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September 22, 1994 - Farewell to Summer in a Nighttime Paddle4A • The Suffolk Times • September, 22, 1994 Farewell to Summer in a Nighttime Paddle By Paul Stoutenburgh "Let's take the canoe out and paddle over to our house even though it's overcast and windy on the bay." The trick is to know where the wind is coming from and then choose your time so it can benefit you, and that's just what Barbara and I did after dinner Focus on n 'turday Nature During part of last winter we did some extensive camping for about three months and then by spring we moved into'the cot- tage on the bay. So we haven't seen any TV for over six months. The result has been lots of reading and creative activi- ties. Our paddle tonight would be just an extension of that less complicated lifestyle. It's sort of like going back 40 years to when the radio was your only link to the outside world. The overcast sky was hiding an almost full moon and the bay looked gray and dreary. There were no other boats on the bay. As we carried our lightweight Kevlar canoe down to the water's edge, the lights around the bay started to twinkle on. Our routine is pretty well set for getting into the canoe. Once we push it in the water we leave about three or four feet for one of us to straddle that part of the canoe and hold it by the gunnels, while the other one walks out and gets seated. Now, with the paddle in hand, the seated partner can control the canoe as the last one gets in, sits down and shoves off. Without that stabilizer holding the canoe, there's always the chance for a tip rnoto oy raw awwnnuwyn MONARCH BUTTERFLY - ,Seaside goldenrod attracts the migrating bufterflies that head south at this time of year. over. Wind at Our Back We headed out and along the beach, which was now downwind. How easy it was and what good time we made. The waves weren't huge but with a strong wind rolling in, the water moved up un- easily close — but no water came in. The long, empty beach soon was behind us with one lone, black - backed gull still sitting there watching ds go by. He soon would leave and find a quieter place out in the bay in the lee of the land, where he'd spend the night floating and riding the quiet side of the water out there. A huge wedding party was going on at one of the waterfront houses and we could hear the band playing "Mary Lou." I'm sure no one noticed us in the dim light of the late evening as we pad- dled silently by. Some houses were spar- ingly lit, probably dinner was over and the evening news was on. Still others seemed to have every light in the house on. After all, it was Saturday night and there weren't too many weekends left, so people were enjoying themselves. * �10,� * �Amlllm "wwlils 82 Years Ago Sept. 21, 1912 Unlicensed Steamers Caught: Fisheries pro- tectors made what they call a "grand sweep" after making a deliberate plan which was concocted in Greenport. The protectors caught a group of steamers without the necessary licenses which cost $50 each, and which is appli- cable to vessels of fifty tons or over. The fine is $300 in each case, making a total fine of $1,500. Call for Better Waterways: For several years there has been talk of improving the waterways connecting Great South Bay with Peconic Bay, whereby vessels of con- siderable draft could proceed from Great South Bay through Peconic Bay to Greenport. Joseph Bailey, head of the lumber yards at Patchogue, Sayville and Islip, has secured the services of a competent engineer to make a complete report. It is proposed that each town to be benefited by the improvement pay its just share. 50 Years Ago Sept. 22, 1944 Back -to- School Pep Talk: The opening of the public schools is a great annual event in American life. Boys and girls are full of life and fun, they love to play, and it is hard for some of them to settle down and do real work Some mooring buoys were empty, their boats already in storage. Yet there was a sailboat and two powerboats tug- ging at their lines, just waiting for better weather. Finally, with the wind and tide behind us, we swung into the creek and our waves and gray bay were left be- hind. A lone fisherman stood on the beach. I wondered what his thoughts were as he looked over that dark and fill- ing creek. Tall marsh grass greeted us on each side, its heavily laden heads of grain awaiting ripening. Darkness had taken over, so much so that the_ trees were just silhouetted around us, with a few dots of light where homes were. A black duck called in the distance. The wind had lost its power and we moved in silence. The on their lessons. They can make a game of their studies, and try to excel and find satisfaction in getting good marks. The Value of Preparedness: The fact that ample warning was issued by the Weather Bureau, and due to the preparedness of the Coast Guard, Red Cross, Civilian Pro- tection and other agencies in Suffolk County there was no loss of life in the county during the hurricane which swept the Atlantic seaboard. The clock -work like precision with which all the various agencies were mobilized and put on the alert is ample evidence of the fact that after the war is over and peace has been won that such agencies as the Civil Protection should not be abolished. 25 Years Ago Sept. 26, 1969 Students Abroad: The Greenport Rotary Club will expand its awards program to enable the club to send more qualified students at more levels of educational achievement to foreign countries for a year of orientation and study. More Beds at ELIH: There are now eight more beds available for surgical- medical cases at Eastern Long Island Hospital, Greenport, due to the reduction of the maternity unit. As yet there has been no change in facilities for the newly born. In keeping with the national trend of lower birth rates, a glance at the hospital records shows a startling decline. only noise was the water run- ning off our paddles. Then, barely visible, we saw five to six black ducks dropping in the darkness, their flight erratic as they lost altitude. Then they were gone. Without the bright- ness of the sky, we couldn't see them any longer. On we paddled, looking at the homes along the creek edge. Each house had its story of life in its own particular way — like little worlds of their own, each functioning within its glow of light. None knew we were outside paddling in their watery front yards. Soon we were at our dock. It was mirrorlike up at the head of the creek. Here the marsh grass was five feet tall, and as we brushed alongside of it we felt the moisture of dew already starting to paint its droplets everywhere. Our night paddle was complete. In All Its Golden Glory If you live along any of our beaches, whether it's on the bay or ocean or Sound, you are bound to have noticed the exceptionally hardy goldenrod that's now coming into color. Seaside goldenrod ranks above all others when it comes to ruggedness and bloom. Salt spray has lit- tle effect on it and should the conditions be right, a three- to four -foot plant of healthy green and yellow presents itself as the last hurrah of the season for its clan. Living during the summer at the cot- tage on the bay we watched these gold- No one enrod plants from their noticed first low, leafy stages in the spring, all us in the through the hot and dry dim light weather. They seemed as we to grow as if nothing unusual had occurred. paddled Deep tap roots that silently probed for moisture in the sand is what pulled by them through. And to think no one plants them, fertilizes them or even waters them, and still they grow. It's one of the most hardy of our seaside plantings. The big clusters of flowers are a prime altractor for migrating monarch butterflies. Our island lies in a most con- venient area and acts as a flyway for these dancing bits of color at this time of year. What a wonder a butterfly is. Weigh- ing less than a feather, it has the super micromechanisms for flight and naviga- tion that see it through storm and calm, rain and shine, so that it can travel to its winter home down south and then back next year. And to think its scent glands can find and home in on a female for mating or find a flower with its nectar for energy to keep its life cycle continu- ally fulfilled. We marvel at the computer chip and the wizardry of man's inventions, but they hold a small candle to the wonders of our natural world that have evolved through time. It's such wonders as a but- terfly that make me feel humble before the stage of nature. It's these insights that I continue to look forward to each day that make an exciting and rewarding adventure no matter where I am.