Well, we did it. We survived another summer at the beach. The parking meters got their money. The seagulls got our French fries. The jellyfish got a disturbing amount of this column. And somewhere on Route 1, a family is still sitting in traffic, trying to make a left turn.
But just when Rehoboth starts to exhale, the temperature drops three degrees, somebody puts a decorative pumpkin outside and suddenly the entire town belongs to witches.
Sea Witch is coming.
From Oct. 23 to 25, Rehoboth Beach will celebrate the 36th annual Sea Witch Festival. If you’ve never experienced Sea Witch weekend, imagine Halloween, a small beach town and approximately 900 dogs in costumes all being given the same weekend reservation.
It’s glorious.
There’s the huge parade down Rehoboth Avenue. There’s music. Games. Costumes. The famous dog parade. A 5K, which I personally support from a safe distance while holding something fried. Basically, Rehoboth spends all summer pretending to be a normal beach town, and then October arrives and we finally reveal our true form.
Honestly, Sea Witch makes perfect sense here. This town has always had a little magic to it. We have mermaids, queens, witches, gays, retirees, tourists, locals and at least one person wearing flip-flops in weather that absolutely does not call for flip-flops. We were never going quietly into fall.
And maybe that’s why I love this time of year so much. Summer Rehoboth is wonderful, but fall Rehoboth feels different. The sidewalks breathe again. You recognize faces. You can occasionally locate a parking space without offering a blood sacrifice. And just when you think things might finally calm down …
Here comes a witch riding down Rehoboth Avenue. It’s perfect.
So put Sea Witch weekend, Oct. 23 to 25, on the calendar. Bring a costume. Bring the dog. Bring comfortable shoes. Bring patience. And whatever you do, don’t assume the end of beach season means Rehoboth is going to behave itself.
We don’t do that here.
Besides, summer may be dead …
But around here, dead is when things start getting interesting.
