Wednesday, May 24, 2017 – Our first day off the island….
The Wednesday Warriors were due to arrive at the Cove at 7am and we needed to be ready and waiting with our gear in the dinghy for their arrival. This was our first time making sure we had the empty water jugs and gas cans, the weeks garbage, our dirty laundry and bags for shopping. It all seemed easy when we started the day, but the hard part comes when we get back in the afternoon. As the launched entered the Cove, Brian and I hopped into the dinghy and rowed out to the mooring to transfer our things into the launch and then make sure the supplies the Warriors brought got loaded into the dinghy for the trip to shore. It was a crazy kind of organized and will only improve with experience. The joke at the launch was we must be coming back after our day off because our dogs were left on the island, Cyndy promised to watch them for us during our time off.
One of my favorite things to do is to bake and have a chance to share the goods with others. The Wednesday Warriors will be my captive audience each week. I set up a coffee break station for them with homemade Chocolate Chunk Cookies. This will be a fun diversion for me over the summer making sure I have something waiting for them to snack on. Look for the recipe at the end of today’s blog.
When we finally got back to Popham, we felt like kids in a candy store, so many choices of things to do and not sure where to start. First order of business is coffee and if breakfast happens to be part of the deal even better. We left our travel mugs in the van and didn’t have the caffeine start to our day like we are so used to. The Southgate restaurant in Bath was our first stop and will most likely become our favorite breakfast stop, eggs were cooked perfectly for Brian and my blueberry waffle was yummy. As we talked over breakfast we put a plan together for the day. Chores, then fun (bike ride) and then provisions, to be back to boat by 4pm.
Instead boring all of you with the chores part of the day, I thought I would show you a little bit of our bike ride through Bowdoin and Topsham. We found a great multi-use path that runs parallel to Route 1 and then meanders through Bowdoin College and into Topsham. We kept the ride short, 15 miles, because we didn’t think to bring our bike clothes ashore with us, next week we will remember.
After getting the bikes back on the van, we realized we had more time to play. Reid State Park was our next destination for a little beach time. As we arrived at the park entrance, the rangers were very friendly to the point where I asked nicely if we could pay the Maine Resident fee because we are technically Maine Residents for the summer out on Seguin Island. The agreed to give us the discount. We walked the cliffs and the beach for a short time and will come back to hike more of the trails, unfortunately, we were running out of time and didn’t want to miss our 4pm ride.
Now the hard part of our day begins, unloading 3 full water containers and 3 gas cans along with all our provisions on to the dock, then into the launch and eventually onto the beach back at the island. The tide was changing from low to high as we started heading back which presented our ride back as very bumpy but the Cove was protected from the wind which allowed the dinghy transfers with a minimum of wetness. It has now occurred to us, all our stuff needs to be carried up the hill, the tramway only gets used on our move in day. Yes, complete exhaustion hit us around 5pm but the eggs and bread arrived in the kitchen without damage. As we waved goodbye to the Warriors, the realization of being alone on the island hit us, it is now sink or swim until next Wednesday.
Brian and I enjoyed a quiet dinner and readied ourselves for our sunset routine, beautiful scenery and then lowering the flag for another day.
Chocolate Chunk Cookies
½ cup butter
½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup white sugar
1 ½ tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp salt
1 large egg
1 cup flour
½ tsp baking soda
1 ½ cups semi-sweet chocolate chunks
1 cup chopped nuts
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Beat butter in a large bowl for 1 minute, mix in sugars, salt, and vanilla, beat for another minute, then mix in egg until well blended. Stir in flour, baking soda, chocolate and nuts.
Drop by tablespoon onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes, cookie should be golden around edges but still soft in the center. Cool on rack for 2-3 minutes then transfer to wax paper to finish cooling.
This basic cookie dough recipe can be used as a base for many other combinations, I like using it for White Chocolate/Macadamia Nut Cookies as well.
