of a performing arts venue... though old movies still occasionally grace the screen.

Tiki/Toucan cook and bartender Mike's entry was Seafood Chili made with local clams, crabs, mussels and shrimp from Oriental's own Fulcher Seafood Co.

I am sure my Texas friends and readers will cringe at this one... I myself could not muster the courage to sample the Seafood Chili, not being a big seafood fan (particularly concerning the clams and mussels.)

Once again this year, there was not a single example of "real" chili in the running... All of them included tomatoes/tomato sauce, various kinds of beans, and ground beef... two entries also included ground pork. After living 20+ years in South Texas, I am always surprised that other places in the South serve "Yankee-style chili" as the norm.

None of today's entries would've qualified as chili by Texas standards, but some of them tasted pretty good for whatever they were.

My favorite came from Eric Stickrath's "Broad Street Grill" ... Eric used Vidalia onions to give it a sweetness (but without refined sugar, which is often used in the cookoff chilis, cringe again) and contrasted that with chipotle flavor (although, alas, it came from a bottle of Tabasco-brand chipotle sauce rather than actual chipotle chiles.)

Eric got my vote for best, but failed to place in the contest.

This being a fishing village, Mike's Local Seafood Chili was a favorite, winning second place.

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9.24- Oil Spill

2009-09-24T23:59:00.007-04:00

A town employee helps clean up after an oil spill on Raccoon Creek

An oil spill this afternoon had folks scrambling to sop up the mess.

I'm not sure what happened, but heard in passing that between one and four gallons of oil were involved.

A crew of workers from Bobby Cahoon Marine Construction joined town workers and other folks to capture oil in two booms, and hundreds of petroleum-absorbing "diapers" were laid down to soak up the oil.

This busy stretch of Raccoon Creek is no stranger to oil and fuel slicks, but this is the first time I have ever seen folks cleaning up the mess... Wish I saw this reaction each time.

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9.23- New deck-grippers

2009-09-23T23:26:00.004-04:00

New Sperry Topsiders!

Just got some new "Sperry" top-siders from the "West Marine" store in New Bern!

Classic, never out of style!

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9.22- Candidate Forum

2009-09-22T23:21:00.018-04:00

Owner/Editor of the local far-right "County Compass" newspaper keeps time during the Oriental town commissioners "candidates forum" at the historic town theater

Local MC celebre Jeff Aydellete hosted the only scheduled forum for candidates seeking election to the Oriental Board of Commissioners.

Jeff Aydellette recently started the "County Compass" weekly newspaper, and personally participated in and "reported on" the local anti-President Obama "Juggernut" group that was part of the "tea-party" protest in DC on Sept. 12 (a-la Fox News)

Mr. Aydellete and the "County Compass" have been heavy promoters of (and participants in) the anti-President Obama "Jugernut" campaign, with weekly "articles" and editorials promoting the group... here is (one of the many promotionals published by the paper) See the "Juggernut" anti-universal-health-care campaign web-site (with Uncle Sam telling you that not everyone should get health care.)

If you are not familiar with what the "tea party" movement stands for, you are not alone... the "tea party" folks seem to have the same problem:

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9.20- More Oriental Cup Regatta

2009-09-20T23:39:00.007-04:00

Capt. Will Flannery and crew ferry two race markers out of Raccoon Creek to set up for the Oriental Cup regatta

In addition to setting up race courses, Capt. Will runs Offshore Rafting, specializing in North Carolina coastal adventures on the Zodiac pictured above... see Capt. Will's web site for more information.

I've had my hands full sorting and editing some of the hundreds of photos I took yesterday during the Oriental Cup Regatta, so today's picture comes from yesterday.

Check out more of my Oriental Cup Regatta pictures at my new blog;

"Oriental Daily Photo EXTRA"

Photo processing and setting up the new ODP-EXTRA blog page are causing some delays and hiccups... please be patient, and forgiving of the odd or non-working formatting you may see on ODP-EXTRA until I get things worked out.

More will be added soon, so please check back at "ODP Extra"

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9.19- Oriental Cup Regatta

2009-09-19T21:16:00.009-04:00

"Sun Catcher" tacks around the marker in today's Oriental Cup Regatta
(click on any image to enlarge)

The annual "Oriental Cup" Regatta was held today on the River Neuse just off of Oriental harbor.

Unfortunately I was not crewing in the race today... but luckily I landed a spot on one of the "chase boats" so I was able to get some pics of the action from up close.

I'll have a ton more pictures processed soon, but in the meanwhile, here are a few more from today's regatta...

This O'Day 405's lay-line came up a tad short, prompting a last-second tack at the finish line:

(click any image to enlarge)

Here is a rare sight indeed... "Il Gatto"'s transom! ... Like the shirt, Cap'n!

"Valkyrie" racing in the Non-Spinnaker A Class race:

"Out of the Blue" maneuvers near the buoy for her start:

Two salty sailors from land-locked nations... Wisconsin and Bavaria:

I'll post more pictures from the regatta, along with results, when they're ready...

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9.17- OYC bulkhead repair

2009-09-17T23:44:00.002-04:00

Bulkhead repair operations at the Oriental Yacht Club
(click to enlarge)

Capt. D and his crew are repairing an old bulkhead and walkway at the Oriental Yacht Club this week. In today's photo we see "Belle," the brown retriever of some sort or sorts, doing her part by carrying some of the debris away.

Capt. Hodges and First Mate "Fuzzy" are living aboard "Jenny," the 30-odd foot "Core-Sound" style shrimp boat (background, in today's photo) tied up on Raccoon Creek at the OYC during the job.

Capt. Hodges and crew are taking advantage of the break between brown shrimp season (waning) and white shrimp season (approaching) to do some marine construction jobs.

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9.12- Bauer Classic 10'

2009-09-12T22:19:00.013-04:00

This Bauer Classic 10' shows a bow wave, but not threat of violating the
"Slow No Wake" zone near the Wildlife Ramp

(click on any image to enlarge)

I went by the Wildlife Ramp (public boat ramp) on Midyette St. in Oriental today, and was immediately attracted to this fine sailing dinghy being rigged while on its trailer before being launched into Smith's Creek.

I met Capt. Jack Russel ("like the dog," he explained) who confirmed my suspicion that the vessel was a Bauer (but I incorrectly thought it was a 12'), a boat in which I may often be seen sailing around Oriental waterways (see my profile picture, above left)... though I use a home-made, wooden-sparred sprit-rig, while Capt. Jack's boat came with the Bauer-manufactured aluminum "sliding gunter rig"

Capt. Jack, who lives in SC, had just purchased the boat, and was taking it out for a shake-down run.

As I have often experienced, this sharp sailing tender usually draws a crowd, and I was soon joined by recent Oriental immigrees Larry and Dawn (at right) in admiring her.

This Bauer sported glimmering bright-work on her teak transom, reinforced gunwales, thwarts, burden boards, rudder cheeks and teak/ash tiller.

At left Capt. Jack is assisted by his first mate (and sister) at the painter during the launch.

Once Capt. Jack was underway, raised his sails, and lowered his centerboard (which I suspect he may not have done as promptly as he might have wished), the boat and crew headed upwind, under the bridge, through the harbor and out onto the busy weekend traffic on the River Neuse:

Godspeed!

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9.11 - 9.11

2009-09-11T18:53:00.009-04:00

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9.9- Unilateral mid-race course change

2009-09-09T21:51:00.016-04:00

"Maggie's Magic"(left) and "Il Gatto" (right) as seen from "Light Wind" during the Wednesday night beer-can race

Race Report:

The winds were in the 10 to 12 knot range, giving the Capt. and crew (including me) of the appropriately named "Light Wind" something of a chance of keeping up with the other, much longer vessels in this weeks informal Wednesday Night Race around the three gov.t markers near Oriental ("Oriental 1," "Adams Creek 1" and "Neuse River 7" a.k.a. "Garbacon Shoals").

For some reason the race started on a downwind leg from Oriental 1 towards AC1... normally the race starts at Oriental 1 and heads first towards the more windward of AC1 or NR7.

The two boats in today's picture had something of an advantage on "Light Wind" on the dead run towards AC1, but we were pleased to remain within striking distance of the leaders, knowing that "Il Gatto"s weakness was pointing upwind, while "Light Wind"s favored point of sail is close-hauled in 10 knot winds... giving us a good chance to catch up on the upwind leg from AC1 to NR7...

Sure enough, we rounded AC1 and steadily began catching up with "Il Gatto"... "Maggie's Magic" leaped far ahead of everyone, so the race to NR7 was on between "Il Gatto" and "Light Wind." This was all that mattered to us - a chance to whup ass on Capt. Joe.

While we were on our second (starboard) tack heading upwind towards NR7 after a port-side rounding of AC1, and "Il Gatto" was on her third (port) tack, we had her on a "constant bearing, diminishing range"...

The only question was who would cross whose bow, a bit hard to judge because of the distance, but we were on a starboard tack, so "Il Gatto" would have to give way and cross our stern if it was anything close... that would put us in position to tack on top of her and steal some of her wind until we were well ahead of her!

It seems Capt. and crew of the 30 foot Nonsuch "Il Gatto" were aware they were about to be passed by a 22 foot Catalina, so they came up with a strategy to avoid the embarrassment...

"Il Gatto"s Capt. Joe, the organizer of the un-organized race, decided to make an ad hoc change to the race course, unilaterally eliminating the NR7 leg of the race. We first suspected this when "Il Gatto" tacked again onto a course that did not appear headed to NR7. We then hailed her on the VHF, and asked for confirmation of the race course... We were told that it was from O1 to AC1 and back to O1, in a voice that feigned surprise that we had needed to ask (Maggie's Magic, the vessel on the left in the photo had by that time reached NR7, so we began to smell a rat)...

Our radioman responded with an ironic but unprintable remark concerning the appropriateness of a particular vernacular translation of the name of Capt. Joe's vessel.

It is unclear to us if Capt. Joe had even bothered to announce the mid-race change, since we were concentrating on trimming sails and pointing high more than we were on monitoring the VHF ... but even if he did announce it, sailboat racing rules require all course changes to be announced and confirmed prior to the start of a race.

As it was, "Light Wind" ended up crossing the NEW finish line a mere five minutes behind "Il Gatto" (about 6 to seven statute miles between start and finish)...

After "Il Gatto" lowered her sails, uh, I mean sail, and fired up her engine like a bunch of lubbers, we held ourselves a victory lap by beating up into Raccoon Creek for the post-race committee meeting at the Tiki-Bar... we topped it all off with a 9.8 "Bean"-scale landing* at the town dock under full sail and right in front of the awed and shamed faces of Capt. Joe and his crew, who were just sipping their first beers at the Tiki-Bar.

Our formal protest, and "Il Gatto"s varied excuses, were presented to the race committee on the Tiki-Bar deck... But since we were all splicing main-braces, no official decision was ever reached.

That's OK... we'll get her next time!

Footnotes:
*note to non-local sailors - The "Bean" rating for landings falls within the realm of "local knowledge"... sail into to Oriental harbor, land at town dock and get a coffee across the street to find out more... but I will say that landing under sail earns extra points.

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9.04- Super-yacht on "A-Dock"

2009-09-04T23:51:00.009-04:00

"Patti Lou" tied up to A-dock

(click on image to enlarge)

We don't see a lot of yachts over 100' here in Oriental - they usually head down to Beaufort or up to Norfolk for stop-overs.

This foreign-flagged luxury yacht found a spot along "A" Dock at Oriental Harbor Marina this evening, and the crew quickly got to work getting the saltiness off the deck.

You can see a shot this 3,600 horsepower vessel underway (max. 22 kts.), and some interior shots, at her builder's web site:
http://www.queenship.com/crescent/legacy.php?lid=2

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9.02- Wednesday Night Races

2009-09-02T22:14:00.004-04:00

The Winner
(click image to enlarge)

I crewed on "Light Wind," a Catalina 22', for tonight's Wednesday night race.

The good news: WE CAME IN SECOND PLACE!

The bad news: the above boat was the only other one participating.

Winds were definitely lively, but made for some fun sailing with a reefed main. You can't tell from the photo, but some of the waves were higher than the gunwales of the Catalina 22.

Unfortunately, the Captain Joe of "Il Gatto" was a "Gatto Assustado" this week, and bowed out of the weekly contest a couple of days ago, apparently afraid of a forecast of brisk wind and a bit of rain.

As he is sort of the "organizer" of the weekly un-organized race, no doubt some other boats followed his example.

Not us, however. The intrepid crew of "Light Wind" showed no fear, pounding into the four-foot swells and eating up the 25 knot gusts... We're not even sure if the boat above had come out for the race, but our taunting shouts prompted them to let us chase them along a shortened course from Oriental Marker One to Garbacon Shoals Marker and back.

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8.27- Stranded on Shackleford Banks

2009-08-27T23:37:00.004-04:00

Some of Shackleford Banks' wild horses grazing ocean-side
(click on images for full size)

Today's pictures actually are from two days ago... My father, my oldest brother, my youngest nephew and I went down to Shackleford Banks, one of North Carolina's outer-banks islands, on a borrowed 19 foot "Carolina Skiff."

The Shackleford Banks horses are wild horses that have been stranded on the island for several hundred years... According to the Nat'l Park Service, genetics testing shows they are descended from Spanish horses.

As we learned on our trip, horses aren't the only ones liable to be stranded on the island...

Our original travel plan had been to boat down to visit Beaufort, but the Captain (me) decided to visit the nearby Shackleford Banks first.

The trip from Oriental to Beaufort had only taken about an hour, so I kinda figured we could visit nearby Shackleford for a bit while working up an appetite for lunch in Beaufort.

Unfortunately, due to command failure (my bad,) we ended up stranded on the island for about TEN HOURS.

Boaters visiting Shackleford Bank are well-advised to pay attention to a warning posted outside the restroom cabin on the island:

"Boaters should be aware of tides - you may become stranded"

A valuable warning which I saw several hours too late:

My dad and brother ponder at the high-and-dry Carolina Skiff
(click on image to enlarge)

My dad and brother had remained at the boat, chatting away, while my nephew and I walked across the sand dunes to the ocean side of the island for some body surfing in the Atlantic Ocean (at right.)

After we had swam around and followed some horses for an hour or two, we were headed back to the boat when my dad called my cell to inform me that there was a problem with the boat... as seen above.

Tides come in twice a day, so we were facing a good number of hours until we would have a chance to get the boat back off. And of course we had no food, since we had planned to lunch at Beaufort.

There are, however, much worse places to be stuck for ten hours.

My brother and I hiked back across the island so he could get a chance to swim in the ocean surf, and while I watched from the shore a herd of Shackleford Bank horses came lolling past, stopping here and there to graze, so I got a lot of nice pictures I wouldn't have had we not been stranded:

(click on images to enlarge)

After more swimming and horse-watching, my brother and I crossed back to the sound side of the island, and I began gathering dead wood along the way, seeing as how we were going to be stuck on the island well after dark.

As twilight and the tide fell, there were two to three hundred yards of sand between the skiff and the water (see picture at left... black area between boat and lighter colored water in the background is sand... lights of Beaufort near the horizon).

I continued gathering firewood until sundown, and gathered up some of the plentiful oysters and mussels that were poking up all around the sand flats, just in case we got really hungry.

I built the fire on the beach about one hundred yards away from the boat, right at about the same elevation as the bow of the boat.

The wood lasted just about the perfect amount of time, and when the tide rose to within inches of the fire (around midnight), we were able to pull the boat into the water.

While we were all relieved to finally be able to get off the island, my dad and I knew our work was just beginning - navigating at night through an unfamiliar harbor and about 30 miles of rivers, creeks and ICW ditches to get back to Oriental.

What had been a one-hour trip down turned into a three-hour trip back, with dad as navigation officer constantly checking the charts with a jury-rigged blue filter on the flashlight (to preserve night vision) and calling out the upcoming marker lights, ranges, and bridges while I manned the helm and a spotlight (thank goodness the boat owner had left one in stowage aboard!) to look for unlighted navigational markers and other potential collision hazards.

Ah, well, stuff happens. One can avoid this sort of thing very simply... by never going boating... too high a price.

My nephew (with shirt on head to ward off bugs), my brother (background, left) and myself enjoy a fire and attempt to cook oysters and mussels while waiting for the tide to roll our way

Google map showing boat stranding location on Shackleford, and the route back to Oriental:

View Shackleford Banks in a larger map

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8.22- Tiki-Bar Reunion

2009-08-22T23:23:00.003-04:00

Saturday night at the Tiki-Bar
(click image to enlarge)

Shrimp boats (left, background) and a live band (background, near colored lights) provided the backdrop for Saturday night on the Tiki-Bar deck at Oriental Marina and Inn on Raccoon Creek and Oriental Harbor.

The Oriental Marina and Inn is situated in the heart of Oriental, and offers itinerant boat slips, laundry and shower facilities, rooms for rent, the Toucan Bar & Fresh Grill, as well as the popular Tiki-Bar.

I was told that the class of 1979 was having a reunion tonight... but I didn't hear what school it was, probably Pamlico County High School.

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8.21- Offloading Shrimp

2009-08-21T23:58:00.001-04:00

(click image to enlarge)

A bucket of shrimp from the hold of "Lady Barbara" being poured onto the sluice leading into the Point Pride Seafood fish-house.

Friday always brings a lot of activity to Raccoon Creek as the shrimpers come back in to the harbor for the weekend curfew, and to unload their catches.

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8.17- Goose Creek boat house

2009-08-17T23:46:00.001-04:00

Little Red Boat House on Goose Creek

(click on image to enlarge)

I drove down to the end of Goose Creek Rd. for the first time today, and found this small private boat house and boat ramp at the very end of the road.

A sign posted on a utility pole reads "Use Only By Permission" (see picture below) ... I guess you just have to know who to ask.

Off in the distance (above) you can see some small commercial fishing vessels (click on image to enlarge.)

Here is another view (from the end of Goose Creek Rd.), followed by a map of the location:

(click on image to enlarge)

View Goose Creek boat house in a larger map

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8.13- Fūjin takes a rest

2009-08-13T23:52:00.004-04:00

Anglers casting on a bait ball

(click on image to enlarge)

More storms and rain this morning, but by late afternoon the waters of the river Neuse showed nary a ruffle... except the ruffle caused by the menhaden school these anglers sneaked up on to gather some bait.

A number of other sports fishers were cruising about, and two or three shrimpers were visible, including the one in the background (left) drifting between Garbacon shoal and Adam's Creek on the far side of the river.

Surprisingly, the many sailors who normally (and mysteriously) crowd the river when Fūjin slumbers, were completely absent.

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8.12- Foulies, shorts and sandals

2009-08-12T23:48:00.001-04:00

Eight to ten inches of rain mean "foulies" for some itenerants returning to their boat at Oriental Marina and Inn on Raccoon Creek, at the heart of Oriental.

Classic, never out of style.

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8.10- Tobacco Rows

2009-08-10T22:19:00.000-04:00

A John Deere tractor and pendant machinery rest until tobacco harvesting begins again tomorrow

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8.08- Bonza on the Billabong

2009-08-08T22:08:00.000-04:00

Some Aussie visitors get a souvenir photo taken during a sail on the river Neuse

These young ladies from Australia took advantage of one of their few days off from working at Camp Seagull for to go out sailing on the river Neuse today.

A lot of young men and women from around the world come to work at the local camps during the summer. They receive minimal pay for long hours and few chances to get off of the camp grounds.

These ladies didn't seem to mind, but were glad to have a day away from the camp grounds... two of them will be off to further adventures in New York and Europe when their work at the camp is over in a couple of weeks.

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8.03- View through the clew

2009-08-03T22:46:00.003-04:00

Setting sun peeking through the clew during a sail on the river Neuse
(click on image to enlarge)

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8.01- Rumble in Dog Town

2009-08-01T20:59:00.012-04:00

A vehicle applies the brakes as it crosses the new rumble-strips on Midyette St.
(click image to enlarge)

The Town of Oriental laid down some "rumble strips" and put up more visible "Slow Children Playing" signage on Midyette St. last week.

The street leads down to the popular "Wildlife Ramp," a free public boat ramp anglers and recreational boaters use to put-in at Smith's Creek...

Because the street bears off at a slight angle from the main highway leading into town, many vehicles veer off onto Midyette without slowing down, causing understandable consternation and concern for children on the part of the street's residents.

Neighbors were particularly concerned with trucks hauling heavy fishing boats to the Wildlife Ramp... The ones pictured at right going over the rumble strips were not speeding, but Midyette residents report that similar vehicles often journey down this narrow asphalt at 30-50 mph.

Town officials are testing the rumble strips and sign placement to see if they help slow things down.

Dog Town History

This stretch of Midyette St. was first developed as a residential subdivision in 1916 by the Roper Lumber Co., which owned a large lumber mill on the site of the current Wildlife Ramp, a little over half a mile down the street.
(see Google map at bottom of this post for locations)

Roper Lumber Co. named it's subdivision "Dog Town." (see Roper Co. plat, below)

In 1919 Roper Lumber began selling the subdivision lots to African-American employees of the company...

I am guessing that it was at that time (and a long time thereafter,) the only place within town limits where blacks were allowed to live.

To this day the vast majority of African-Americans living within Oriental town limits live along this stretch of Midyette St.... Many of the homes are owned by descendants of Roper Lumber employees who moved their families into Dog Town during the 20's and 30's.

As early as 1954, property deeds for Dog Town lots additionally described the subdivision as being "known as White City."

According to local lore, the rather ironic "White City" moniker for the town's only black neighborhood came about because all of the houses in the subdivision were painted white.

Below is the Roper Lumber Co. subdivision plat... It was apparently filed in the County Register of Deeds office by G.P. Midyette (?grandson? of town founder Robert P. Midyette) who purchased Roper Lumber's mill property and its un-sold Dog Town lots in 1948. I say this because the filed plat (which notes that it is a 1942 copy of the original plat) bears some ghostly annotations of payment schedules and payments made by persons to whom G.P. Midyette is on record as having sold the annotated lots:

(click on image to enlarge)

Map showing Hwy.55, Dog Town, and Boat Ramp /Former Roper Lumber Mill:

View Dog Town and Roper Lumber in a larger map

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7.31- Razed Parsonage

2009-07-31T22:48:00.000-04:00

The Oriental UMC Parsonage waits to be hauled off

See yesterday's posting, below.

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7.30- Pulling Down the House

2009-07-30T22:35:00.001-04:00

Demolition begins on the Oriental United Methodist Church parsonage

The UMC parsonage home on South Avenue, directly across from Lou-Mac Park, is being razed, apparently due to pervasive mold infestation.

The UMC is selling the lot, a prime location in Oriental's "Neuse River Heights" subdivision facing onto the river Neuse at one of the areas more popular river access points.

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7.25- Tarpon Tournament

2009-07-27T02:19:00.004-04:00

Rods and reels at the ready

This weekend is the annual Oriental Rotary Club's "Tarpon Tournament."

A "Tarpon" is a particular kind of fish that sports fishers / anglers enjoy trying to catch, at least in part due to the serious fight these rather large fish will put up.

The tournament is "catch and release," with observers on each participating boat recording the number of Tarpon reeled in to boat-side before being let loose.

Apparently Tarpon fishers often end up reeling in "skates" ... at least that is what they call them.

From what I have seen in pictures from the tourney, and the animal mounted on the "Flat Tarpon" prize that goes to whoever catches the most "skates," it looks to me like what these guys are actually reeling in are "cow-nosed rays," which swim and hunt on near the waters' surface, rather than the bottom-feeding, smaller and non-poisonous skate.

I've given up trying to correct anyone on this.

Frankly, I would rather brag about fighting for two hours to pull in a cow-nosed ray (with a poisonous barb) than a measly little bottom-feeding and totally harmless skate...

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7.17- Fishing at Dawson's Creek

2009-07-17T23:13:00.005-04:00

Folks were fishing on both banks and in the middle of Dawson's Creek this evening

(Click image to enlarge)

The pier leading down to the Dawson's Creek beach under the bridge has been thoroughly repaired. (and yes, for my out-of-area visitors, this is the namesake of the TV show)

Unfortunately, it seems the creek itself is not in very great shape, as indicated by this signage posted around the popular water access site:

The warnings against swimming in the water did not seem to give pause to any of the dozen or so folks who were fishing around the Dawson's Creek bridge while I visited today:

Location of Dawson's Creek:

View Dawson's Creek in a larger map

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7.16 - Empty seats, full suites

2009-07-16T22:53:00.007-04:00

Two tour buses mean "No Vacancy" at River Neuse Suites

Orientals "cushy" hotel (technically a "condo-tel," but it amounts to the same thing), River Neuse Suites on the South Ave waterfront on the river Neuse, is full tonight.

Under an evening drizzle, the Adirondacks on the lawn facing the Neuse were empty.

While Oriental is a visitor destination, two tour buses is still a rare sight here.
We would certainly like to see more of em as the season continues...

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