Southport NC Events - October Starts with a Bang

SOUTHPORT - There is so much happening locally and in the area this weekend that I feel the need to hit the high spots for those deciding what they might like to do. The biggest of the events snuck up on me this year. The 30th Annual US Open King Mackerel Tournament got underway in Southport yesterday. With over $100,000 in prize money given to 55 winners, the tournament easily attracts 400 boats every year. I haven't done it in awhile, but it's well worth it to get up before dawn and head down to the the Waterfront and watch the boats head out to hallowed fishing grounds. Don't forget the fish fry on Saturday night at the Marina. The public is welcome and plates are $7.


As a sidekick on Saturday at 10:00, there's Captain Charlie's Kid's Fishing Tournament for kids 16 years of age & under at the City Pier. A free t-shirt & food goes to the 1st 100 children to register. Bring your own rod & bait. Co-Sponsored by: Southport Parks & Recreation & Southport Lions Club. 910-457-7945




Backing up a day, tonight Downtown Southport hosts its First Friday Gallery Walk from 5-7. Enjoy refreshments and special events at each participating gallery: Franklin Square Gallery, 130 E. West Street; The Ricky Evans Gallery, 211 N. Howe Street; Lantana's Gallery & Fine Gifts, 110 E. Nash Street & Cape Fear Coppershop, 111-B S. Howe Street. And it's FREE!


Back to Saturday, from 9AM - 2PM is the 16th Annual Street of Shops -Fall Craft Bonanza. It has become quite an event that is held at Sacred Heart Catholic Church every year. It benefits both in and out-reach programs, offering a wide range of locally hand made goods. Bake Sale, raffle and light lunch available.


From there you might want to head over to Stage II Production's first ever Oktoberfest - "Celebration of Beer, Brautwurst, and Ballyhoo" from 3-7:30. It's in Southport behind Smithville Commons at 807 N Howe. (Behind the Adventure Company) The Harbour Town Fest Band will perform. 910-363-4274.


If you're still in the spirit, a benefit concert with Anne Haley and Friends will be at St. Peter's Lutheran Church just north of Long Beach Road on Highway 211. It starts at 7:30 and includes a former resident of Oak Island, Anne Haley, who has an extensive performing history. Friends and fellow musicians, singers, and songwriters John Golden, Catesby Jones, and Mark Teachey will join the show. Two special guests included phenomenal mandolin player, Gerald Hampton, of Franklinville, NC and Wilmington's Kent Knorr and his ukulele talents. Proceeds will benefit the Southport-Oak Island Food Pantry. 910-842-5160.


And finally, last but not least is this weekend only's run of the spectacular Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. The Sunday matinee will be the perfect time to see Brunswick Little Theatre's ambitious and infectious rendition of this timeless classic. With shows at Odell Williamson Auditorium, the curtain goes up tonight at 7:30, followed by a matinee on both Saturday and Sunday at 3pm. I am helping out with tech on this show and I can say unabashedly that kid's of ALL ages will LOVE is show. The special effects will have everyone on the edge of their seats. Amazing set and lighting designer from New York, Paul Bertelsen, elevates the show, bringing 25-years of professional work to our local stage. Director Debbie Skillman has once again put together a terrific show with a talented bunch of kids. All tickets/$6 ... don't miss it!
Contact: Thom Clemmons - 910-524-4869
The weather looks to be absolutely perfect all weekend. Let's get out and enjoy!
*** Results are in ...Southport's native son Buck Smith, on Second Time Around, takes the $25,000 top prize with a 40.2 lb.fish. Chris Edens from Wilmington takes second, and Bryan Rowley from Southport reels in third place. Nine Southport boats placed in the top fifty ... 18 total from Brunswick County ... best local showing I remember.


contact: southportsoundings@gmail.com
Home

Christmas in Southport and "....... All is Calm"

This is a case where the picture and not the event pulled me out of my writer's slump. I admit I get pretty caught up in the Fall trying to capture the perfect sunset. There are just so darn many of them. I usually start sizing up the clouds for potential around 4ish when I'm headed home. Sometimes the perfect sky comes out of nowhere but normally the late afternoon sky offers a "heads up" you can count on. The tranquil scene above doesn't fall into the spectacular category but to me it speaks of that perfect stillness of fading light. As I stood there last night, listening to rare quiet, smelling the richness of the marsh, it reminded me of why this is my favorite time of year in Southport.

Christmas in Southport is full of traditions, some old and some relatively new. This past weekend was a busy one with the Southport Tour of Homes followed by the Holiday Boat Flotilla. The historic home tour, in it's nineteenth year, sold out its 1200 tickets before the event. It's hard to imagine a day in December any more pleasant than Saturday, sunny and bright with temperatures in the mid 70's. It's been like this for nearly a week but not to worry.....a blast of cold air is a-comin' and it'll feel more like Christmas by the weekend.

One new tradition in-the-making may just be the upcoming world premier of "Winter Nightsong: The Christmas Eve Wanderings of One E. Scrooge Esquire." It is Stage II Productions' Briton Cambell's ambitious musical adaptation of Dicken's "A Christmas Carol" to be held at the old Amuzu theatre in Downtown Southport. With a fresh script and an original score, I for one, can't wait to see what our local talent has come up with. For more info call Briton at 910-540-2801. To see what else is on the calendar.............

I've been thinking of the possibility of a new family tradition. Last Christmas we had all the girls home and we celebrated Christmas Eve in the hidden nook of our back yard we call "Camp Burton" around a big fire. We roasted some sweet,salty oysters, ate clam chowder and cornbread muffins, and counted our many blessings. This year I'm hoping by some miracle, drawing on old Southern tradition, to garnish our Christmas day table with..........a Christmas Flounder! A stuffed whole flounder, that is. My research on this coastal tradition hasn't turned up much but here's a simple recipe I found.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 whole flounder, 3 or 4 pounds, scaled, cleaned, head removed
• 2/3 cup celery
• 2/3 cup green onion w/ tops
• minced garlic (optional)
• 1 stick butter (saving enough to brush the outside)
• 1 cup medium shrimp, cooked and peeled
• 1 cup crab meat
• 1 cup homemade bread crumbs (or not)
• salt,pepper,and Old Bay to taste

PREPARATION:

Cut slit in center of brown side of flounder and use a filet knife to make a pocket. Saute celery,onion, and garlic in butter until soft, add shrimp, crab and croutons to make stuffing. Fill pocket of flounder with stuffing mixture, brush with melted butter and salt. Bake at 350 for about 30 min. or until flesh feels firm. Sadly I am allergic to shrimp and crab so maybe substitute chopped bay scallops, that is if I actually score a fresh flounder. Wish me luck!

Lastly, I want to mention a really good cause that I'm sure many are familiar with, Heifer International, with its whole different kind of approach to world hunger. Individuals have the opportunity to donate various species of farm animals which are delivered to villages in need. Before any Heifer animal is brought to a project partner, the recipients are trained in very specific guidelines and must share their first offspring with a neighboring village and thus, the gift continues and self-reliance can grow. Heifer International also teaches them environmentally-sound agricultural techniques that help rejuvenate the land, water and other natural resources. My Mom was the first one to introduce me to Heifer at Christmas several years ago. She set up a jar on the mantle for all her grandchildren, great-nieces and nephews who were all together. She managed to get them all to give up a little of their Christmas money, and as I remember, she donated a flock of chickens, and a goat in their behalf. We've been giving as a family at Christmas ever since. This year I decided to set up a Registry on Heifer's web site in Mom's name and I'm calling it Betty's Animal Gifts. I haven't told her about it just yet but I know she'll be tickled about it. I'm just now sending out a link to family and friends so if anyone wants to join in, please do. I'm hoping we'll pull together a whole barnyard!

"Merry Christmas to All

and to All a Good Night!"

Home Page

Contact

Southport, NC - Halloween Cape Fear Style

It just doesn't seem possible that Halloween is right around the corner. Here in Southport, Fall has been a tease.... at best, for it seems to have disappeared. It's October 19th and it's 85 degrees, hot and sticky, and once again I'm in denial wearing a long-sleeve shirt.

Signs of Halloween are beginning to appear, and I had a
good time last evening riding around and taking a few pictures. I don't have trick or treaters living at my house anymore. I sure do miss those days. I remember one year, when lacking a proper costume, we wrapped my daughter Kate up in a sheet, pinned a bunch of seashells on it, and sent her out dressed like a "beach!" She was too young to protest and really.....it's all about the CANDY.

Some folks here still go all-out with their decorations. I'll have to update with my "best Halloween decorations award" when it gets a little closer. Downtown Southport really is the perfect neighborhood for trick-or-treating with the closeness of the houses, and the "everybody knows everybody" feel to it. I don't know if kids still go door to door in other parts of the country. It does seem as though our newer residents as a whole choose not participate and leave their porch lights off on Halloween night. I think it's just not a tradition they are accustomed to and they are wary of strangers coming to their door. And some of ghosts and goblins can can be awfully scary!

To get you into the spirit, there's "Fall-O-Ween," a community festival to be held at Bill Smith Park on Fish Factory Road on Saturday the 27th. There'll be kid's games, family entertainment, arts and crafts, and food booths, and more. Then Saturday evening at 6:00, if you have a taste for the paranormal, you can head to the Battleship North Carolina and board the "Ghost Ship. While you're exploring the bowels of the ship you'll hear about the tales of voices and apparitions frequently encountered on the ship and discoveries from an episode of "Ghost Hunters" aired last year on the Sci-Fi Channel. On a lighter note, also Saturday evening, a Halloween Hay Ride will be held in Boiling Spring Lakes. BSL will also be hosting Trunk or Treat on the 31st at the Community Building.



Everyone seems to be enjoying our Indian Summer. The local piers and surf are full of fisherman, the shops and local restaurants are full of late-season tourists, and for those of us who call Southport home, the days are full of promise, for our favorite time of year has arrived. October is one of the "R" months and it has a lot of us thinking about that first oyster roast in the backyard.

Last, but definitely not least, Southport's BIG Fall bash, the STEDE BONNET REGATTA is on the 27th. This is a major-fun combined event put on by the Provision Co. and the Cape Fear Yacht Club. Decorated boats of ALL shapes and sizes race in and around the Cape Fear between Southport and Bald Head Island captained by pirates, swashbuckling mates, and wenches of course. The rum-running race finishes up around 5:00 and a huge pirate-themed block party ensues at the end of West Bay Street.

One of the first thing out of anyone's mouth after they've been to Southport for the first time is, "I LOVE THE PROVISION CO!" This little waterfront restaurant still feels like a "best-kept secret" even though it's not a secret any more. There's much that has already been written about the utterly unique "little restaurant that could." read more You'll just have to come on down and experience it for yourself. You won't be sorry!

H A P P Y H A L L O W E E N ! ! !

One late addendum for your Halloween pleasure is the Halloween Festival at Poplar Grove Plantation in Poplar Grove. They are promising the biggest ever annual event with a HAUNTED HAYRIDE, a HAUNTED BARN, A FUN HOUSE, MAZE, CARNIVAL RIDES, FOOD, GAMES, and more. This has got to be pretty tempting if you have kids. Historic Poplar Grove Plantation itself is in a beautiful setting and a perfect venue for any small event. Now that there's the new super highway that runs from 421 just North of Wilmington straight over to Highway 17N right at Poplar Grove, you can make in about 45 minutes from Southport with NO traffic. It runs til midnight Friday and Saturday night and til 6 on Sunday.

Be Scareful out there!

Home Page

Contact


All photos by Vicki Burton except "Halloween Dogs" courtesy of funnyville.com