Wednesday 29 August: Martha’s Vineyard, Tisbury.
We wake up to bright sunshine again, and very warm. Oh, summer! Over breakfast, looking at weather forecast, we debate whether to move to Lobsterville anchorage today or stay put in Tisbury. Vote is 1-1, and result is we stay, as boss’ vote was as such.
30 degC today, real feel 35C, and we certainly feel the heat as we go ashore, armed with the drone. No bikes today, our bums can’t take another day on bikes. So we walk instead. We moor the dinghy at Vineyard Heaven Yacht Club, and from there we walk on the Main Street up to West Chop Lighthouse. The shady road offers us some relief from the sun, but even so, we feel very hot.
Once at West Chop Lighthouse, “no trespassing, private property” signs are cutting us off. Hm, we want to see this lighthouse and the surroundings, good thing we brought the drone. Up it goes, and sure enough we get a great view from up in the air. Very pretty shoreline, with a long strip of wavy beach as far as we can see.
Once our curiosity is satisfied, we carry on walking along the same road and come across some sophisticated residences. All have their own access to the beach. Annoyingly so for us, as there is no public access to the beach, not a single foot path. Having said that, on the way back we did manage to spot a path which didn’t flash a “private property”, and of course we took the opportunity and walked to the beach at the end of it.
On the way back we walk through West Chop Woods, a dirt road through the woods where secluded properties are. By the time we get back to the yacht club, we are very hot, and we need to cool off. Unlike other yacht clubs we came across in US, the staff here is quite helpful and friendly. So we sit on the shady terrace and catch our breath. After we fly the drone over the bay, we head to the dinghy and to the town.
The walk through Tisbury was mostly stops into air-conditioned shops, to get a break from the intense heat. As a result, we ended up buying some items we didn’t really need. The supermarket is our last stop, and armed with fresh bread we return to Cloudy Bay.
Glen jumps in the water to carry on his task of cleaning the weed off the waterline. He gets over-enthused and ends up spending a couple of hours in the water, cleaning all the way where he could reach. Not too many barnacles, but a lot of weed around the water line and thick slim under the hull.
In the evening we go ashore and catch a bus to Oak Bluffs, in search of some night life. Very good public transport in these islands, busses run quite frequently, they are very comfy and inexpensive. In Oak Bluffs we come across lots of pubs, mostly sports bars. And we stop in a couple of them, but nothing to rave about. In the last one we are actually politely asked to make a move, as they close by 10.45pm. Hm, that is a bit early.
Unexcited with our findings and experience here, we walk to the bus and catch our ride back to Tisbury. Where we retire to Cloudy Bay for an uneventful rest of the evening.
Martha’s Vineyard photo album
Martha’s Vineyard video on Sail Cloudy Bay YouTube channel