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Friday morning Southeast Pamlico Volunteer and Florence Whortonville Volunteer Fire Departments marked the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. To begin the ceremony, local firefighters geared up and walked across the Oriental Bridge and back. This honored the 343 fallen FDNY Firefighters who climbed 110 stories of the World Trade Center on 9/11.

Flip flops, abandoned at town dock. Ominous sign? Perhaps a rapture that those reading didn’t make.

Pirate Jam requires suitable attire, which Scuba Steve suitably exemplified. A look the 2026 Pirate Jam, here.

Relaxing in a Swift Canoe at the 2026 Pirate Jam.

This is a honey bee. One of several thousand housed in hives in and around Oriental. He’s taking a break on the way back to his hive.

The rain held back Saturday, delivering ideal weather during Pirate Jam 2026. Like in this image, many boats had collected each years distinct Pirate Jame flags.

Keith Bruno of Endurance Seafood talks bait mullet, old drum & flounder fishing, and Wanchese swordfish in the September fishing report. Stop in, or give Keith a call, 252-249-2558.

Broad Strokes’ artist of the month Jay DeChesere says he was kayaking to Masonboro Island when he encountered this clammer. He had to convince the man his “mission was artistic and not regulatory” to get the reference photos for this watercolor painting. See the full painting and more of DeChesere’s work this month only at Broad Strokes Gallery.

There have been free ferries for decades, but starting in 2027 the legislature has North Carolina’s free ferries scheduled to be tolled. This has been attempted before, and pulled back before.
Wednesday night the NCDOT has a listening session, 6p at Pamlico Community College. You’re invited.
Greg Piner writes in pointing out that tolls are really inefficient way to raise funds.

A dog stares longingly at a heron on the Sailcraft docks, perhaps invoking the spirit of Wile E. Coyote. (Joe Clark photo)

Sunday morning moon (Jennifer Smart photo)

If the clouds allow it, up above is an August full moon. An August full moon is traditionally called the Sturgeon Moon because giant lake sturgeon were caught in the Great Lakes during late summer.
Artist Laura Turgeon created a drawing of her version of a Sturgeon Moon. We call it the Turgeon Sturgeon Moon.

A Nimble Nomad, Vamoose, found an unlikely berth Monday evening: South Avenue. The boat and trailer were parked along the river during Monday’s thunderstorm. (Click to see more Nimble pics)

If you’re a regular at The Bean, or Mariposa on the weekends, you’ve seen Neal Whicher a time or two. If you meet him today, wish him a happy birthday; Neal turns 90.

Rumor is, there’s a lady in the village.

This is a photo from the first Ol Front Porch Music Festival in 2014. It’s the Green Creek Bluegrass Band, Ernest Dunn, Ken Belangia, Jim Baluss and Becky Ackiss, leaning in towards the one mic on the porch of the Old Central Hotel. The 2014 festival had musicians playing on a dozen porches and was inspired by the jam sessions on the porch of the Ol’ Store owned by the late Billy and Lucille Truitt.
The 2026 festival is set for Oct 2-3, all in Oriental.

A cloud bank of dense fog delayed the first glimpse of the sun this morning.
But then…. it glowed. (Ben Casey photo)

If you’re a fan of the TV show Stranger Things, this might remind you of the creatures of the Upside Down. If you’re a bee or hummingbird, however, this might remind you of lunch. The scarlet rosemallow is a native species, grows up to 8 ft tall, and is popular with the pollinators.

The Fisherman, a painting by artist Charlie Frye. Charlie will be painting a new salty fisherman this afternoon @ Nautical Wheelers, and you can too. You paint, you sip wine, you create. 4p today.

Oriental crime spree? Saturday late morning a truck was making its way from South Water St to Hodges, and took out the stop sign. Word is, the truck attempted to depart the scene, but it was all observed by Provision Company employee Ann Frederick, who stopped the truck, and called Oriental Police.
Order has since been restored to the village. (click photo for more crime spree pics)

Nearly every day at sunrise, the ‘morning crew’ gather at the corner of South Ave and Vandemere St to watch the sun rise over the Neuse. (Kevin O’Neill photo)

Line, cleated and coiled, in the harbor.

Caption This: Give us your best caption for this photo. Best will be chosen by staff and posted Wednesday on the front page. Send your submission to info@towndock.net

An early morning walk found a golf cart stuck in the sand at Minuscule Beach. Click for the big view, and a closer look.

It’s watermelon Sunday today… watermelon at the Bonds, starting @ 4p.

Nature. Love. Paparazzi. Only if you’re ready, click the image.

Fishing vessel Lord Willin comes into Oriental harbor after fishing.

What’s for dinner? A grasshopper balances on a flower, while being admired by a lizard. Click the photo to see the next image of nature’s beauty. (Ben Casey photos)

A box turtle hides near the OUMC Community Garden. Click for the big view.

In Looper terms, “Gold” means you’ve completed one loop, “Platinum” means you’ve completed two Loops. SV Prospector visited Oriental this spring, working on that first Loop. Meet Marcel Lafond onboard SV Prospector, in The Shipping News.

This is not Star Trek. It’s the head of a bumble bee emerging from a hibiscus bloom. Click to see more bee.

Fungi @ dawn, South Ave view. The rains have inspired a lot of mushrooms around town. (Jennifer Smart photo)

Heading out Sunday afternoon for a new week of shrimping, trawler Necia Ann. (Ben Casey photos)

This is part of a Pamlico Arts mural, the second of four panels that will hang on the storage building across from the Piglet. It was being painted Saturday in the space under Mariposa. Click pic for more views… (Joe Clark photos)

Leo the Teenage Lion by Mark Watson. Watson makes sculptures from driftwood, vines, and other natural materials. Visit Watson’s Leo at Broad Strokes Gallery.

Keith Bruno is a working commercial fisherman. He’s often up before dawn, and out on his boat. Keith has shared his fishing stories with TownDock over the years. Tonight, he shares them with the Oriental History Museum. You can be there.

Storm clouds on the Neuse River, as seen from South Avenue. (Joe Clark photo)

Folks at the Oriental UMC Community Garden went looking for an organic alternative to pine straw and bark mulch for the garden that helps provide produce for Pamlico County Fishes & Loaves. They reached out to Tidewater Grain, who sells their rice hulls in the County for $100 for a pallet-sized 500 lbs sack. Tidewater offered to donate their hulls to the cause. Here, Pete Flood adds more after Monday’s rains.

A bloom on an okra plant. In the Oriental UMC Community Garden.

Emerald Isle beach sunrise. (Jennifer Smart photo)

Why did the crab cross the road?
Crab on maneuvers, spotted on Midyette St. (Joe Clark photo)

Ben Casey is a storyteller, photographer, and native of Pamlico County. He has documented the people and places of his beloved home. Tonight at 6:30p at the History Museum, Ben talks about his journey on the Neuse River from Raleigh to New Bern.

Morning clouds on Pierce Creek.

Sunrise view from Wiggins Point (Jennifer Smart photo)

Seen on Factory Street after the weekend rain. (Joe Clark photo)

Everly Leonard, winner of the Miss Minnow contest, receives her crown. Check out the CroakerFest scene here.