COASTAL BUZZ: Sunset paddleboarders and fall economy

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2013 - In the last light before sunset Saturday, a large group of paddleboarders made their way northward from near the ferry terminal in Lewes.  They slipped quietly across the water, voices not much louder than the waves lapping against their boards. They stopped about a half mile from the beach, still within reach of the wake from the day's last ferry, and just as deck lights on two tugs inside the red lighthouse started burning for the night.

Resting on their boards in seated position, they circled up and talked as the sun slid behind the distant trees on the point at Prime Hook.

Then, when the setting sun brought out the slightest of a crescent moon, and a very bright Venus well above in the western sky, the boarders stood again and began their return paddle, looking like a small band of Native American hunters easing their way across a flat and vast prairie landscape.

The wind rose, swallowing their voices as they neared the beach, and then, like that day's sun, they were gone.

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I spoke with Rehoboth and Dewey Chamber Director Carol Everhart today at lunchtime.  She said it's been a strong summer despite weak spots in retail.  Weather.  Parking meter revenues are running slightly behind in Rehoboth, she said, but City Manager Greg Ferrese said a strong fall could make up the lost ground.

Carol said hotel and motel operators are also feeling strength in the fall festival season.  If the weather continues as it's been the past week, the weekend crowds will continue to be strong.

Have a lovely week, be positive and remember that nothing happens unless we make it happen.