Last week, witnessing the eagles tucking into fresh – or not so fresh as the week wore on – seal, I hinted I’d follow up with a dessert course.
I want to be true to my word, and present more fine dining. The snag to putting the final seal of approval on a great gastronomic experience was the carcass disappearing not long after I published the ready meal post. I guess a bear or wolf, one of the four legged OldPlaidCamper readers, recognized a tender seal steak and snuck down there when the eagles weren’t watching. No dessert on that beach.
So, what about dessert OldPlaidCamper? I’m glad you asked, and it’s coming. A properly prepared meal can take a little time…
A group of youth, elders, and mentors went out last weekend to share wilderness and land based learning time. The weather had been fine all week, sunny, not too hot, perfect for being on the water and traveling up to the remote camp. We climbed aboard boats and it started to rain. We sailed for about an hour through the Broken Group islands and through the rain. We disembarked and pitched tents in the rain. We spent the first night enjoying the soothing sound of rain on canvas, but hoping it would ease before dawn. We woke to rain. Then, at midday, it stopped raining.
Yup, yup, it rained, we get it, but dessert? Ah, you spotted the filler, some blogging hamburger helper… On with the story of dessert. A few hardy swimmers went out to harvest sea urchin, and to my great disappointment, weren’t able to find any. Phew, I thought secretly, I can look forward to that another time. No sea urchin, but the sea cucumbers were abundant. Yup, dessert is sea cucumber. It’s even more enjoyable if you’ve had a lesson in how to prepare it. For me, it tasted as good as the previous time I tried it, when I made (and clearly forgot to remember) a mental note never to eat it again. I chewed and chewed and wondered if perhaps week old seal might not be a better choice? I was very much in a minority of me, as all my companions, young and old, tucked in, and so what else could I do except hand over my share?
Dinner has been served! No more foodie pieces for the foreseeable future, not until I’ve forgotten once more how much I enjoy fruits from the sea. Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a wonderful weekend!
OldPlaidCamper 
Lol. You had me going, pc, with your catchy writing, thinking there was really a dessert. I love dessert. So when we got to the sea cucumber, I was disappointed…but not nearly as disappointed as you must’ve been, as I have strawberries coming in an hour with my breakfast. I loved this story with the rain and how you all carried on, the event, another one of your fascinating adventures. Also enjoyed hearing about your sea urchin and sea cucumber swimmers. Down here in coastal Calif. sea urchins are an invasive and a pest, a good creature to remove from the sea bottom. Loved that photo of the preparation of the sea cucumbers. Wonderful story — thanks for sharing this adventure.
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Thanks, Jet! Delighted to hear this tale was catchy – how I wish sea cucumbers were less catchy! Stick to those strawberries for breakfast, and avoid the sea food.
Interesting to hear sea urchins are an invasive pest in coastal California. I met an elder from a nation further up island on the trip I was writing about, and his community has a problem with too many sea otters attracted by the abundance of sea urchins in their local waters. The balance is all wrong, between the kelp, urchins and otters, and they might have to cull the otters. Yikes.
I hope your week is going well!
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Can’t say that reading this made me hungry for dessert of any kind but, as always, I revel in your sea-faring & educational experiments. Food for thought & learning!
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Thanks, Walt! I enjoy dabbling in the sea-faring, but definitely not a fan of fare from the sea. Always fun to try, even if it isn’t to my taste…
I hope you’re enjoying your current travels, and getting some good time in, on, and around various waters!
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It’s so wonderful to read you again PC, all your sea faring adventures and culinary delights of the sea. Hope you’re keeping well and hope you have a great weekend. Cheers from down under 😊
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Thanks, Miriam! Haha, it’ll take quite a bit to convince me sea cucumber is a culinary delight!
I hope you’re keeping well, and I’ll have to head over to Out an’ About, see what you’ve been up to.
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Hope you do come visit PC. I’m on the road atm on an extended road trip through our beautiful country. Cheers!
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Ok, it’s official that we need to hit the reset button on summer since life appears out of control between the rain, the fine dining menu and so many other things!! We are on a wonderful schedule of two decent days and then five days of rain/storms or the threat of rain/storms and the dew point over 70. Your absolutely beautiful shot of the boat would definitely make one forget about the rain, but I don’t know what’s going to help me forget about this dessert. Enjoy the week and hopefully more sunshine!
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Your rain to sun ratio is not summer! And sea cucumber is not dessert. Or food?
The boat photograph turned out well, captured the spirit of the weekend. We did have to roll up trouser legs and remove boots to jump in and push that boat off a gravel spit it was caught on as the tide dropped. That particular channel has varying depths that shift and change in strong storms or tides. It’s a lovely boat, almost new, and if I had a spare (insert large dollar number here) I’d be tempted to get one very similar. Great for our offshore corners of the Pacific. Maybe one day…
I hope your week is going well, and that the rain to sun ratio is working in your favour!
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