Evening’s End…..At The Point

Posted on May 27, 2014 by Kim

It was a beautiful Memorial Day and I ended it in peaceful reflection……just as it should be……at one of my most favorite places on Earth – Point Breeze! It was the perfect ending to a lovely day. Well, “perfect” is actually a slight exaggeration – it was just the tiniest sliver shy of perfect, but it was amazing! Read on to find out why it was such a wonderful evening and why I stop ever so short of calling it “perfect“.

On Sunday night, I was sitting in my den at the computer and looked out at the most incredible red glow over the tree tops to the north. I was suddenly kicking myself for not putting two and two together to know it would be an incredible night to be at the lake for the sunset! It was a beautiful day with a clear, cloudless sky and the forecast was predicting an even more beautiful day on Monday – the ideal ingredients for a “red sky at night, sailor’s delight” sunset over the lake! For a split second, I thought of getting in my car and heading down to see it, but it was already 8:30-ish and, even though it is only about a 15 minute drive to Point Breeze, I knew it would be pretty much over by the time I got there! I was so disappointed that I was missing it, but enjoyed what I did get to see over the tree tops from my den window!

Then, came Monday – Memorial Day – it was a great day! The weather was perfect – sunny, warm, breezy – just a great day to be outside! I promised myself I was going to end the day at Point Breeze – even though I was fairly certain the sunset wouldn’t be as impressive as I’m sure it was on Sunday night. The sky was clouding up and the weather man said Tuesday would bring us scattered thunderstorms. So, I didn’t have a lot of hope for a “red sky at night, sailor’s delight” kind of sunset, but went anyway…….and I was so very glad I did! It may not have been the spectacular light show that I envision the previous night had, but it was beautiful in its own way……and the peaceful experience made my first sunset visit to the Point for the season very special. Can’t wait for many more evenings to come!

I got to The Point about 7:30. It was still in the 70s with a wonderful breeze blowing through my hair. The river and the lake were calm – just a slight ripple – and very calming to watch. I sat on the bench overlooking Oak Orchard River as it flows into Lake Ontario. I hoped to watch some boaters coming in from a day on the lake, but there weren’t any to watch – must be they all got tired and hungry and came in earlier in the evening. There were only a few people out fishing and walking, so it was calm and quiet as I sat there enjoying the breeze and waiting for the sun to set. After a while, more people started to come by to walk around the lighthouse and out onto the break wall that lines the mouth of the river as it extends out into the lake. I watched a man teaching his lady friend how to fish – he would cast the line out for her and then let her hold the pole and talk to her about how to reel the line in and how to tell if she caught something – they seemed to be having a fun time together. There was a couple who looked to be in their 50s walking hand in hand around the lighthouse and along the shore – then, they headed out for a walk along the break wall one on each side of the chain that runs down the center, still holding hands that they had to raise up to clear the chain – I smiled and thought how cute they were. There were others strolling around chatting while enjoying the evening. Then, there was a teenaged girl who obviously didn’t want to be there with her parents – instead of walking with them and enjoying the view, she sat on the bench beside me on her cell phone…..what a shame!!!

I sat there just watching the water ripple, watching the people, and taking some photos of the sun reflecting on the river and the clouds as they began to close in and form. Then, about 8:15, I walked out onto the break wall and stood there as the sun hid itself behind the clouds and came closer and closer to the horizon. I watched a large school of small fish – maybe 4-6 inches long swimming and playing and dancing around in the water – some would even leap up out of the water to show off to their friends. I stood there taking photos of the sky and watching the fish play for quite a while before I decided to stroll back to the benches just after 8:30 or so.

When I got back to the benches, there were two gentlemen sitting there – each on their own bench, but at the side closest to each other. I stood on the corner of the overlook stand where the man was teaching his lady friend how to fish earlier – I wasn’t ready to leave this peaceful adventure just yet. I stood there listening to the two gentlemen talk about their time in Vietnam – two veterans who were in the thick of things in the 60s in different battles at different times who ran into each other there at The Point for a chat – they didn’t come together and it was unclear from their conversation whether or not they actually knew each other before meeting there on those benches. After comparing their stories, they moved their conversation on to classic cars, car shows they attend, and their health concerns. A classic sports car pulled up with an older couple and asked the gentlemen about the Haines family place – they wondered if it was a residence, which got one of the gentlemen up and engaged in a conversation with them – first to tell them all about the history and current status of the Haines place and then both gentlemen continued their conversation about classic cars with their new-found friends. I should have felt guilty about eavesdropping on the two gentlemen, but I was enjoying their conversation too much! The fact that they were talking about their experiences in Vietnam and then moved right on with other interests they shared made for a very poignant end to my Memorial Day evening……a day to remember those who serve our country…..and a reminder that life does go on! I quietly left with my photos and my memories of the evening to head back home.

Here are a few of the almost 100 photos I took between about 7:30 and 8:45 or so…….just a little over an hour packed full of awesomeness!!! No boats to watch and no spectacularly colorful sunset, but an awesome evening, just the same!!!

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