Talk Like A Pirate Day!

Today is International Talk Like A Pirate Day! – one of my favorite days of the year.
I discovered this event almost 12 years ago when I started getting serious about actually writing my novel involving Sam Bellamy, Maria Hallett, and Nancy Caldwell.
During that decade on the Cape, I would walk the bay or visit the crashing waves on the ocean side, conjuring up plot-lines, ideas, and ways to weave my story across time. I wrote The Old Cape House using alternating chapters from the 1700s to the 21st century.

As I researched pirates, I came across this wonderful site and was hooked. It's so much fun!

 International Talk Like A Pirate

Tim and I race to the beach whenever we hear that the remains of a shipwreck have been uncovered, usually after a nor'easter or an exceptionally high tide.

Here are pieces of the Montclair from Nova Scotia a few years past. It wrecked on March 5, 1927 near Orleans, MA.

Barry Clifford, adventurer, underwater explorer, and treasure hunter discovered artifacts and remnants from the pirate ship Whydah in 1984 off Marconi Beach in Wellfleet, Ma. It's the only authentic pirate ship ever discovered and documented. It was captained by Black Sam Bellamy from 1716-1717. The bell of the pirate ship Whydah was discovered in the fall of 1986, this was proof positive that he had located the site of the wreck.

Photo courtesy of The Whydah Museum

 The Whydah Museum in Provincetown on Macmillan Wharf is one of my regular places to visit.
Whydah Museum

Photo courtesy of The Whydah Museum

  Here is Barry Clifford with some of the treasure that was found at the underwater site.

Photo courtesy of The Whydah Museum

The Spanish doubloon was a 7 gram piece of gold minted in Spain and Mexico. The word doubloon has its roots in the latin word 'duplus' meaning double or the sum of two escudos. From the Americas, they were carried throughout the Caribbean by Spanish galleons seeking trade for silks and spices. Pirating was rampant in the West Indies, the pirates knew that gold was always welcomed wherever they sailed and finding it on these ships was extremely high.
The coins were usually odd–shaped due to the process of producing them. The gold was melted into narrow strips, cut into blanks, pressed against a coin die, weighed, then trimmed by hand.

Photo courtesy of Sea Research Society

On the other hand, 'pieces of eight' were generally of silver and minted in the Americas. This Spanish coin made by native Americans in Mexico, Peru, Columbia, and other countries in Central and South America enslaved by the Spaniards was valued at eight reales and could be physically cut into eight bits for change. The abundance of these coins gave the pirates even more incentive to loot the galleons who sought to trade throughout the oceans. Note the half coins and uneven cuts on them.
The dies pressed into either gold or silver coins were generally of Spanish origins.

Over the years, my family took note of my interest in pirates, which reaped great rewards for me.

One of my favorite mugs...

When I was waiting for a new hip, I used a tall walking stick, always thinking pirate.

Coming soon...The Old Cape House

Twelve months of gratitude.

 Gratitude has become my word of choice and here are a few reasons why. In December 2012, I was offered a contract from Booktrope Publishing in Seattle Washington to publish my first novel. Many of you know I love history and the Cape, so when I combined the two with a passion for writing and telling a good story, The Old Cape House was born.

This historical fiction, available sometime in late October, as an ebook and paperback, uncovers a Cape Cod secret, hidden for 300 years, through the lives of Maria Hallett in the 1700s and contemporary Nancy Caldwell. More details later...

On top of that great news, I was in the middle of a successful recovery from a hip replacement that had occurred in September of the same year. Eager to get back to a normal life, I did a dumb thing...I fell through an open hatch, falling five feet down, landing on the cement floor of our old Cape Cod basement. It was dark, I was helping Tim with some electrical fine-tuning, the lights were out, and I forgot it was open. Just stupid on my part.

Long story short...I broke no bones but tore my rotator cuff. I can laugh now, especially when I think about during the few seconds of my falling, I was determined not to land on my new hip, which I didn't. I was lucky. Then I had another surgery to repair the shoulder and after several more months of physical therapy I'm back to exploring and discovering all the unique things about Cape Cod and feeling very grateful to live in such a beautiful place. Plus, it gave me plenty of time to edit and re-edit my manuscript in preparation for publication.

 

Crosby Landing–Brewster

 Hemenway Landing–Eastham– the shorebirds search for dinner.

Photo courtesy of P. Eppich

 In August, my brother, niece and sister came visiting from Ohio. I gratefully turned into a tourist, tagging along with them to show them some of my favorite spots for treasures. Here in this photo, my brother and I examine interesting shells that were found as the delicate sound of the tide returned to the beach. It was a beautiful day.

 

A few weeks later, as Tim and I resumed our daily walks, I was fortunate to find this interesting pottery shard in Brewster.

 

Walking a little farther down the beach, the tide presented us with a beautiful pattern of rivulets in the sand.  

Now that I'm back to normal, we're walking more, and enjoying the Cape's beautiful sunsets–perfect endings to our days.

Cape Cod Tides

The boats had not yet arrived on this early spring day at Rock Harbor in Orleans.

 The docks were laid, but the moorings stood empty.

 There were three working vessels tied up, waiting for the right time to sail. The remnants of shucked clams and scallops were piled on top of each other close to the water's edge.

Cap't Cass's Clam Shack showed some life inside but it wasn't ready yet. The tide was out, teasing the passer by with the possibility of finding treasures on the ocean floor.

We walked west of the jetty to get a closer view of the oyster traps. We passed a few dog prints on our way. The wrack line of sea grasses crunched under our hiking boots.

We drove further west to see more of the bay. At Linnell Landing in Brewster, the tide ebbed and flowed carving rivulets into the wet sand; abstract and delicate images from Mother Nature.

 I went closer to the water to explore more.

...and I found something.

A small but beautiful pottery chard with a painted scallop pattern on its edges. Its age could be dated to the 1850s.

I walked over to the rocks. It's the best place to find treasures because they get stuck in between the cobbles and stones.

I know most beach-goers would prefer a smooth sandy beach but for beachcombers this view is just right.

The tide began to close in around us and we knew it was time to leave... for now.

In my first historical novel, The Old Cape House, Maria Hallet speaks about her life to a dear friend. It resonates with my post of today.
 
“I cannot remember a time when I was not watching or waiting for someone or something. My life has been like the tides, ever washing away parts of my life and at the same time cleansing it for something new.”

Searching for Spring on Cape Cod - Part I

One recent Monday the sky was blue and the sun warmed our backs as we walked a Brewster beach. In a spur of the moment, Tim and I decided to go and explore in search of any evidence of the coming Spring. We stopped home to pick up our cameras and a picnic lunch, then headed east to the end of North America.
Our first stop was at Nauset Beach in Orleans.

Surprise! The bandstand sported a 10 foot drift of sand across its front.

A far cry from summer during one of the many summertime concerts.

Liam's clam shack at Nauset Beach won't be open for a while...too much sand.
 

Nauset Light beach was next in Eastham. We wanted to get down to the beach to see the cliff erosion but discovered that the stairs down to the sand were gone and the viewing platform hung over the edge of the bluff into thin air. We've certainly had some hardy storms on the Cape wreaking havoc with our coastline.

We watched the waves crash onto the beach with a stormy fury for a few minutes.

We then drove a short distance to Coast Guard Beach and found the same scenario. We didn't get very far, the walkway and stairs were also gone by the station house.

 What we did discover, over to our left, were the remnants of an ancient swamp and a way to get down to the beach.

Huge sections of peat were exposed that had previously been covered over with a sand dune.

 The hearty inhabitants of old Cape Cod used this decayed, hard mass of vegetation to burn and heat their homes. They also sold it in sectional squares or rectangles to the citizens of Boston for the same use.

Pictured here is a cedar tree stump sticking out of the side of a dune.

 We drove further out to Truro and a took a walk up Bearberry Hill overlooking a break in the dune from the last several storms.  This barrier dune had once protected the freshwater of Pamet River from the salty Ballston Beach.

This wooden sign at the top of the hill shows the break in 1991.

Here's a video link of the tremendous force of the ocean against our coastline.  It was taken by Eric Williams of the Cape Cod Times.
 ballston beach - capecodonline



I managed to walk across the beach in the middle of the break and stand in awe of the forces of nature.

 

Water and mud covered the parking lot.



If you face the ocean and then turn right on this beach, you'll find a house that hopefully will survive. The owners have made desperate attempts to secure it from falling over.

 Next to this house was the original entrance to Balston Beach. Now it's mostly gone and only remnants of peat are left along with the posts of a fence.

We enjoyed the sun on our adventure and appreciated the changes in the coastline but didn't find many signs of spring until we pulled into our driveway. We spotted the beautiful aconite and snowdrop flowers peeking their delicate faces up and out of the winter browns.

Changes on Cape Cod

We can't escape change. Nature changes our surroundings by the second, it's always moving, growing, and dying...giving way to rebirth.

Nauset Beach in Orleans has been transformed this winter by the forces of nature. The boardwalk that takes you to the beach has been filled in with sand.

Now the top of the fence posts are all that's exposed as you walk the boardwalk.

 Here's the little bench that offered a restful view of the Atlantic Ocean. The top rail and its plaque can only be seen.

To the side of the boardwalk is a ramp for easy access to the beach. Currently this is what it looks like...not so easy.

This picture was taken of the same ramp in the summer.



More changes...
           
                                                                           MAC

Last week we took our first walk without our beagle Mac. Sadly we lost him to old age and a weak heart. We will miss our faithful companion. But we continue to walk and explore in his memory and for our good health.

No matter what changes come into your life, I know that a walk along the beach is always restorative and soothing.

Winter on Cape Cod

Winter has settled upon sleepy Cape Cod. Temperatures are hovering below freezing and the wind makes everything colder.

The beaches still beckon us to visit. Tim and I, plus our beagle Mac, try to listen to the call of the mighty ocean and explore its dunes and shoreline.

Linnell Landing in Brewster is usually the easiest access for us to see the tumultuous water-waves and whitecaps when the wind is really blowing. 
The day we took these pictures the temperature was 9 degrees with a wind chill making the air a frigid 0 degrees and below. We didn't stay long... just long enough to feel the power of nature.

My blog has been quiet since the end of August because I received a new hip in September 2012. Recovering kept me occupied. At first I was disappointed with myself when I discovered that my hip needed to be replaced, after all, I ate right and exercised all the time. But when I was told that it was a form of a birth defect, my bone was too big for my hip socket and it literally wore out, I felt better. It wasn't all my fault.
The good news is that because I was so active before the surgery, I rode my bike the day before my hip was replaced, I healed quicker.
So now I'm back to my usual wanderings across this beautiful peninsula and discovering interesting facts and places.

I'm also thrilled to start off 2013 with the news that Booktrope Publishing of Seattle has offered me a contract to publish my first novel, The Old Cape House: A Mooncussers Tale.
We are in the editing process right now and hope to have a completion date soon. I will keep you posted.