Frisco on the beach

From our strolls back and forth. A large number of horseshoe crabs and jellyfish met their ends this week off Frisco, their remains washing ashore, sometimes in pieces. We have encountered few other creatures; birds, but scant humans.

The pier can be seen way off in the background. I purchased a book on NC piers, their histories and ultimate fates. The Frisco Pier has a questionable future.

Staying here is fantastic. The lulling noise of the ocean nicely complements bathing in the sunshine and the hot tub. Not to be associated with the deaths of water creatures, piers, or even parents.

Wreck ashore?

A friendly female nonresident property owner told me that this washed ashore in the hurricane. It came in with a number of other beams, some with brass attachments, that were carried off by persons unknown. In her opinion, these are part of a shipwreck, probably a Spanish one. This piece is, by her reckoning, part of a rudder or steering mechanism. Sounds promising.

Ashes

Mom's urn got a place of prominence in the front room here in Frisco. Yesterday, I distributed about a half-cup of her ashes on the beach, across from the ponies, at Ocracoke.

Late Festival Pics

Just got an email citing the NASGA 2011 Festival page. These two pics -- the top one a much better photo of the Glosta stopper than mine was -- are found there:

The pottery shard is very cool. I had taken one to submit that was a stylized partial bird -- not nearly as arresting as this boy is.

Here's a link to the pics (including those above) of all the winning pieces this year:
http://www.seaglassassociation.org/Festival2011/PhotoAlbum2011/index.html
-- And here's a link to a piece of Mackinac Island glass. I spoke of Mackinac Island at my mother's funeral, as one of her most beloved places. This was during the part of the ceremony when people were asked to take with them a piece of sea glass. Well, here's an amazing piece of sea glass found there -- read the interview!
http://www.odysseyseaglass.com/mackinaw-island-decanter-stopper-october-2011-sea-glass-photo-contest.html

New New = Pea

The Island Free Press has just decreed that, from now on, the inlet that for two months has been called "New New" will now be called "Pea Island" -- as in, Pea Island Inlet and Pea Island (temporary) Bridge. I'm fine with that designation, though the editor of IFP is, she writes, disappointed. (She liked "New New.")

IFP, an online news service, surveyed Hatteras residents (and visitors, perhaps) to determine the best name. Fewer than 60 people responded; fully 30 of those respondents wanted 'Pea Island Inlet.' Sadly, I couldn't snap a pic of the inlet itself because the sidewalls of the bridge are too high and too bulky. But the pictures here are of the area immediately surrounding the bridge, where new pools abound:

I like it that the name 'Pea Island' may be more in circulation. The tale of the Pea Island Lifesaving Service certainly deserves greater prominence. I have a DVD documentary about the crew, should anyone be curious and want to borrow it! I am told that the Discovery Channel is going to run the program in the next year or so. It's both little-known African-American history and lifesaving history.

Run aground off Hatteras Island: Us!

Yes, as I mentioned below, our ferry ran aground yesterday. We decided against going to Ocracoke, since we would have been about 3 hours later than planned.

The ferry we were meant to take developed mechanical problems, so they brought in this other, larger ferry:

We're not Mann's Harbor but Hatteras Inlet. Our ferries do not have a row of seats on the car deck! And, BTW, here's our car riding aboard:

The boat had to apply side propulsion to get out of a sticky situation at the halfway point, but on we pressed. Until we were spitting distance from Ocracoke, where we grounded. One engine got dangerously hot as the ferry tried to extricate itself, by report of a crewman. I guess the channel got no deeper closer to the dock, as a decision was made to return pretty much the whole 40-minute distance to Hatteras.

More on the hurricane

We went back up to the Tri-Village area (Rodanthe-Waves-Salvo) on Monday. The KOA campground has been devastated. The little rental cabins that used to be all lined up on cement pads are no longer.

Taken at the 'New' New Inlet, where the temporary bridge was erected, this is a shot of what used to be a Coast Guard building:

You can see the sound's tide line on the ocean side of the island. For perspective, the sound doesn't tend to rise to more than a couple of feet outside its typical mass. This tide line is at least a few hundred yards outside sound territory, if not more: