To Nantucket and Back

I'm getting more and more lax in my picture taking - not to mention my cooking - when we're onboard.  But give it a minute - I'll have some from Nantucket, at least.

Day One: We set out from the marina on Sunday, 6 July and headed for a first overnight on the hook at Fisher's Island.  We've been there several times - let that be my excuse - it was a motorsail (engine on, mainsail up) and we got into the anchorage at West Harbor around 1530.  A few boats there with us, but quiet at the end of the three-day weekend. We ate the first of the meals we had brought from the freezers at home (though I can't now remember what)

Day Two: After glorious weather yesterday, Monday the 7th was cool and intermittently rainy.  We had wrapped a fishing/crabbing line around the prop, which eventually required the deployment of our portable diving tank - Susan had already done many short dives but it wasn't enough. We only lost an hour or so, though, to our planned departure time, and we arrived at Block Island for a mooring - no problem on a random Monday - and had time to relax and get our bearings and to call the launch service (one of my favorite things in these popular island anchorages) to go ashore for dinner at Dead Eye Dick's, on the porch.  Weather turned glorious again, though it was good to be in the shade.

Day Three: We took the launch and then a taxi over to the "town" side, for ice cream (all), a candle (me), a piece of pottery (JP) and a top (Susan). Back for dinner on board - the white chicken chili, maybe?

Raconteur from the launch at Block

Day Four: We stopped for fuel at Payne's on Block, on the early side, and then headed for Cuttyunk, where I had reserved one of the outside moorings for two nights.  I managed to have writing group, somehow, on Zoom, even as we were underway. JP's Chili from the home freezers for dinner.

Day Five: Lousy weather, so we are not sorry to be at the mooring, though it might have been better to be somewhere we could go ashore. No clue what we ate - so sad.

Day Six: Friday, 11 July, the first of our four nights at Nantucket Moorings. We had another motorsail from Cuttyhunk - six hours - and arrived at about 1300 thanks to a strong current in a favorable direction. We took the launch ashore and got ourselves to the (smaller) Stop and Shop near the waterfront, and to the pharmacy (for cough drops for me), and were back on board by 1530.  We went back to town, all cleaned up, for dinner at Brotherhood of Thieves, a pub-like spot with very good food and service. Excellent cocktails. We stumbled on a long line for ice cream at The Juice Bar afterwards, and joined it.  Luckily, the group in front of us said 1) it's worth the wait and 2) order your ice cream in a waffle CUP.  I had Peppermint Stick with hot fudge sauce and it might be the best ice cream I've ever had.

Brotherhood of Thieves, behind JP's head

Day Seven: We came and went from the boat a couple of times, so did some shopping and toured the historic district as well, with JP as tour guide. A tasteful selection:

We took the launch early, and stopped for a spontaneous drink at The Club Car,

 

and then took a Lyft to the Chanticleer in 'Sconset and had a lovely dinner outside in their garden.

Day Eight: I'm re-reading an Elin Hilderbrand (queen of Nantucket) that I hadn't read in along time - The Matchmaker - and it's really fun to read it now that we're here.  She even mentions The Club Car - it's not in her "Blue Book" - my theory is because it's such a local hangout. Went in a little early for dinner, to get JP a sweater, stopped at The Club Car again and got lucky with a table again, then met Susan's old boss Bob Bettacchi for dinner.  He's had a house on the Island since the 1980's. We ate at The Proprietors, where his granddaughter hosts a couple of nights a week (which helped him get the reservation at a civilized hour), and which IS in the "Blue Book"

Day Nine: Our last day on Nantucket, for now - we will be back, we hope.  I think we all were pretty taken with the place.  We rented ebikes in town, and after the initial terror of navigating the awful traffic and narrow roads (e.g. paved cow paths) had a nice ride out to Cisco Beach and lunch at Millie's.  I had booked dinner at Slip 14 on South Wharf, so we launched to the boat, showered and dressed, and launched to and from dinner.  Very nice last evening.

The quiet side of Nantucket

Millie's

   

Beach Road and Lagoon

Day Ten: Motored across to a mooring at Vineyard Haven for two nights; dined on board from stuff we bought at Bartlett's Farm on Nantucket.

Day Eleven: Rented bikes again; road through Oak Bluffs and on to Edgartown, then stopped and Morning Glory Farm, still a favorite, and then up past the airport to arrive back in VH. The launch was having some trouble so we had launched the dinghy for the first time; the only real dinghy dock there is on the far side of the ferry landing.  Walked from there to dinner at Beach Road - excellent, and beautiful view over the back side of the Lagoon - we may have become Nantucket people, but the Vineyard still holds a place in my heart.

Day Twelve through Fifteen: We made our way back to Branford over the next four days, with a stop at Safe Harbor Jamestown, through a sporty thunderstorm, to a mooring there and dinner on board (lamb kebabs and chickpea dal from Morning Glory), lunch at JB's on the Water in Jamestown with a nice view over the bridge to Newport, and another "boughten" dinner on board.  We split the remaining trip into two days - a perfect breezy summer anchorage stop at Fisher's Island, and a long slog from there to Branford and our temporary home dock.