After the storm . .

I still haven't had time to run up to Rehoboth to get pictures. I will try to do that tomorrow.

The weather is lovely right now. It has been in the 70's for the last 2 days, the sun is bright and there isn't a cloud in the sky. Purrrfect fall weather!!!!

Yesterday, Chance and I walked on the beach in Bethany. Chance is my sweet doggy. You can see her in the picture above.

As you can see, the storm caused a great deal of beach erosion. I found beach access at Oakwood Street. (The bottom picture.) Walking north, I there were drops of up to 15 foot straight down. The "cliffs" are so high that I wasn't sure exactly what part of town I was in at times. Once in a while, I could see just the top a roof that I recognized. Needless to say, the beach wasn't crowded. I only met one other person on the beach. The winds were gentle and there was only the gentlest of waves.

We walked a little over a half mile north before I found a place to get back to the street without having to turn around. The handicap ramp on the north side of town is still in place, so I used that. It was such a beautiful walk that I would have loved to have stayed much longer.

The shells are starting to wash in. Late fall, winter, and the early spring are good for shelling. I find it fascinating that different types of shells seem to the be more plentiful at certain times of the winter season. The beach was full of shells as you can see in the picture of Chance. Of course, all Chance wanted to do was run and that didn't make shelling easy. I did find a coupla nice conch shells.

The beach replenishment here was done in a much different way then in Rehoboth. The duneline was put much farther away from the boardwalk and it is much higher. It rally doesn't take much of a storm to give the ocean reason to claim what is hers. Rehoboth didn't have as much erossion this time.

A Stormy Jazzfest. . . .

There is soooo much going on in Rehoboth this fall. During the week the town is filled with people taking leisurely walks through town and on the beach, but on weekends it is still downright crowded. As you can see from the photos that I am posting many of the businesses in town are still open. It is so very different from when I grew up here. All of the businesses closed and boarded up on Labor Day back then. I think the only store open in the fall was Lingo's Market on first street. Back then, they were the small "country store" that provided for the needs of the "locals" all year.

Now, there is tons of things to do all over Sussex County every weekend. It is hard to pick what festivals to attend and impossible to do it all. This weekend was Jazz Festival weekend in Rehoboth. Almost every restaurant had a Jazz singer, group, or band for entertainment. There were so many choices that it was mind boggling and leaves you wishing that you had a whole week to take in everything. Each year, this festival gets bigger and better.

Thursday, we were visited by the first of two Nor'easters; the second arrived yesterday. The winds have been bad all weekend, gusting to over 40 mph at times. It has rained almost continually all weekend - sometimes just a mist and at other times torrential. When the rains have lightened people have rushed out wanting to get a look at the beach and to feel the shear power of the ocean. There is nothing like the feel of the salt air stinging your face. The beach has been eaten away by the surf and the water is licking the dune lines at high tide. Interestingly, a Nor'easter, draws people to the beach, so there were even more people here for Jazzfest then usual. Unfortunately, it wasn't possible to stroll restaurant lined Wilmington and Baltimore Streets to listen the the jazz music drifting onto the streets.

I drove from Bethany Beach to Rehoboth around noon on Thursday. The winds have blown the water up into the backbay, so water was all the way across Route 1 in places. Friday, really wasn't a bad day for winds, so driving around wasn't bad at all and people packed the outlets. Yesterday, it was the worst day of the weekend. The winds and rain were at their worst and only the hardiest were out. Route 1 between Rehoboth and Bethany was not a fun drive as the water was on the road in many places and crossing Indian River Bridge was a nightmare. It seemed to me that the worst of the storm hit last night. Today, I didn't go to Rehoboth. I did walk around Bethany and much of it is under water. Bethany is much lower then Rehoboth and is often flooded during a storm.

Good news, Rehoboth has received some of the federal stimulus money. They are replacing the rest of the boardwalk with that money. As many of you know, it is not before it is due. I have posted a picture of the construction. They have started on the south end of the boardwalk and will move to the north end when they are done there. Until they start on the north end, it is still possible to walk from my house to Funland on the boardwalk.

Life is good here!!!!

Yesterday was our first Nor'easter for the year. The surf was only slightly angry, but the winds were strong. Walking down to the beach, I felt like I was walking through a wind tunnel. The closer I got to the beach the harder the wind pushed me back. By the time I reached the boardwalk, I was leaning into the wind and it was taking a good deal of energy just to move forward.

The pictures that I am posting only give you a slight idea of what it was like. They weren't even taken at high tide!!! As you can see the water was already reaching the dunes and sea foam was flying. There were a few hardy souls that were trying to sit on the beach up against the weather fencing to watch the waves. They were wrapped in rain gear and were having to hold onto everything they had with them. Later in the day, the water reached the street at the Henlopen Hotel not far from my homes.

By the time I decided that I needed to head back to the car, it was starting to rain in ernest. We ended up with over 4 inches!!!!! At times, the wind was driving the rain so hard that there were many leaking roofs and water driven in around windows.

Today, when I walked around town, I noticed a number of awnings that had been damaged. Over all this was a pretty mild storm that left very little damage. The worst was beach errosion. It is early in the year for that much errosion. The good news is the sands are ever changing. We always loose beach in the fall and winter, but the sea is kind and usually brings it back in the Spring.

It's no seacret that I truly love the ocean no matter what it is like, but I think I like it best when it is like this. I love the sheer power of those waves.

Not so beautiful beach days. . . .

With late August comes uncertain weather here. For the last week, the humidity has been very high making it feel warmer then it really is. Most days it has been mostly cloudy, but there hasn't been much rain in those clouds. Today, the high was in the mid 70's - very cool for this time of year. Not a good beach day!!!

The ocean has been churning due to off-shore storms. As the storms go up the coast they drive the water into the land, making the surf rough and creating strong undertows. There have been several days when the surf has been so rough that the lifeguards wisely kept everyone out of the water. Even so, there have been more then a few injuries in the past week. Those injuries run from minor abrasions, to dislocated shoulders, broken limbs, and several possible broken necks. If you aren't accustom to swimming in the ocean, please stay out of the water. A strong undertow can knock a large man, who is only knee deep in the water, down or whisk a small child right out of your hold. The thrill is truly not worth the risk.

Since the storms have been so far out off the coast, we have unfortunately not had very much rain. That in itself is creating problems. As you walk on the beach or the boardwalk, you notice that your glasses or sunglasses become coated with salt from the air quickly. It can become quite irriating. Be careful cleaning the salt off, as it can scratch your lenses. It is best to rinse them with water before you try to polish them.

That salt can cause eletrical problems and kill trees as well. You might notice transformers at the top of electric poles are arcing or heard crackling noises. This is caused by the salt build up on the transformers. If it gets really bad the fire companies have to use their trucks to wash down the transformers, so that they don't catch fire or explode. So far, it hasn't gotten to that point this year and let's hope it doesn't.

If you have a chance to drive south on route 1, you will notice that a large number of black pines appear to be dying. It's the salt coating the needles. If it continues, the salt can kill the tree, but most of the time it does get that severe. This year, it appears that we really could loose some of those trees. Some trees have a great deal of dead needles already. We need several days of steady rain soon, if they are going to recover.

You really can feel summer slipping away.

Beautiful Beach Days

It's been a wonderful summer for the beach! Over all the temperatures have been cooler then normal, but today is a hot one. I was down on the beach earlier and the water is sooooo warm. I really didn't want to get out. I could have stayed in all day. There is just something so therapudic about warm salt water! Of course, the whole beach thing is therapudic as far as I am concerned. I find it hard to go more then a few days without getting a fix of sand and sea. The wind in my hair, the smell of salt water, and the sound of the waves and gulls pull at my soul.

The only down side is there are a lot of jellyfish, when the water is this warm. Yup, you can always tell how warm the water is by the number of jellyfish. A little hint: If you get stung by one sprinkle the area with meat tenderizer. It really works, but I have no idea why.

It is hard to believe that the summer is almost over. It seems to have flown by faster then usual. Is that a sign that I am getting older? Our oldest grandson starts school tomorrow, the middle one started yesterday and the youngest starts kindergarden the day after Labor Day. I haven't had them on the beach anywhere near as much as I had planned. I am feeling pressure to make the most of the time left before school with the little one.

Tonight, we are taking him to the boardwalk. He loves the rides! We will probably go to Funland first, then we will get pizza at Louis' Pizza. They do have the best pizza and their fresh cut fries are out of this world. The evening will be topped off with ice cream. Then I will deliver him home undoubtedly with a tummy ache. (Isn't that what grandmothers are for?)

Chek-in/Check-out day. . . .

It's Saturday, so that means that I have spent the day in Rehoboth. I always like to make sure that everything is in order after the cleaners are finished. Somehow, I have never been able to find cleaning people who leave the houses exactly as I want them. I guess I am picky, but I want to make sure that the beds are neat and that each room is not only clean but neat a pin. I want the houses to be so inviting that my guests feel like they are walking into their own home. I make sure that all of the plants are watered and the flower beds are weedless. While the cleaners are finishing up, I run whatever errands I have to do. If I finish up early enough I take a walk on the boardwalk.

The weather today was just the best. The humidity was low and there was a wonderful breeze
- the kind that feels like it is carressing your skin. I walked down Virginia Avenue to the boardwalk, then south to Rehoboth Avenue. Once on the avenue, I couldn't decide if I wanted Louis' pizza or Kohrs. I fnally decided to treat myself to a huge Kohr's Custard (Banana-Strawberry). It served as breakfast and lunch, so I didn't feel bad about the huge part. It was great as usual. I never have one of those ice cream cones that I done thiink of my best friend , Ahrisha. When she is down, we can't walk past that place without getting ice cream, no matter how much we have had to eat.

I took time to enjoy every lick of that cone while I strolled down the avenue widow shopping. There are some very interesting new shops this year. I really need to make time to do more then window shop. Then I will give you a report on what I have found. There is one new shop that I love. It has lots of hair accessories and some really cute "junk" jewelry. I have bought 3 blown glass pendants there. (3 for $20.00) I have worn several of them and gotten some compliments. I don't know the name of the place, but it is on the north side of the block just a few stores from First Street.

It day was so nice that I really didn't want to head home, I would have prefered to veg on the beach, but all good things must come to an end.

It's a beautiful day on the beach. The temperature is nearly 90 today.. It's hot a block inland, but here on the beach there is a cool breeze.

The water is warm and there is no undertow today. The perfect time for a swim! Earlier this morning the dolphin put on a show. There seemed to be more then usual swimming up and down the shoreline. Several flipped over turning their bellies up to the sun, another patted the surface with it's tail and one jumped out of the water. Several people saw it and all of a sudden everyone on the beach had their eyes glued on the water.

One of my favorite things is watching for them. I love watching how they swim the shoreline. The water is their very own highway. There seems to be 2 lanes with some gong north and some going south. Sometimes, when they meet they appear to be greeting each other. It's fascinating!

It is so wonderful to be sitting on the beach after the strong thunderstorms we have had over the past coupla days. Awwww! There is no better place to be on a summer day!!!!!