Indian Summer Adventure in Watch Hill, Rhode Island

Sometimes you just know when it's the last good day to do beachy things before the chill of autumn settles in. We had a very short taste of Indian summer this weekend, so I made trip over to my favorite nearby seaside spot, Napatree Point in Watch Hill, Rhode Island.

Napatree Point in Watch Hill, Rhode Island

It was quite breezy and sunny, so good for a walk on the beach, or a sit on the sand, but the wind was making the water quite choppy. The water is too cold for anything but walking in the surf that stretches up onshore.

Right away I found a moon jelly (what was left of it) on the sand. I have never seen a large one of this kind before.

A moon jelly washed ashore with some eelgrass seaweed.

It's really cool to look at up close. I suppose I could have picked it up and washed it off to get a better look, and take better photos, because it felt quite firm when I touched it with my flip flop.

A close-up view of a moon jelly

The rose bush had a few late blooms, but mostly now there are just rose hips hanging brightly among the leaves.

Rose hips are the fruit that grow after the 'Rosa rugosa' blooms have died.

On top of the dunes the goldenrod nears its end. (Click any photo for a larger view.)

I bought a set of plastic sea creature molds at the dollar store earlier this year, and I had the seahorse shape in my backpack. So I decided to make a few and leave them on the sand. I wondered if people would notice when they walked by. This is what it looks like finished:

I didn't plan it this way, but as I was packing up my things to move on down the beach, a parade of visitors suddenly came by. I think there were three groups: a couple, a posse of young people, and two elderly ladies. I found myself getting my answers, as the people walked over or discovered the three seahorses I had made.

The wife in the couple brought the wee sculpture to her husband's attention, but I think she had to poke at the tip of the tail with her foot to confirm what she was seeing. I witnessed the posse barrel through the section where I made my seahorses, but I wasn't sure if this one guy's foot strategically missed a sculpture by coincidence, or if he saw it and lifted his shoe on purpose.

The elderly ladies stopped and spent the most time in contemplation. Finally, the one woman just swept her foot over the lower half of a seahorse and destroyed it. Gee, thanks. At least the people were not freaked out too much by the strange looking things in the sand. If there had been little kids among them, I bet they would have noticed and figured it out faster than the adults.

The flag is flying straight out in the stiff shore breeze.

On the way back to my car, I stopped to take new pictures of the flying horse carousel. This is a famous attraction in Watch Hill because it is the oldest existing carousel where the horses are suspended by chains and thin bars, rather than being affixed to poles. It is circa 1876. The horses "fly" around and the riders can reach for brass rings. The horses have real leather saddles and manes and tails made of real horse hair.

I like the little murals painted all around the center structure.

The carousel plays a variety of music, and as I recall, I even heard the Christmas tune "Sleigh Ride" back during a visit in July. That was a bit weird. The horses will be removed from their chains after Columbus Day, and won't be re-installed until the next summer season begins. Fans of The Candy Box, my favorite sweets shop in Watch Hill, can see a miniature carousel horse in the store's front window.

Oh believe me, the store has much more to offer than gumballs! I don't like that the store is only open seasonally, because they have the best prices for dark chocolate covered orange peels. So I'll have to wait another seven months. But it will be worth it. And with that, another beach season ends.

Until next time...

Cheryl


P.S. - If you'd like to know more about Watch Hill, my Beach eGuide is available at the Beach Bath And Trash website.