Author: Lynn McKeown

it felt so good to begin building a castle – hopefully, that I will build upon for the next month and a half!
Kids from last year came and talked my ear off; another promised he’ll come tomorrow to build; and a Dad, from Oxford – a first timer in Lewes will build tomorrow, as well.

I arrived here in Lewes yesterday afternoon, and spent much of the day and night unpacking all the ‘stuff’ I bring for the 8 weeks I’m here. Nice supper at Irish Eyes on the deck. It’s lightly raining, so I think I’ll go wage war on weeds in the garden.

 

I will be on the Market Street beach in Lewes, Delaware, building castles August 5 – September 30, and hope to see you there, and build with you!

Until I can get to the beach in August, :

Tools needed: bucket (to carry water, and to dig with) small plastic shovel for carving (never dig with shovels – use your bucket!)   For molds:  plastic spoon, cup, small buckets, funnels – anything!

Plan where your castle will be – check where and what time the last high tide was- saltwatertides.com.  Check the moon phase (tides higher on full and new moon. Remember: the higher the castle, the bigger the base will have to be.
1. Start by splashing (not pouring) water on the flat sand area of your chosen spot for the base.
2. Next, using your bucket, scoop up the sand just splashed from the perimeter, and throw into the center, working around the circle. (This way, there won’t be any holes on the beach!) 3. Splash that small pile you have with water, and repeat (till you’re tired!)

4. Pack down the wet sand you’ve just splashed, and you will be ready to build, mold, and carve, always working from top down.
For molding:  a cup small bucket or plastic mold can be used. Fill the container with water; pour it into dry sand, and mix. Since the mixed sand must be able to mold, see if it will hold together like a meatball in your hand. Use that mixed sand to pack your mold, one handful at a time, packing it in the corners and crevices of the mold as you go.  Invert the mold onto your prepared packed, leveled and flattened space.   Then, with one hand ready to lift the mold, the other hand will smack the mold until you feel the release, and then you can lift the mold.

Carving with a small plastic straight edge shovel facing you, carve down, extending the lines of your molded sand.  External castle walls can be created using your small shovel in the same way.  Use your plastic spoon to carve doors and windows into your castle.  To carve stairs, make a ‘sliding board’ on the wet packed sand with your shovel, and then using the shovel upright, facing you, carve down one step and a time, brushing away the carved sand of the step.

One of the nice touches with a castle is to make drip trees (some people call them drip castles.  fill your small bucket with water; add half sand, and with your index finger, middle and thumb, drip the water and sand to the height of the tree you want.

Another fun thing to do is to build a village down the mountain side from the castle.  Carve the top of a triangle into the packed sand, and add straight sides, for a little house.  Use your plastic spoon to carve doors and windows.

Share these tips with anyone you meet who stops to see what you’re doing, and encourage them to build, too!

Take a picture, and be ready to build another castle tomorrow, right on top of todays castle, by splashing water onto the structure, and going through Steps 2 – 4.  This will make your castle a little bigger every day that you are there to build!

Riley is a great listener and learner, and can already make awesome steps at age 3 1/2. He also is a maximum smoother of sand!

second castle, built at the high tide line

It’s October, and I’m on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, for a long weekend (October 4 – 9th.) We had some very warm days, but now the air is cold, as it should be, this season.
I won’t be building any castles until I get back to Lewes., but I will dream about the warm sun and sand, and all the wonderful people I met this August and September.

The metal detector guy stopped by yesterday, to tell me that he had visited my website, and viewed ALL 15 PAGES! (I didn’t even know there were that many! I guess they go back to the 2010 Christmas, when Brendan built my website.)
He said that the photos drove his wife crazy. She is a very talented artist, working in quilting, and said that it’s such a shame because of all the work that goes into the castles and sculptures, and they don’t last.
I am happy building and carving, and that alone gives me pleasure. Having the photos on my website ‘keeps’ them, and that’s good, too!

Yesterday was a beautiful day on the beach, and I did build (although the wind dried things out, and I had towers fall right in front of my eyes! Usually that happens overnight, with strong breezes, but the sun was strong, too.) I’m hoping I’ll be able to get back today, and take a photo.

Sunday, I walked down to our beach, but the North East onshore wind almost kept me from crossing the dune. Monday, I tried again, and found the wind had changed and was coming out of the South West, and was more tolerable to me and my sandcastle building.
I will be here Tuesday, Wednesday, and will go home on Thursday. My new little mobile home is waiting for me, in Pennsylvania, in Village Green. I have much to do there, as I had barely moved in, at the end of July, before I packed up to move here to the beach.