Road To Hatteras (Part IV, very long): More Montauk
by Dee Dee
After watching the 2:30 AM Montauk TV news re-run of Mayor Giuliani's WTC update, I played
one more song on guitar quietly ("I Am A Child" by Neil Young...which the newscast had, somehow, brought to mind). Finally went 'thud' & out like a light at 3AM to the sound of the still booming Ditch Plains surf.

Refreshingly, not only was there no phone in the East Deck Motel room....but there was also no clock or radio/alarm. I was hoping luck would be with me and I'd wake up early anyway....didn't want to miss a thing in my one day in Montauk. When I did wake, I heard kids laughing & playing outside and the sun was so bright, I thought for sure it was afternoon
....I bolted up & out of the door, chiding myself for sleeping in. I checked the clock in my car & was relieved to find it was only 9:30AM, which wasn't so bad...I was relieved.

A windblown storm had been predicted. Instead, it was a very beautiful Long Island day. I saw a truck in the motel parking lot with 7 surfboards on the hood & two other cars with surfboards on top, so I thought it a hopeful sign & headed over to spock the waves...but, there were none at the time. Some surfers were sitting & talking, but, no one going in.

I stood and took it all in for awhile....and smiled as I thought of ljswahine & Foon and other alt.surfing New Yorkers & how this place was/is/continues to be one of their stomping grounds & of all the good times they have had here & will continue to have over the years! I especially
thought of the awesome report that ljswahine had written to A.S. just a few months ago, about one of her visits there!: [click here].

And an earlier one she had written, that Foon, 1surfergirl & others had responded to with their classic memories, also:  [click here], and great posts that other ASer's have made about the place as well. Alt.Surfing, you were all there with me in spirit.

I then gathered up my gear and headed into town to find coffee, explore & try to 'discover' any place with waves. I parked in downtown Montauk near the gazebo & walked around, 'til I saw a bakery advertising that they had the best coffee in town...I took them at their word, and
I'm here to tell you all, a cup of coffee (or a bagel) never tasted better....it definitely goosed my groggy mind into gear.

After walking the town beach a ways & finding no waves as far as I could see in both directions (but, it was beautiful!); I started on my mission of trying to find where the 15 memorials that Mayor Giuliani had spoken of were going to be held in NY & NJ, the following day. I had asked at the bakery...but no one knew. I tried on fins at a local sports shop & asked them as well, but, no one had heard. After asking several other folks (who very graciously, took the time to talk with me about it all) ...I walked by the Chamber of Commerce & asked
the gal inside ....she also didn't know, but, was friendly & asked me where I was from & suggested a lot of things I might enjoy doing while in Montauk.

So, I told her it was my birthday & I was thinking of going to a pub or restaurant in town that night. I asked where her favorite place to eat was & she told me of two great delis that she loved....in particular, there was the best potato salad ever at one deli & the best chicken salad at another....I filed that tip away for serious consideration later.

As I walked out of the Chamber of Commerce, suddenly I heard this faint high pitched ringing
noise which seemed to be coming from my beach bag....I finally realized, it was my cell
phone ringing, for the first time ever. Tho I had registered it ok before leaving on my trip the day before....I had forgotten to learn how to use it (doh!). I couldn't figure out how to answer it...so I think I accidentally turned the power off instead.

I chided myself again, because I was sure it must be Ljswahine checking in to see how things
were going. We had corresponded via email before I left for this trip.... seeing if it was  possible for us to hook up for a surfing session. But, I was in Montauk on a weekday... a working day for Ljs & it's a 3 hour drive one way from NYC.... added to all that, what she & everyone in NYC had just been thru.

I had sent Ljs the # to my newly purchased cell phone just before I left & asked her about the possibility of meeting up in the evening to talk story & maybe have some dinner, somewhere closer to her hood. (Thanks _So_ Much Lisa, for trying to reach me & all your help!!!).  I finally did figure out how to work my cell phone & Lisa and I got to talk on the phone a few days later (more about that, when I finally get to my actual Hatteras posts....which will be soon!:o)

I drove to the start of the Old Montauk Highway & followed it back into town...stopping to look over the cliffs at the sea, when there was a space where I could do it....and I drove a-ways towards the sound side as well....as beautiful as it all truly was ...I was anxious to get back  to the East Deck Motel & spend the rest of the day at Ditch Plains.

I did make one more stop at the Montauk Library ....feeling sure I'd find something about the 15 memorials in NYC area the next day...a number to call, or something (I had not thought ahead, to researching this all on the internet, before leaving my home on this trip). The good folks at the library didn't know either....there was no city reference file. They directed me to the New York Times... so I checked the issues of the past week...including the obituary pages...where many, many families had posted tributes to their loved ones...hoping that they
would still be found. I finally copied the telephone numbers to the different departments related to the Mayor & city offices & headed home. (I tried those numbers several times, for the rest of the day....using my cell phone for the first time....but got neither an answer or a recorded message...and _very_ understandably so, I didn't really expect there could be any access thru those numbers with all that was happening there...I shoulda done my homework on that earlier).

I was so happy to find that there were waves awaiting upon my return. There were 4 guys out
around the rocks just to the East of the beach (not sure if that would be called a point or not?)
....but that looked above my rookie skill level. Luckily, there were some knee-to-thigh bodyboarding style waves on the beach itself...and two body boarders already in them. So I suited up, headed to the beach & suddenly realized that the yellow food wagon parked there, was none other than the 'Ditch Witch', that Ljs had written of in her awesome post that I linked above here.

I said 'Hi!' to the couple that was out there bodyboarding & told them how glad I was that they
were out there, too. They said they were rookies, too and just having fun....we talked a few more minutes & they were very friendly....but I found a place a little down the line from them, because you could just tell, they were a couple enjoying some great time alone together....very much in love.

The waves reminded me a lot of those at Good Harbor in Gloucester on a fairly mellow day..... they were rolling in steadily, gently...but with just enough ummph so that I could easily catch them without too much paddling. I stayed on them for a good two hours & headed back in at about 3:30. Changed & set out to walk & explore the beach into town....it was a great beach walk...some spots where you could walk on the sand...others where
it was rocky (& a bit cobblestoned, am I remembering that right, Ljs?) & some cliffs....some vans parked in the dunes with folks celebrating & blasting tunes.

Got to town about 1 1/2 -2 miles later...stumbled onto this great beach bar called 'Nick's'...the kind where there's this small outdoors semi-circle bar where folks who were clearly regulars were talking story...and inside he served dinner & tho I wasn't super-observant, I think there was a juke box, a dance floor...and a place where a band could set up....in otherwise, a very casual, easy going friendly place. I talked to Nick & told him I was thinking of heading back there to visit & spend my birthday there...it seemed like a great place to learn more about Montauk from folks who live there....I made a note to possibly to return & walked back to the East Deck Motel via side roads as far as I could & when those ended, I walked the highway
the rest of the way back.

It was almost 6PM, near dusk & I had still not been out to the lighthouse...so I jumped in the car and headed out 5 miles to the easternmost point. Dark clouds were beginning to form & the wind was heavily kicking in just as I rounded the corner by the lighthouse....there was a
parking lot that had many, many campers & trucks & trailers ....the lot was going to lock up at sunset...so I quicky parked with all intentions of walking to the lighthouse ...but, there was this walkway down the cliff, so I followed it, instead. 

When I got to the bottom....there were fishermen casting their lines, knee deep in water.... and trucks & trailers for as far as I could see along the rocky shoreline to the North....I talked 
with a fisherman for awhile & he said the fishing hadn't been too good that day, but, maybe the wind would kick up the seas a bit & bring some fish in. It was truly wild & beautiful there.... I stayed & talked with folks until sunset & reluctantly ran back to  retrieve my car just before the gate closed....wishing I'd'a headed  up that way much earlier in the day....but, maybe I'll get to another time.

It was starting to rain on the way back. I thought about heading to Nick's beach bar as I had kinda planned on... but, after all my day of exploring around Montauk, I realized that I loved best just staying at the beach at. East Deck Motel. So, I took the Chamber of Commerce gal's 
suggestion & went to the deli... picked up some of that potato salad she recommended, some tuna salad & coleslaw ....and as an afterthought, zipped into the liquor store around the corner & bought a bottle of pink zinfandel.

Sat out on the deck on East Deck motel, broke open the bottle of zinfandel.... offered it to
a couple of folks sitting out on the deck, too.... and they said 'sure! we'd love a cup!... told 'em
it was my birthday & talked story with them awhile.

Raised a glass in honor of Jane Moody of A.S., whose birthday was also that day... and another glass in honor of Ljs, Foon, Carson & all others who had been to & loved Montauk.... and a third glass in honor of all at alt.surfing! by then, the bottle was all gone!:o) Sat on the beach in the wind & rain for awhile, intermittently (didn't want to chance bringing my Ma Betty's ol' Martin guitar out in the rain, because of it's huge sentimental value).

Finally, went inside to sing a whole bunch of songs on the guitar (especially practicing SteveM's song "Hatteras Isle"...for GP), in between trying to catch the latest NYC news on TV, still hoping to find where some of the memorials were being held the next day...

Next up: Cape May Ferry.

Love You All,

Dee 'Verbosely & Tedjiously'* Dee!
-----------------------------------------
*(As long & slow-moving all these posts of mine are about this trip, with quite a number of actual GP posts still to come, I'd  really like to post them here for you all, because, it was all of you at alt.surfing that inspired me to take this trip ...and there is no one I'd rather share it with, than you all...and I also want to get to thank all the good folks of GP, here at AS, for all
the kind & generous way that they got us all together, in the Outer Banks)

There were about 5 albums that became the sountrack to my Road To Hatteras, one of
them, was the 1976 album 'Hejira', by Joni Mitchell... as much for the feeling in her music, as for her lyrics...here's a few snippets of 'Refuge of the Road...' not that all of it related to what I
was feeling, but, it definitely hit the spot:


REFUGE OF THE ROADS
(by the Irreplaceable Joni Mitchell)

[...]

He saw my complications
And he mirrored me back simplified
And we laughed how our perfection
Would always be denied
"Heart and humor and humility"
He said "Will lighten up your heavy load"
I left him for the refuge of the roads

I fell in with some drifters
Cast upon a beachtown
Winn Dixie cold cuts and highway hand me downs
And I wound up fixing dinner
For them and Boston Jim
I well up with affection
Thinking back down the roads to then
The nets were overflowing
In the Gulf of Mexico
They were overflowing in the refuge of the roads

There was spring along the ditches
There were good times in the cities
Oh, radiant happiness
It was all so light and easy
[...]
Posted to the alt.surfing newgroup
From: corrall@mediaone.net (corrall@mediaone.net)

Subject: Road To Hatteras(Part IV, very long): More Montauk
Newsgroups: alt.surfing
Date: 2001-10-23 00:23:28 PST

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