Bill and I went for a walk tonight on the beach and I started thinking about our adventure and how it all began…what planted that seed for us and where did our passion for travelling really start happening ….
HATTERAS….
Bill came to Hatteras by himself in 1997 after being laid off of work for 6 weeks. I stayed back in North Bay in our new home. He came back so excited about meeting his new friends Janice and Jerry, Jon and Maria, Anthony and Charlie. He had lots of stories to tell and told me I just had to meet them all. And that is where it all began….WINDFEST…..I did come with Bill the following year and met everyone including a few more…Kyle and Katrina, Bob and Joan their son Bert and his children & Lucky Luc.
We have been coming back to Hatteras every year since. Not for the weather, not for the wind, but for the great friendships we have formed. We have had windy years, non windy years, cold years, sunny years and you are always guaranteed one good storm with some flooding. It is always funny to watch people arrive at the campground and set up their tents right up front and think they have scored the best spot…only to be woken in the middle of the night to a big wind switch and storm. You find them in the morning with their tent ripped to shreds and maybe some feet hanging out the end , or the one year where people just bailed and threw out all their gear in the dumpster and drove straight back to New York…
We have had the opportunity to travel to many beautiful places since that first year, but if you ask Bill or Jerry what their favorite vacation is….they will always answer Hatteras and from the moment they arrive here they are inseparable.
I had no idea when I met these friends that they would change our world forever. I don’t even know if they are aware of how much….We have had yearly trips to Cape Cod, Jerry and Bill have a yearly trip to Block Island, Janice, Karen and I go to the spa each year. We travelled to Kyle and Katrina’s wedding in Maine, we have met up in Vermont for ski vacations at Jon and Marias and watched them have 2 beautiful children. We got to help Jon with the ski testing in Utah this year for Backcountry Magazine. We have gone skiing in Lake Tahoe at Jim and Karen’s (whom we met through our trips to Cape Cod). We have been inspired by Bob and Joan’s travels in their early 70s and who still tent and have hiked all over the world. We have been through cancer scares together, lost friends and parents, shared laughs and secrets and always hate the good- byes. I remember last year being overcome by emotion when I watched Bill and Jerry hug Bob good-bye and realized at that point how much of a father figure he is to both of them. To watch them all sail together is a real treat. Bob can still fly and does well on the SUP board too. He still referees football games, but gave up basketball about a year or so ago.
I often wonder what would have become of our life had we not met these friends. I honestly don’t believe we would have taken this sabbatical and believed this was all possible had they not believed we could make it happen. It is a real gift to met people who share your passions and encourage you to follow your dreams. People who really understand you. You just wish you could have them in your life the whole year, (ok maybe Bill and Jerry together the whole year would be a bit much) but maybe that is what makes our time together so extra special. We love getting phone calls from each other and the odd note in the mail and I think we all count the days until we are together again.
We lost our dear friend Charlie last fall and this year we will be celebrating Charlie’s life and his vision of making Windfest a yearly event and for giving us such a beautiful gift of lifetime friendships. We miss you Charlie!