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Home My WebLink AboutSeptmeber 23, 2004 - On the water after dark The Suffolk Times • September 23, 2004 y 'yr r � � � ��e� � �r l� .� *�`�� : �� ` ?- S . . I � �4 �+..� P�� yf � ,n ,. �'� . ... � ;t I � � , ( K, � j . . ....e. / .� � . . . ..:. •• � f j �. / ; ' f ( �' { rJ � �,+ �yn. �, x ti a � � �R ��j{�S / n r. i !% 'M. h�'' ��rciq,� .+ �� ¢.� s� � �� Fi�r. .,�`. 4•� � . �% � •'�4 i��Y � l �� O ., �� , ,�.�.��, r .,# ""�. 'a ` �, � i. � 1 f - . , , � • ,�. � . .,. ___�--�.....�, �° yp . ...�__ _ Y - : '� �. `\ .,�� 1 t fi � � t r . .�...,�",,..w.. ... � � F �{7 n ': A,I �_ � ;� ` y '�` � w. �� .,V`� � �.� .,._�� ,� �.. � �� Aa.�� .n. • ,.. , . , , w' . .. , .. _ \, L ,�x ��II �� S I { �� . T . .a/ �. e, , - �. #' . A ' �� b'� .. . � i'`n`'� 'I i�M1 � � d `4 F"�} . . �.. � � �, �: y w� �#"• � �"� �� `"'��', ; r ,. , s. :, „� , y , . _ � �'"� .,� ., .; �� `�^_� — � :,6 5 sg., � � � �.. , . . ' - ` , � • � : �. , . � .� � �^' '� TimeslReview photos by Paul Stouterburgh Above: Green herons are small herons that stalk our waters' edge. Often you'll see them around docks and marinas patiently waiting for a killifish to pass by. Here you see the adult in the nest with a young one. Below:Twenty or 30 years ago night herons were common visitors to our creeks. Today man has moved in and the ni ht herons have left spen t e�r�uvem e ays m a�� r�ck ��c t�>e�k ��ou (i�hin��out in thr h�n. our bays and creeks. I've often watched them We had pretty guod luck,as I remember.�l�his when I was diving and can remember on one of week we'd like to try something different. those particular trips seeing a school of bunkers, We're going to take you out to my son's swimming in unison,pass within six feet of ine, � boat,moored in the bay,and stay overnight their mouths wide open,filtering out the plankton. to grasp some of the wonders of the evening. "Look!There's a great blue heron."I think We'll head out just as the sun sets.There's a every creek has its own monarch,a stately bird little coolness in the air,so we'll take blankets and standing over three feet tall,with a long,powerful jackets. bill that thrusts out like a dagger,picking up small As we make our way out of the creek,gulls are fish—as a matter of fact,picking up anything that already flying to their roosting area,where they'll moves.In a freshwater area where there are frogs stay overnight.Then they'll be up at dawn in their and snakes,everything is fair game.This reminds endless search for food.Our local osprey is still me of when I was up at Sills Dairy in Greenport with us,probably because of the good supply of years ago and scared a great blue heron out on fish in the creeks and bays.It's spending the night the marsh that was about to enjoy a meal of an atop a flagpole in someone's eel.It flew off with the two-foot eel dangling from front yard. Inside,no one is its bill. aware of the overnight visi- FOCUS Just below the edge of the marsh were four yel- tor. ON lowlegs.These rather large shorebirds frequent The tide is low and,all our area on their migration to the warmer cli- through the area we're mov- NATU RE mates in the south.Then a green heron flew off ing through,there are schools by Paul low over the water to find a spot where it could of milling bunkers.These are $t0utellbul'gh hunt in peace and quiet. the little silvery fish that As we moved along,it was noticeable to me that c�l thc cn�l �,i�thc isl<incl. Fr��m thcrc �� it was straight home wit11 the bilge � pumping continuously.We pulled �:.T;,,. into Schoolhouse Creek and tied up. It was just one of the many memo- rable trips that boat took us on. We always left that boat in the water all winter long.One winter it sank.The pump had frozen up.We !j� pumped it out and got her floating � � � again.Then that spring it sank again. � ` I� That was too much.There were just too many things wrong with her to ,� try to fix her up.But what do you do � with a 38-foot boat? I decided to burn her.(There were a lot of things � you could do then that you cadt do E� . -�� today.) I got my charts out,found the '�"''��`�'� '`�� deepest place in the bay,and decided �_,�� to burn her there.Good old Mr. �` Tuthill,bless his heart,towed me out '� ��i' to the spot and left me.A good friend �� of mine,Archie Harroun of c ��'�:: . Greenport,met me there,and I got on his boat after spreading kerosene down to check it out. It was the first time I had around inside our boat. I threw a ��'re missing the night herons I remember seeing match into her,and then the two of .�� a kid.The were alwa s in our creeks huntin been aboard.We tried to start the Chrysler six- y y g c linder en ine,but it wouldn't do a thin for us. us watched her burn right to the fc�r killifish and,as with all herons,if somethin Y g g � We finall traced the roblem to a set of oints �'�'ater's edge. moved,it became a meal.They used to nest Y P p There was nothin left exce t one around our creeks in small colonies of 30 or 40, that had corroded.The next day we picked up a g P hut man has taken over all its nestin si hts,so we new set of points,put them in,and off the engine �'ater tank that tloated off by itself.I g g went like a charm.From that da on it never had given the boat a nautical burial. nu longer have the night herons or,as the locals y Of course you can't do that toda}�.All u��d to call them from the sound they make, failed us. ��yuawks." Family and friends enjoyed that boat for years I did was tell the police and fire \ight was coming on and darkness was taking but,because she haddt been taken care of,her �epartment what I was going to �lo ��er.The wind had dro ed off,and so we had an ribs were cracked and she continually leaked. �nd they both said okay,no problem. pp Man an hour I s ent caulkin her to �is was just one of the stories we easv landing on the boat as we trans- Y P g f��rred slee in ear and food.Our � prevent the water from coming in.And, rccalled ahout the boats we've ��vned P g g � f11d o��cr Ulc ��cars. ��ather has been so beautiful that we felt of course,before leaving we always made "�� shouldn't miss a single day of what given the sure the automatic bilge pumps were in <<�rncone has called the"30 golden days boat a �'orking order. ��f Scptember."Since we planned this We took that boat up the Hudson River u�ernight at the last moment,we had �autieal through Hell Gate as far as the Tappan Mv son's boat was warm insidc picked up some quick deli food and were buriaL� Zee Bridge,but the farther north we went from the heat of the day. Darkness the more the boat leaked.Because of the now enjoying dinner.Slowly the mood of had taken over the world.We went the day changed.A stillness took over. big boats continually moving by,leaving a below and made up our bunks. High above were the twinkling lights of air- tremendous wake,the boat rolled and creaked. Sleep came easily with the gentle ��lanes.It was surprising how many planes we The leaks got so bad that I tried an old boat lapping of the water on the side of builder's trick of swimmin under the boat and cuuld see at one time.You couldn't hear them— g the boat. ��h.ves,a few you could hear,but the majority releasing sawdust along its seams.The theory Daybreak found us up early under ��ere just lights in the sky.And then there was one �'orked well,but was only short-lived.The sawdust the most gorgeous sunrise you can that must have been six miles up.It caught the last �'�'ent into the openings of the seams and helped to imagine.Yellows and blues and pink. rays of the sun that reflected its silvery side.It was slow down the flow of water into the boat.We had and reds all melted together to form the brightest spot in the sky.We wondered where planned to go farther north,but the kids didn't nature's spectacle of a sunrise.We all those people were going,the stories that were like swimming in the river water and the leaking marveled at it.The camera came out there,the heartbreaks,the joys—six miles up. was getting worse,so we changed our plans and and we took pictures so we'd never «'hat a world we live in. headed back to Long Island Sound.It had been a forget this day. We sat in complete contentment,talking about g�od trip. A new day had begun and our this and that,induding the first big boat we The kids had a cousin along on that trip,and evening on the boat couldn't have hought over 40 years ago.She was an old wooden all four enjoyed catching bluefish once we were been nicer.Glad to have ou aboard. hoat that the owner had pitifully neglected.He back in the Sound.We spent the night in Port «as moving and wanted to sell the boat.The price J�=fferson by the great sand banks.The next day ��as right,and so I bought a 38-foot cabin cruiser �'e pulled into Mattituck Inlet.Finall we round- furS200. _� few days later a friend of mine and I went