Bonnie Hirshman bicycles to Salute for Subculture Tour #4

This  beachside shack at Higgs Beach that once was a hot dog stand is now a lively, sandy, friendly hangout run by the folks who brought you Blue Heaven, the Bahama village restaurant known for its feral chickens, among other attributes.

It has two patios so you can pretty much choose to be in the sun or in the shade or in the wind or out of the wind.  There’s also an inside with a bar if all that outdoorsy stuff is not your thing.  Big plus for bloggers — it’s a wifi hot spot.

A glass of wine and some great antipasti and you’ve got an excellent way to waste an afternoon.

The beach path skirting the patio is populated with sand-covered kids, bicycles, parents with strollers, older couples holding hands and, well, it’s a real variety.

Just across the path is the perfect sandy beach with volleyball going on during most daylight hours.

The restaurant has changed hands multiple times and almost qualifies as a “kiss of death” location– one of those places perhaps built on an indian burial ground or some other magic spot where success just isn’t possible.  Each incremental ownership improved the site, however, and now Salute seems to be thriving at the beach.

The neighborhood includes tennis courts, the Astro City playground, the dog park, the AIDS Memorial, White Street Pier, and the Garden Club.

Newcomers may wonder why the playground is called Astro City.  The climbing gym and springy ride-’em things were originally rocket themed, presumably from the Cape Canaveral ’60s era when Florida was the birthplace of Western Hemisphere space travel.

Higgs Beach is actually a county property, which has come out in the controversy over the homeless population that hangs out nearby.  Twenty years ago, it was a heavenly beach with sloping shores for toddlers to play in and a smooth sandy sea bottom good for windsurfing and Hobe catting.

The wooden pier at one time curved out offshore almost in line with the Garden Club’s West Martello Tower. In the 1970s and ’80s it was surfaced just out to the bend, then the bare pilings curved on, each a seat for cormorant, pelican or sea gull.

A huge and ancient Australian pine -- a tradition on Florida beaches.

The dock itself was(and is) a popular sunbathing handout, with steps down into the water.  Jumping off the pier into the water and slopping back up the steps was something you could do all day.

Snorkeling along the pier was rich, too.  I saw my first moray there one sunburned afternoon.

The click of dominoes was the sound track for the big round pavilions, when I first arrived in 1976,  The local latinos gathered there to match dots and pass the time.  The pavilions are shady and surprising cool, and if there is a breeze, you’ll feel it. Picnic tables were the fashion, but my memory also sees card tables and chairs brought from home.

Unfortunately, now, any comfortable accessories have been removed to deter homeless encampments.  In addition, the sea water tests poorly for pollution. According to CitizenJane.net, Higgs Beach was closed 91 days in 2006, second only to South Beach — the other sandy bottom beach (alas, most of our beaches are rocks, mud and clay.)  This means families don’t bring the kids down like they used to and picnics are rare.

The little concrete picnic huts used to be quite a social center.  Grills were matched with each one and locals spent evenings lazing under the huge and ancient Australian pines; kids splashed and ran and played on the swings that were right by the water and the merry-go-round near the huts.  Additional trips across the street to the jazzier Astro City spiced up the long summer evenings for the little ones — and I have to say, plenty of adults enjoyed the swings, too.

In recent years, a flock of homeless have tiptoed into one corner and make the picnic huts a shelter from their own down-’n'-out storms. They generally stay to themselves and rarely intrude on the restaurant or the volley ball or the bike path.

The unsavory nature of their presence, however, has enlivened local discussions. It IS a public beach and the public includes all sorts, but the social environment can be polluted and then the whole area could change.

Nevertheless, the glass is more than half full, Higgs Beach is a delightful spot.  The sunshine and ocean, palm trees, sea gulls, the scent of coconut oil and, near the restaurant, good food — that’s all good, very good.  A glass of chardonney, a tomato and mozzarella salad and fresh pisano bread with goat cheese makes the world look perfect.

Did I mention it’s dog- friendly and there’s ample parking?

I’m back at Sippin’ Internet cafe, 430 Eaton Street, for my Wednesday On The Road interlude that explores subcultures.

Outside, three magenta and turquoise cafe tables host a six-pack of northern tourists.  They are debating whether there are more Ohioans or New Yorkers down here.  Four of them are from New York — five if you count the toy poodle. They swear they hear a lot of New York accents.

Personally, I see so many people from Ohio here in the winters, I always ask them who is taking care of Ohio while everyone is in Florida?

Inside, multiple languages mingle with the music (see last On The Road). Two twenty-something guys with headsets are watching a soccer game on a laptop; an anonymous novelist invents a new world in a corner and several people tap away at the computer stations.   A well-dressed local realtor and her client just finished their scones and left.  A quiet legal conference between lawyers is going on near me.  I am trying not to eavesdrop.  A skinny young gal with bumper stickers all over her laptop just plugged in from the sofa.

This Wednesday, March 4, I will be at Salute on Higgs Beach, 4 to 5 p.m., for Subculture Tour #4. Come by and I’ll put your picture in the blog.

Wait til you see #3, which will be up Wednesday afternoon!  The photo here is a hint of #3.  Anyone guess what it is?  Correct guess gets their photo in the blog.