New day, new attitude

Sept. 27 - This morning as Wayne scrutinized the chart and our intended itinerary, it became obvious that something had to go. I had already conceded my willingness to trade a stop in Newport, RI for an extra night in Mystic, CT and forgo a layover in NYC entirely, but there were still too many stops scheduled for the time we have.

So we returned the rental car a day early and told the marina we would not be staying an extra night after all, and instead sailed over to Martha's Vineyard. We missed seeing the National Seashore on Cape Cod, but I was ok with that; I told Wayne that I didn't know if it's just the mood I’m in today or whether I’m becoming a bit tired of sightseeing, but right now I just want to move on and get to Florida. Maybe I have simply surrendered the struggle.

Today marks two months since we left the dock in Bayfield and the end is looming just below the horizon.

Wayne is so funny. Every time we go under a bridge, no matter how high it is, he freaks out, afraid that it’s not high enough. Our mast is 62 feet and we have yet to go under one that’s 65 feet, although we will experience many before this trip is over (I may have to sedate and blindfold him).Today's bridge was 120 feet and he told me to be sure to pass under the middle of it because it's a little higher there. I tease him and tell him that he thinks his mast is way taller than it really is.

Our passage through Cape Cod Canal was less than ideal because we had strong southwest winds opposing the tidal current. The combination created sharp, steep waves, making for an uncomfortable ride. On the Southwest end of Cape Cod is Woods Hole, and the channel there is narrow with many turns, confusing channel markers, and notoriously strong currents. Wayne had to fight 4-5 knots of current from the side along with 15-25 knot winds from the same direction, which slowed us down and wanted to push us sideways. Add in rocks to the right of us and shallow water to the left, and there was no room for error. We snaked our way through without incident, due to Wayne's impeccable piloting skills and my acute vision for spotting markers.

While we were at the fuel dock at Tisbury Wharf in Vineyard Haven, I got online (strong signal - yeah!) and reserved a rental car so we could do a quick tour of Martha's Vineyard. We left at about 4:30 and went directly to Memensha, a simple, serious fishing town. In fact, it’s one of several island locations featured in the movie “Jaws.” During our journey I’ve developed a deep fondness and fascination with rustic, smelly fishing villages, and this one fit the bill. It reminded me of Peggy's Cove near Halifax, but it’s more authentic.

I don't know what it is about old lobster traps, dilapidated fishing shacks, and grungy fishing trawlers that bring out the photographer in me, but they do and Memensha had it all, with a bonus. There was a woman there, a full-time artist who also teaches architectural drawing (by hand!) in the architecture school at Harvard. She gave me permission to photograph her and I thought she was a fascinating subject.

Edgartown is a lovely little town, as refined as Memensha is crusty, but not in a pretentious way. We didn't even get out of the car, though, because it was starting to get dark and we were hungry.

We had a hankering for some Mexican food, so we headed for the only Mexican restaurant we knew of on the island, Sharky's Cantina in Oak Bluffs. We were waiting to be seated when another couple came over to wait near us. The woman and I immediately recognized each other - Noreen works in the office at the dock! One of two people I've met on the island, hundreds of restaurants...what are the chances? We struck up a conversation with her and her friend Steve, the captain of a small luxury cruise ship currently docked in Vineyard Haven. Our table was ready and there was room for four, so we invited them to join us. Steve shared stories of how he unintentionally became a commercial fisherman after a night of drinking too much, and how he made the transition to cruise boat captain. He also had some great tips for navigating the east coast and places we should stop; Wayne took notes.

Captain Steve advised us against lolly-gagging around and strongly recommended that we look for a favorable weather window and do a straight shot from NYC to the Delaware and Chesapeake Bays. This time of year the weather can get quite nasty off the New Jersey coast, and we want to be in the Intracoastal Waterway if and when that happens. 

Four hours later we dropped off the rental car, pleased as we could be with our short time in Martha's Vineyard, and glad we chose it over another day in Cape Cod.