Ocrafolk Sampler:Ocracoke’s History, Seafaring Traditions and Island Ecology ~ Philip Howard, David Senseney, and Capt' Rob Temple One of the favorite courses from 2007, this sampler course combines the expertise and wits of three Ocracoke characters in a variety of environments. Here are the details! OCRACOKE HISTORY and CULTURE by Philip Howard Have you ever wondered what Ocraoke Island life was like before the roads were paved and before ferries carried cars across Hatteras Inlet? What was it like to run barefoot through the sandy lanes, catch rainwater from the roof, or watch the annual pony penning on the 4th of July? Can you imagine sitting on fish boxes on the 42 foot wooden mailboat “Aleta” as it made its four hour journey across Pamlico Sound? Would you like to know how to make traditional Ocracoke Island meal wine? Join Philip Howard, eighth generation islander, as he shares Ocracoke history, tells island stories, plays fifty-year-old home movies, guides you through ancient family cemeteries, and explains island geology & geography. In this week long course you will tour a restored island “story-and-a-jump” cottage, read original Life Saving Service shipwreck logs, listen to traditional ghost tales, tour a preserved maritime forest, learn Ocracoke’s old-time island square dance, and much more. Bring comfortable walking shoes, and be prepared for leisurely walks of up to two miles. FROM THE BEACH TO THE MARSH; EXPLORING OCRACOKE’S WILD SIDE with David Senseney After several years of professional Scouting, David moved to Ocracoke Island in the mid-seventies to pursue an adventurous career as a science and biology teacher for the island youth. He has led numerous environmental workshops for educators and students, has extensive experience as a wilderness guide for multi-day backpacking expeditions, and currently lives in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina. This exciting workshop will explore the beaches, marshes, and maritime forests of Ocracoke Island with an ‘insider’s’ perspective. (I believe you might even get to cook some clams, crabs or oysters!). Students should be prepared for extensive walking. OLD TIME SAILING AND SEAFARING TRADITIONS with Captain Rob Temple In this modern age of plastic boats and electronic gadgetry, some sailors still like to keep the time-honored nautical traditions alive. The goal of this course is to give you the opportunity to experience first-hand why this is so. Join Capt. Rob aboard the gaff-rigged schooner Windfall which he has owned and skippered for twenty-two years. You’ll not only learn the ropes, but learn some real marlinspike seamanship and make your own Turk’s Head bracelet and rope mat (see photos). You’ll not only get a taste of life at sea but literally taste the grub that kept mariners alive in the days of “wooden ships and iron men”: such gustatory delights as slumgullion, dandyfunk, hard tack and Harriet Lane. You might even wash it down with a tot of grog. You’ll learn sea chanteys and put some of them to their traditional use as you hoist sail by bousing halyards. You’ll explore the poetry and literature of seafaring selected from the extensive ship’s library. And of course, Ocracoke being Ocracoke, we can’t send you home without a passing knowledge of the Golden Age of Piracy! Best of all, if all of this sounds like gibberish to you now, it’ll make perfect sense to you at the end of the week. Contact piphoward@embarqmail.com