Oriental, It's All About BOGO Night

Let me start this post with the P to B ratio of Oriental (the Population to Boat Ratio)… 1:3ish. That’s right, 900 people and just about 2,500 boats.
Our two weeks was made wonderful by the amazing establishment and closest bar, ‘Silos’. Open Tuesday-Saturday there’s always something on the calendar. Tuesday was BOGO day (Buy One pizza Get One free), Wednesday was open mic night, Thursday was dollar drafts, Friday was live music in the back yard (Lake Street Dive played there), Saturdays are party nights. For a community that is increasingly becoming dominated by retirees looking for a good town, this place was wildly fun. Tuesday pizza night was easily the towns favorite. We went into the hardware store and the clerk felt it necessary to alert us ‘transients’ of the phenomenal BOGO day. We also ran into two separate friends who informed us we should get to Silos early tonight to secure a good seat for BOGO. It’s pretty great to see a community come together over pizza.

Sitting in Silos, everyone is in the boat world, you work for the boat yards, you work as a fisherman, you teach boating, you race, you do canvas or boat related services (West Marine / Radio Shop). In some capacity EVERYONE we met in town is tied into this interwoven community.

In general, a great thing about boat yards are seeing all the other boats and if you’re lucky enough, meeting the owner and having a few beers together. We met a fellah named Mike from Canada and he was finishing up redoing his entire interior. He bought his boat as a fixer-uper and the entire below deck had mildew problems (ceiling, floor, and cushions). He was a wealth of knowledge and we were grateful for all his tips on engine alignment.Read more