The weather has started to get better and I have even jumped into the water a couple of times. Getting ready for Binnacle I guess as it is not what we like for temperature....maybe 68 degrees.....on the surface! Right now we are in Hadley Harbor and it's quite warm. We spent most of the day on public transportation picking up a few items and have even seen Falmouth, MA. But lets go back to where we left off......
Boats..........there are so many pretty boats in this area. I suppose many of the traditional sailing boats started their life around here so its logical that we would see many types. That certainly is true as you can see by the pictures:
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| passing by in the fog |
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| a beauty! |
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| and another |
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| someone did a lot of varnishing |
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| here too |
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| schooners of all sizes |
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| and shape |
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| power is included these two are beauties |
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| even ketches |
For over a week or so we bounced from Watch Hill, back to Stonington and then back to Noank to pick up some new cushions for Nati & company. You can see them soon, promise. We got a chance to see many new anchorages and some of the towns. Most of the waterfront is tourist related and some parts are working harbor. Getting groceries can be a real pain if one doesn't have a car. But while in Noank we did get a chance to take Dingh-go up the river and see the Mystic Seaport from the water. We didn't have the time to do the museum justice so we will have to go back soon. It was very cloudy so many of the pictures didn't come out too well.
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| The museum in the background |
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| Two British training boats |
Noank is a cool little town. If we ever move back to land maybe our home will look like this....
We grabbed a mooring from Fords Lobster House and it was the best price it town ($20/night) On top of that we had our first lobster rolls there! We got take-out since it was chilly and windy but they still tasted pretty good! Oh yea.....fog.....they really have fog here sometimes!
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| here it comes... |
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| A different kind of sunset |
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| Real "soup" |
Stonington is a cool little town too. It has real restaurants and two barbers. I lucked out and got a barber that had spent 30 years cutting Coast Guard cadet hair so you can imagine.....I'm good for quite some time. There is a lot of stone around here also. Check out the buildings....
Then it was finally time to get some sailing in. Block Island here we come. Overall it was an interesting experience. The harbor is huge and most of the water has moorings ($45/night) but we still found a decent spot to anchor. The town, which is a mile walk is mostly tourist related but still has some nice old Inns to photograph.
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| New Shoreham Harbor |
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| Imagine the nightly rate |
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| Look Bob.... |
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| We are talking old! |
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| anchors everywhere |
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| 412 miles of stone fencing on the island |
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| and we got a nice sunset |
From Block Island we headed to Cuttyhunk.....what a great name don't you think? Well the island is an absolute beauty. Not all touristy like Block Island but still a lot closer to what we would think of as "New England" type settings. We met up with s/v Lime'n and their friends on s/v Raven. One morning we had breakfast at the Cuttyhunk Fishing Club and had a great time. The next night there was a concert at the Avalon House on the hill and we had fun listening to "Honky Tonk Knights" dishing out the oldies and some of their own tunes. Good fun!!
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| Inside the Fishing Club |
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| Your standard room! |
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| This in not a Holiday Inn! |
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| Room with a view |
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| the breakfast restaurant |
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| Like the flower bed!!?? |
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| Now this is New England |
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| Ideas for your next fire pit |
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| more anchors |
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| and lobster pots |
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| Yes the Blues Brothers are on theft |
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| Overlooking the harbor |
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| It was a good climb |
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| How old is your fire hydrant? |
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| The wharf |
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| Guess who?? |
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| Gays Head, Martha's Vineyard |
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| The Honky Tonk Knights |
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| a good crowd....the whole island! |
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| sv Lime'n & sv Raven |
After that we decided to make a move to Hadley Harbor. Many people have told us that it is nice here and we have to agree. We decided not to go inside the harbor since it was warm and we want to watch all the boats going through Woods Hole Channel. The swimming is good here, the Forbes family actually supplies 21 free mooring inside the harbor and only asks that you leave them (the family) alone. Other than Cuttyhunk the family owns the rest of the Elizabeth Islands...how many? Don't know but it's a lot of square miles.
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| Oystercatchers |
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| Some of the Forbes sailing fleet |
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| Beautiful scenery |
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| even horses on the island |
So you want a fast ferry.???........ This one does 27 knots going by you right through Woods Hole!
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| We will try for a video of this! |
Talking about Woods Hole.....this is another town we would like to see some more of. The National Marine Fishery Services and MarineBiological Laboratory, affiliated with the University of Chicago are here and one could easily spend a whole day checking it out.
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| bell tower in Woods Hole |
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| the draw bridge into the hole....not for Nati! |
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| The Marine Biological lab |
Want to see quite a sight? This is what Saturday morning looks like when every person in New England wants to go to Martha's Vineyard for the day or weekend. Pure insanity with most bikers walking around with their cereal bowls on their heads!
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| Everyone now stand in a line! |
And what is this? Stiltsville North??? In the harbor of Woods Hole there are a dozen or so of these floating camps. They are in all stages of build out and condition but overall they sure make quite a comparison to some beautiful schooner moored next door......
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| Stiltsville North |
Enough is enough.....I'm taking a break!
