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October 08, 2009 - A North Fork fall, yesterday and todayOCTOBER 8, 2009 I SUFFOLKTIMES.COM orth F esterdav and toda PAULSTOUTENBURGH hauling out boats often used friends and neighbors for help. Knowledge of block and tackle often came in i ne rau season creeps up on us siowiy ana men all of a sudden it's here. There are signs of it all around. The trees start to lose their green leaves, pumpkins pop up overnight throughout the coun- tryside and traffic on the weekends sometimes slows down to a crawl. We see piles of wood for sale along the roadsides for folks to take home for an evening fire and occa- sionally we see stacks of wood in backyards, where some keep it for their winter fuel supply. Today chain saws make quick work of cutting up the wood In the old days it was necessary to have great piles of wood cut just the right size for the big woo( stove and ready for the first cold weather, and then we were always reminded as the winter came on that the wood box had to be kept full. The only tim( we got a break in this never - ending job was after the '38 hurricane. Trees were down everywhere. Remember, this was before chain saws. The wood was cut with a buck saw. The big logs had to be cut vvith a two -man saw ana 1 can assure you I got to know that saw well. NATURE FOCUS ON There were so man downed trees that in order to get from the road to the house we almost had to make a tunnel to get through. Then logs that weren't too big to handle were moved off the drive - PAUL STOUTENBURGH way to make room for the farmer with his tractor and buzz saw, This big buzz saw had a circular blade about three feet in diameter driven by a flat belt that ran off the tractor's power takeoff. Man, when all was working right, those stacked logs were cut in no time. You could hear the saw zzzztnging as the whirling blade made its way through the logs. How the sawdust flew Fall is the time of the year when folks start NEI ing about taking their boats up. Today most boats are hauled out at marinas, where they are wrappe and stored for the winter. In the old days few people had boats. Of course, all boats then were made of wood. Fiberglass was still a long way away. Almost everyone hauled their own boat out for the winter. We're talking about 70 years ago, a time of brute strength and a fair knowledge of the block and tackle. I had acquired a used 17 -foot converted cat boat that had to be pulled out each year, and like When you can. That means just get all the haulir equipment together and a few friends and in no time you are back in the water. Today a few local farmers still cut and ship cauliflower. In the old days you would see many a farmer out in the knee -high rows of leafy cauli- flower, inspecting first one and then another. Then he would stop and work his machete to release the cauliflower from its roots. He would then hold the leafy mass in one hand and, with accuracy gained from years of working on his farm, swing the glistening machete at the leafy parts, severing them from the bright -white head. In the old days, cauliflower was crated and taken to the cauliflower auction blocks in Southold and Riverhead, where bidders from all over would bid on the whole truckload. The auction blocks were exciting places in those days. Today they are just places of the past. The days of hand picking potatoes and bagging most boat owners I re ie on community to help: Harry, Fran, Earl and a fellow who just happened to be passing by. I might add the wdmen played their part by mal ing up sandwiches and drinks and goodies that kept the men going and more or less gave the job c hauling out a picnic -like atmosphere. Twould leave the boat in late to take advantage of the high tides that show up during the fall. Getting it back in the water in the spring was a different story. It was a job of no hurry and do it If you heat your house with wood, as they did in days gone by, you could use a woodshed. them in the fields is a thing of the past as well. To- day it is all done by machinery; some of the farmers bag and ship them to stores by themselves. Others put them in storage buildings to sell later, hopefully when the price goes up. So many signs of fall; the farm stands will soon be selling sprouts. They sell them so differently from what we remember of years ago, when sprouts were neatly packed in pint- or quart-size baskets. Today it is great to see the whole stalk of sprouts being sold to take home; you can actually harvest the sprouts in your home or backyard for the pot. It keeps them fresher longer and it's a fun way to do it. There are so many signs of fall. Keep your eyes open along the roadways for the colorful farm stands with pumpkins all lined up for sale. Keep your eyes and ears toward the sky for the sound of the geese or signs of birds migrating. This is such a beautiful and colorful season for all of us on the Fork. Get out and enjoy it.