Always Something New

Conditions were perfect Sunday morning for our weekly long run.  Weather conditions were good, and we both noticed that there was far less traffic on Fort Macon Road; Martha thought it might be because the Coast Guard Station is closed on Sundays.  Martha had started a little later than I did – we passed each other on the bike path – and so I was too late to see what she told me about when she returned:  a tall ship, with three masts and sails full, coming out of Beaufort harbor.  I must have just missed it.  We got out binoculars and could see it on the horizon, flanked by several smaller vessels; unfortunately the photo is not a good one.

After lunch, Martha told me about another event she discovered on the Friends of Atlantic Beach Facebook page:  A drive-through Gingerbread Festival of Lights display in nearby Newport, a fundraiser for the Crystal Coast Hospice House.  It sounded like fun, although our social schedule is becoming hectic.  Two nights in a row, out after dark!  We arrived nearly a half-hour before sunset and were glad we did as cars began backing up for what looked like a solid mile out on Highway 70.  The displays were very entertaining, and included caroling and dancing by many, many young people, an impressive brass band playing a medley of carols, and toward the end of the route, a pretty good rock band playing “Run Run Rudolph,” the Chuck Berry classic.

Today was a rest day, so we stayed in the condo this morning and Martha mixed up a batch of granola, my morning sustenance nearly every day for several years.  It does not compare at all to store-bought granola, and it has the additional benefit of filling the condo with a lovely, sweet aroma.  “I’ve never made granola while looking at the ocean before,” Martha smiled from the kitchen.

She made so much that there was enough for granola bars, too (again incomparable to store-bought), which are good for breakfast or an afternoon snack.

In the afternoon, we decided to take a short hike.  The weather forecast showed that it was 54 degrees here and 33 degrees in Highlands, and it was starting to snow there according to somebody on Facebook.  So we were glad to be able to drive the short distance to the Fort Macon Picnic Area and hike the new Atlantic Beach Connector Trail, part of the Elliott Coues Nature Trail. 

 The trail meanders first through a typical maritime forest, featuring live oak and cedar trees, and crosses a jewel of a lake

We looped back to the beginning and then walked out on part of the trail on the ocean side, which begins to climb on a path through sand dunes stabilized by Christmas trees, which are collected every year at the Park and the Picnic Area.  You can see the trees along the edges of the trail.   The trees have prevented erosion by the wind over many years, a wonderful use for these still-fragrant remnants of the holiday.

We ended up back in the parking lot.  It had been an overcast day, and it had begun to drizzle rain by then.  We walked by a man whom Martha had seen earlier, reeling up a wire from a small electronic device he had set up on a tripod next to his car.

I asked him what he was doing and he said he was part of an amateur radio club, which focuses on communicating with other enthusiasts in State parks across the country.  “What an interesting hobby!” I said.  “I’ve just started doing it,” he said. 

“There’s always something new to learn, isn’t there?” I said, and he agreed.