Day 19 – Winchester Bay

We were lucky because the next day, a space had opened up for us on the site, albeit we had to move the beast to another lair. We started the day with a short journey to Deersport, to Ace Hardware, recommended by a local State Trooper. A tube of Gorilla Glue was all it took to mend the table and then onto the dunes; drawing us like a magnet. We followed the road to a remote park; permit required. We walked onto pristine sand, totally devoid of other humans, stretching as far as the eyes can see. A physical line is drawn between walkers and ATV users and us walkers appear to be in the minority of 4. The beach was dotted with flotsam logs and shells. There was the jetsam of dead crabs and a multitude of shells including a walletful of sand dollars. The dog was in canine heaven as she roamed free; causing some nervous as she chased gulls over horizons.
The afternoon was given to joining the majority of the visitors exploring the dunes. We had charted a guide and a dune buggy and Dan was going solo. What follows is a description of our adventures. To find out Dan’s exploits, you will need to ask him and hope for more that the monosyllabic replies that we received. The buggy was yellow and sat guide plus five. It was all roll bars and bucket seats, with full harness, borrowed additional jackets, head socks (balaclavas) and ski goggles.
The guide’s name was Ron or Rob and his partner was Sally. He was the original Mountain Man – Grizzly Adams. She was cut and bruised around her chin. We started off sedately, just to get us prepared for what was to come. We were sat in a low slung car with some sort of motor equivalent of a jet engine at the back. There was an accelerator and a brake and some gears, although we never got out of first. The dunes are the sand oceans of land. They are the waves and, as such, have a gentle side and a precipitous slope. We would race up the former and crest the latter, letting the weight of the vehicle take us safely down. It was very unnerving to run out of sand and then plunge to the bottom. Allied to the physical topography, the dunes were like the snow in those distances and perspectives were easily lost.
We were able to explore huge tracts of sand and heard how the dunes were formed and how forests were buried beneath the tons of sand. Indeed, several ghost forests stood proud as testament to what he said. Once exposed, these thousand year old trees would survive only matter of seasons before being naturally reclaimed by nature. In amongst these dunes lay fresh water springs which fed 32 lakes in the 43 miles of coastline. Around these lakes lay tree islands which supported all form of wildlife from bear, cougar to the smaller mammals; indeed we saw a raccoon fishing for frogs.
Then from the lowlands to the 500 foot monsters, up vertical climbs, riding parallel to the summit and then chasing our shadow down the other side. We travelled at 55mph at the most, but our low centre of gravity made it seem twice as much. Ron/Rob was a good driver and gradually increased the excitement in line with the rollercoasters that I despise so much. We slid and skidded. My hand firmly gripped the roll bar cage and clearly left an imprint of my grip when it was time to leave. Nic says that Jules was as bad in the back. All too soon, it was time to return and let some others taste the drug that is a mix of wonder and adrenaline.