Where the Heck is Cuttyhunk?

If you’re not from the greater NY/Massachussetts area, you may never have heard of Cuttyhunk. Oh sure, everyone has heard of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket . . . but Cuttyhunk is not exactly a household name.  It is actually a pretty cool little place. Not a whole lot happening there, but after Block Island, that was okay for a day.  Speaking of Block Island, I have a piece of old business that I forgot to include in the last post. This word in from Block Island:

The Minnow has been found! The Minnow has been found!

Moving on to new business: Cuttyhunk.

For those who know south Jersey well, it’s like the Strathmere of the Elizabeth Islands meaning it is the road less traveled and a little funky. What are the Elizabeth Islands? They are a little chain of chunks of land off the Rhode Island/Massachussetts coast. Cuttyhunk is at the very southwestern tip of them. Some people might say, “I spent a week in Cuttyhunk one day,” and I almost borrowed that line, but that seemed a little harsh. It’s a very pretty place. We thought we would grab a mooring ball, but they were VERY close together and we saw a good spot to anchor close by instead. There is a seafood place that delivers to your boat, which sounded like a great idea! And then we saw that they were charging $22 for a half dozen oysters . . . yeah, I can eat pasta on the boat again. We did, of course find the ice cream place. We didn’t know exactly how long we would stay in Cuttyhunk . . . after spending the afternoon, we knew a few hours to roam around in the morning and we’d be good to go.  The highlight was the hike (very hot!) up the hill to the Fishing Camp that is known for having once been visited by Teddy Roosevelt. Here are some sites and scenes:

Here is scenic Cuttyhunk

Mooring field by day . . .

…and a beautiful sky over the field by night.

Some day I will tire of taking sunset pictures . . . but not yet!

This is the lawn leading up to the main building on the Fishing Camp. Check out the planters. Really? A toilet? That’s Cuttyhunk . . . just a little different.

Inside the Fishing Camp – a step back in time.

Although the Fishing Camp operates as an inn, it is open to the public for breakfast. This was our view . . . amazing!

Considering how valuable this real estate must be because of the scenic view of water all around, it has a funky mix of old and new – well cared for places and not so tidy places! It’s an odd little place.

On our hike . . .

Frank admiring the view.

We enjoyed the quiet refuge of funny little Cuttyhunk for an overnighter. My sister, Triana, had saved an article about Cuttyhunk for us  months and months ago. I believe it referred to it as a
“forgotten island.” We won’t soon forget you, Cuttyhunk.

We find good company with the commercial fishing vessels on our way to Martha’s Vineyard.

Next post, a catch up of several places we have been in the last week or so . . . since we are actually now in MAINE!

Block Island, Rhode Island – Some People Love It.

Well, after our epic week in Shelter Island, anything immediately afterwards was bound to be . . . hmm . . . a little less epic. I don’t want to sound like the next couple of stops weren’t good stops, because they were. But it’s like comparing your birthday to Flag Day.

So you will see two posts (hopefully) in rapid succession so that I don’t have one giant post, because – and here’s a shock – I’m behind. So this post will be about Block Island closely followed by a post about Cuttyhunk. What’s/where’s Cuttyhunk? Answer coming in next post, I promise.

We had heard so many people talk about Block Island (and Frank had been there for a quick weekend about 10 years ago) and it is a favorite stop for a lot of people . . . I mean A LOT of people. It is a large harbor with a vast amount of boats in it. And the atmosphere there is much more of a party. And it caters to a wide range of audiences. There are all kinds of people and boats there. There are gorgeous, massive sailboats with burgees from the New York City Yacht Club (very elite!) and we saw a group of gentleman jump onto the launch in their blue blazers to go to dinner . . . to powerboats with interesting and colorful names. At changeover time one day (again, like a hotel check out/check in process) we watched with interest to see who our new neighbors were going to be. True confessions: we were not disappointed when power vessel “Badabing” passed up the mooring ball beside us. At another spot in the harbor we saw power vessel “Fuhgeddaboutit.” I commented that if you could just locate the power vessel “Whaddayoulookinat” you’d have a Jersey trifecta. Anyway, clearly a fun place if that’s the scene you’re looking for.

The weather in Block Island was not ideal, but we took advantage of some of the cool, cloudy weather with a great bike ride around the island. Not only was it great exercise but it got us out of the “hubbub” and out into the countryside, which was lovely. We also had a great, unplanned surprise when we figured out that we were, indeed, going to be in Block the same weekend as some good friends of ours. That was a definite highlight.

I will always associate certain sounds with Block Island . . . the almost constant “Whoo . . . . Whoo” of the fog horn (almost more like a fog whistle than horn) and the sound of the bakery boat from Aldo’s Restaurant trolling the mooring field and anchorage calling out “Andiamo!” which they tell us means “come out” in Italian. If someone knows better, feel free to correct us. Anyway, around 7:30am, the bakery boat begins its rounds selling  breakfast goodies boatside. Yes, it’s like room service. Then the chant begins again around 4pm with hors d’ouevres for purchase. Those guys work hard in all kinds of weather. And they have GREAT muffins.

Here are some sights from the Island:

Here’s a look at the harbor at Block Island from ashore. Frank worked hard to get his hair to look like that!

B.I. has a great launch service. You can radio for them and they’ll pick you up at your boat.  The blue boat, Maverick, is one of the fleet. But if you have a dinghy, why would you want the launch service?

Oh . . . that’s why. This is the parking lot of a dinghy dock – and this wasn’t even that crowded! Later they were at least two deep. A popular spot.

There’s a great little bar at Paynes Dock. The owner performs most nights singing mostly old Irish tunes with an eclectic mix of other selections. His dog, Zippy, sits up on a chair and watches him adoringly or naps or barks at all the men who walk in (never the women).

A great bike ride around Block Island. This stone commemorates the 300th anniversary of Block Island’s founding listing the 16 families who purchased the island. (That was some time after the Indians got kicked off . . .)

The National Wildlife Refuge by the northern point lighthouse. Hmm . . . what CAN you do here??

This is a beautiful hotel that sits atop a bluff. Frank must have gotten bored waiting for me to take a picture and started checking his email. Oh wait – – – he doesn’t GET email any more!! (Well, not much.)

The countryside of Block Island looks like it could be somewhere in Ireland. Lush green, lots of rock walls.

We’ve discovered that we really enjoy renting bikes at various locations, but we’re learning to be good at riding together. There was an option at one place for a tandem bicycle and I don’t know which one of us replied louder or faster, “Oh HELL no!” For the few family members who witnessed us trying to maneuver a two person kayak together, you know that we don’t collaborate well on stuff like that. (Sailing as a team is different.) So even riding our own bikes, I’m still following and chirping about the fact that he turned at the last second with no signal and I almost drove off the road trying to follow him, etc. etc. etc. But I also know that if I lead, he’s likely to see something that interests him and turn off to look at it, completely forgetting that I’m in front of him . . . and then I might find him on the other side of the island two hours later after realizing he’s no longer behind me. These are just the things you learn together, which is fun. So I got a good laugh out of him this day with the bikes when he said, “Okay, who’s leading?” and I responded, “You lead, I’ll bitch.” Hey, it works.

Chairs overlooking the harbor at the hotel where our friends Cori and Greg stayed and a good breakfast spot.

This was the far end of our bike trip . . . legs aburnin’! That is NOT a flat island.

There’s something about a lighthouse . . .

We found another Mecca for Frank . . . of course.

Our buddies joined us for a late afternoon visit. Last time Cori and Greg were on board I forgot to get a picture. Here’s an attempt at a self portrait. I sent this to them and they said, “Do you have one that isn’t so ridiculous looking?”

Oh yes . . . this one is MUCH better! Hey – what are friends for.

ANDIAMO! The bakery boat arrives.

I think this is a picture of the harbor at Block Island, but it’s hard to tell. Unfortunately, it looked like this quite a lot. I think I shall write a new bluegrass tune called “Foggy Harbor Breakdown.”

And here we are leaving Block Island . . . hopefully through the jetty . . . we can’t see! Frank’s job was to maneuver the boat and keep a careful eye on the radar. My job was to stop taking pictures and make sure I let him know if we were going to hit anything.

I just liked the spookiness of this picture! Although it looked like this for the first 30 minutes, then . . .

. . . brilliant sunshine and blue skies! Much better. On our way to Cuttyhunk.

Are we glad we went to Block Island? Absolutely. We had some good moments there.  Do we feel a need to put that on our list of stops for next year? Fuhgeddaboutit.

Montauk, NY – The End

The title of this post sounds so ominous, but it isn’t meant to be. That’s just where Montauk is . . . at the very end of Long Island; therefore, it is referred to as “The End.” We went into a sweatshirt shop . . . are you familiar with those “interestingly” styled sweat pants that have something written across the backside like, “PINK” or the name of a university? You can guess, we saw some that said, “THE END.” Okay, that’s a little funny.

It was tough deciding if the title of this post should be the one that you see or if it should be “Stuck in Montauk,” but that sounded a little too negative. However, it would be an accurate description . . . we stayed there a few days longer than intended due to being fogged in! Anyway, what we saw of Montauk was very pleasant. We were anchored in the middle of Lake Montauk and had a couple of breaks in the weather that were just long enough to be able to take the dinghy to shore and explore a little. They were wet, windy, sloppy dinghy rides, but that’s what foul weather jackets are for.  So we were sending emails to our family saying, “We’re in Montauk . . . still.” “Today we’re staying in Montauk.” Haven’t left Montauk yet. ” Don’t get me wrong, we like the place, but six days anchored 0n Lake Montauk is about four days more than one needs. But we made the best of it!

Our impression of Montauk is that it is a mix of being a little funky, a little nice, some people extremely friendly, and some people very standoffish. There appear to be some “world’s colliding” aspects to it; there is a big commercial fishing industry here, so you have that culture very prevalent. (If you’ve ever watched any of the fishing reality shows like “Deadliest Catch” or “Wicked Tuna” then you have an idea of what that means . . . it can be a bit of a rough crowd (as my dad used to say).  One restaurant seemed to cater to the fisherman that just jumped off their boats – pretty interesting clientele and very funky and eclectic decor.  But just around the corner, you have a very high end seafood/specialty food market and a little upscale shopping area. Montauk is a big destination for recreational charter fishing as well. But then you also watch a handful of mega-yachts come in. Like I said, a mix.  We kind of enjoyed the funkier aspect of it! Taking a little longer walk up one of the roads around the area, we saw multiple little motels and hotels that looked almost like summer camps from the 40s or 50s in age and style (but small) . . . and yet they were right on or close to the water so certainly not cheap real estate. There is definitely an aspect of stepping back in time here.

One evening when it was just comfortable enough to sit outside (by Ems standards – Frank was likely huddled under a blanket down below), we watched a mega yacht loop through the channel markers and head right towards us. I called down below that I thought we were getting company. We flipped on the VHF radio, and sure enough, heard a call hailing, “Eleanor Q, come in please!” We answered back and they declared that they were unfamiliar with the lake, inquired about it’s depth (pretty shallow and you do have to watch where you’re going), and then asked if we would mind if they anchored right up behind us. It was pretty funny looking because we were smack dab in the middle of the lake and NO ONE else was anchored out there! But there’s a feeling of safety in numbers sometimes and we welcomed the company. The yacht was quite large and the hailing port was the Marshall Islands. That was the last we heard from our new mega neighbor who then slipped off into the fog before 8am the next morning. But overnight, our boats watched over each other.

We chose not to slip off into the fog. Fog is no fun, and we had nowhere we had to be, so why put yourself through that if you don’t have to. So we sat, in a fog, in Montauk. Here are some pictures of what we could see during that week.

Day One: A Beach Walk in Montauk (Hey, that rhymes!)

Some of the sites around the inlet and lake

Beautiful Vessel! This is a wood “commuter boat” built in the 30s. Absolutely stunning condition!

The little shopping square. Found a great market for specialty food treats.

Commercial Fishing is prevalent in the area

A bird surveys the local yacht club as we pass.

This was the funky fisherman’s restaurant. Look carefully: decor includes punching bag, antique wheel chair and bird feeders. ????

We walked here. It was a long way . . . (If you look at the larger version of this picture, you MIGHT find that comment funny . . . or not. First set of bonus points for musical reference #1)

Dinghy captain taking us to town. (Dinghy is the vessel, not a description of the captain.)

The view from our boat, Day 3 in Montauk

Ems practicing her dinghy driving . . . looking very serious while pulling away. Probably thinking something like, “Oh crap, oh crap, oh crap.” This is serious business, though, because independence is essential and being able to take the dinghy ashore alone is a big part of that!

Feeling a little more confident . . . “Onward!” By the way, the fog set in during this practice run, but fortunately, being on a lake, it was pretty easy to do a little dead reckoning and figure out how to head in the right direction until Eleanor Q became visible again! Still, kind of an odd feeling.

Soggy setup . . . ya think? The weather pattern for many days in a row . . . anyone east of the Mississippi was feeling it just like we were. Stuck in a system . . .

The view the next day . . . again. Fog. But look! A little company! “Don’t worry ’bout a thing; ’cause every little thing’s gonna be alright!” (Bonus points for getting musical reference #2.)

So you might wonder what kinds of things we do to entertain ourselves when we’re stuck on the boat for days at at time:

Play the guitar . . .

Play gin rummy (we have quarterly tournaments. Frank just won last quarter, but July is a new start!)

About the same thing he’d do on any Sunday afternoon . . . remote control, snacks, iPad . . . some things never change . . .

. . .watch the Nascar race . . . we do have TV, but we have guidelines for watching it: only for major news, weather or sporting events . . . or in this case, stretches of bad weather when we’re stuck!

Later that afternoon . . .

And then there’s always cooking to pass the time (which is easy to do when it’s a little chilly!) Frank made us this delicious sea bass dinner! (No, he didn’t catch it . . . )

And the view the next day . . .

So more cooking . . .

There’s always chatting on the Single Side Band radio! That HAM license comes in handy.

Busting out of Lake Montauk at last! The lake is in the rear view mirror (if we had a rear view mirror.)

Going out the inlet from the lake. When you’re going out of it, shouldn’t it be called an “outlet”???? Just wondering.

Finally, on Tuesday, July 2nd, we broke out of Montauk and headed for the top part of the “fishtail” of Long Island. I never looked closely at the map before to realize that Long Island really does look like a fish tail. Tuesday afternoon we landed in the waters next to Shelter Island, NY where we are still hanging out today. But we’re not stuck here due to fog . . . we’re stuck here because it’s too nice to leave just yet! But we’ll tell you about that on the next post.