Views offshore

After so many years of riding the coastline we’re pretty used to the great views, but that’s not to say we ever tire of them. The colors are always changing, the air is always different, and each day is a guessing game as to what we’ll see.

One early morning we saw a huge ship close to shore, headed north, breathtaking in its size and nearness to shore. The ocean was a striking sapphire blue while the pale blue sky was backlit by the pinks and golds of the approaching sunrise, turning the huge ship into a black silhouette against the sky.

Ranging from Gulfstream up to West Palm Beach, we’ve had a record number of dolphin sightings this year, from large pods of dolphins swimming and fishing close to shore, to small groups of three or four a bit farther out.

One incredible morning at Gulfstream we watched a small pod cavorting happily just offshore, showing off some spectacular twists and turns and leaps and jumps and double back-flips. We couldn’t bring ourselves to leave until they’d finally moved on up north.

Back in 2001, lasting until 2004, I did five-mile sunrise walks on Delray Beach, right at the waterline. I’ve got an impressive collection of both seashells and memories from those times. Not the least of my impressive memories was seeing my first green flash at sunrise. It was several years before I saw one, with the help of some coaching from a fellow beach walker. I was thrilled when I finally saw one, then another, but they’ve eluded me since then, at least until this year.

With six or eight green flash sightings so far, this year has more than made up for all those green-flash-less years. Some have been quiet little flickers, but a few of the flashes have been breathtaking neon-green visions. Chelsea had never seen a green flash until several months ago, and now she’s a veteran of three or four sightings.

Weather and wind

Early in the fall we continued to have the usual horrendous heat and humidity, but riding as early as we do made our rides a lot easier. In late fall one memorable morning we had ninety percent humidity but the temperatures only hit seventy-seven degrees, which saved our attitudes.

Since November we’ve had truly incredible weather, with only one minor cold snap lasting a day or so. It’s been drop-dead gorgeous bike riding weather, with temperatures consistently hanging around in the seventies, reminding us daily why Florida is so enticing in the winters.

We do have our weeks of strong winds. The winds usually last anywhere from a few days to a few weeks, with the winds ranging from fifteen to twenty-five miles an hour, sometimes thirty. These are the strength-building days. We’re always glad for the northeast winds, as we get a great workout on the way out, then just fly home with strong tailwinds. We definitely feel the leg fatigue those days, letting us know we’re getting stronger.

We love the sounds of the wind. We hear it whistling eerily through our bike spokes, jangling any wind chimes within hearing, and best of all, rattling through the rigging of the sailboats stored on Delray Beach. On east-wind days those riggings are clanking and ringing like dinner bells calling ghostly mariners to their meals.

Though we escaped hurricanes and tropical storms this year, we were affected by Hurricane Irene’s feeder bands, which brought us winds, high waves, and great wave watching.

We had some local excitement that made national news when two teenagers, watching the high waves off the north jetty at the Boynton Inlet during Irene’s feeder bands, got slammed by a few rogue waves and knocked off into the Inlet. A bystander leaped in to rescue them until the lifeguards could pull everyone out.

In addition to that excitement, the Lake Worth pier was damaged and closed for a few days.

Later on, Tropical Storm Sean gave us lots of ocean turbulence and high waves, bringing a change of weather in its wake.

Old School

After a long absence because of long hours of work, we finally stopped by Old School one morning to see Tess. We had a delightful chance to chat quietly at length, iced mochas and fresh zucchini bread in hand.

Old School is a regular weekly stop for a few sets of bike-riding buddies. We happened to be there one Saturday morning when one of the bike crews pulled in for their end-of-ride treats.

Scott was one of the regulars we saw that day. He’s a charming and well-traveled professional who loves riding and is a regular in this particular group. He remembered meeting us in 2006 before our cross-country trip, so it felt a bit like meeting a long-lost buddy. We caught him up-to-date with our activities and plans. He wrote to us the next day, so now we can keep in touch; we’re encouraging him to meet us somewhere along the way and ride with us for a week or so.

On my birthday back in September, keeping up with our birthday tradition, we stopped at Old School again. Since Tess was in Indiana on a holiday, we met Sharon, who works with Tess. Sharon’s just wonderful…easy to talk to and very friendly.

While we chatted with Sharon, a slender, dark-haired, late-forty-or-early-fifty-something guy came in, all suited up in dark, freshly-pressed dress slacks, crisp white shirt, and conservative dark tie, though it was early on a Saturday. He asked about various breads and typically for me, I couldn’t resist giving my recommendations.

We began chatting, so I naturally told him it was my birthday and that led to telling him about our trip. After a few moments, he introduced himself as Mike Silver, calling himself a “murder lawyer” and telling us he was on his way to a court appearance.

Nodding at me he said, “I noticed you paid with a PayPal card, so you must have a PayPal account”. When I affirmed that yes, we did, he said, “Life has been good to me, and I have done well in my business, so I’d like to make a nice donation to your trip. Write me at this address and give me your website and I’ll make a donation.”

He wrote down his personal email for us and headed out for his court appearance. Dead silence followed his exit, as Sharon and Chelsea and I all looked at each other with eyebrows raised through our hairlines. Sharon finally spoke what was in our minds. “Do you think he’ll do it?”

He didn’t. With visions of sugarplums dancing through my head, I did write the next day as he had requested, but have never heard from him.

But hey, I’m an optimist, so I’ll write him again before we leave and see if I get any response. If we have been so lucky to see dozens of double rainbows, a half-dozen green flashes in as many weeks, and dolphins doing double back-flips, then I hold out the possibility that he’ll still follow through.

After all, life is all about possibilities.