Massachusetts Venture Bound One Year On The Boat Calendar Days 51-71 Part 1

June 18th - June 27th, 2024

Cape Cod, Massachusetts must have the most beautiful Hydrangeas in June! They are so vibrant and full. That was one of many highlights during our time there. It seemed like everything was blooming. Taking walks through neighborhoods was a treat.

After going back in my notes, I realized that we actually spent about 20 days in Mass. We did and saw so much that I thought I would just condense the 20 days into one blog with our favorite things. It will be hard to do but I will try.

Our ride from Newport, RI. to Martha’s Vineyard was a bit nerve racking. As we were approaching The Vineyard Sound the seas were coming sideways and made the boat feel like it was going to tip over. It would not have but it sure felt like it could. I actually put on a life vest to make me feel at ease. But, as we go into the Sound and closer to land the seas calmed down and all was well!!! Whew! ;) The funny thing is that it was so rocky, that it made it difficult to move around where I just grabbed the first vest I felt. Obviously, it was a bit small for me. Not sure it would have saved me if I really did need it. HA!

We started on Martha’s Vineyard. Edgartown specifically. We have been to The Vineyard a few times before and just love it. We are going back later this summer and will blog on that then. We have never been there with our own boat. We always go to Falmouth on Cape Cod, since we have friends there, and take the ferry over. This time we had time to do both, go to Martha’s Vineyard and Falmouth. And this time we wanted to stay in Edgartown. We fell in love with this small, charming, little town. We do have reciprocity with the Edgartown Yacht Club (EYC) but they do not have any transient docks. So, we docked ourselves at one of the town’s mooring. Which was a little challenging due to the wind. But, we managed just fine. Our skiff was not working due to the steering cable coming off in Newport. We used the town shuttle to get around. It was very convenient and efficient. We did get it fixed in Falmouth, the next stop. Oh, and I guess we stopped for ice cream.

Like I said, the town is quite charming. We took walks and did some shopping. Had dinner at Atria’s restaurant. The Atria has an awesome bar downstairs. We started there since we arrived early for our reservations. We had great service and the staff was very warm and friendly. Our dining table was outside in their lovely garden. The service and food was just ok. I would give it a 3 star out of 5. But that is just me. Everyone you talk to raves about the restaurant. So you never know…. We also, checked out the Seafood Chanty (great outdoor deck) and the Wharf Bar (great dive bar). We took the Ferry to Chappaquidick. It’s called The Chappa Ferry. It’s exactly a one minute ride. Seriously! One Minute! I timed it. There are two ferries running all day long. It’s quite a scene. During that one minute they have to deal with quite the current from time to time which requires them to arrive sideways before they turn themselves into their docking space. They are good at it. We thought we would go and take a walk on “Chappa”, but as it turns out the island dent not have sidewalks. The island had a lot of traffic and is much bigger than I thought. Next time we will bring our bikes, and see the entire island. You should too unless you plan to take your car.

After a short two night stay in Edgartown we were off to Falmouth on the Cape. We have friends there but they were out of town during our first few days there. They were so sweet to offer us their house and car. We just took advantage of the car. We really didn’t need anything but having a car did make some things easier like replenishing provisions and going to Sea Crest and Chatham which is about 90 mins away. Normally we just walked everywhere or rode our E-bikes.

Falmouth is basically the gateway into Cape Cod. It’s the first town. Which I think is popular because it’s easy to get to. Hyannis, Chatham, Provincetown take much longer to get to and it really is one road in and out. So, traffic can be brutal. Falmouth has beautiful beaches, good restaurants, a lovely main street, a nice harbor with The Island Queen Ferry, which takes you to Martha’s Vineyard, golf courses and so much more.

Things we did: Our sweet friends set us up at The Sea Crest Beach Resort. What a fantastic beach. The beach is clean. the water calm and it has a sand bar you can sit on. It has an outdoor bar and a snack shack. Check it out next time you go to the Cape. And ask for Ann at the bar. She is awesome!!! We rode our bikes to Woods Hole. We just went for lunch but there is a lot to see. We drove to Chatham and had lunch at Chatham Bars Inn. What a beautiful resort and town. Not much to do in town but I think the locals like that. Main street is small but has good shopping and restaurant options. Don’t blink if you are driving through you may miss it. The resort has incredible views. Back in Falmouth we walked the ‘hood’, beaches, and the harbor. Stopped at Shipwrecked for a drink. It looks over the beach. Fun place! I painted, caught up on my blog, read, FaceTimed kids,, etc. I found an amazing French bakery, Maison Villatte, and a French boutique called So French. I needed to shop…..Bien sur! We were docked right next to Falmouth Yacht Club. We have reciprocity but they do not have transient docks either. But, from where we were docked, we were able to see their sailing students head in and out and enjoyed their live outdoor band. Spent a full day at Bristol Beach catching up with my friend while Keith payed golf with his.

And before we left Falmouth we were able to get the steering cable fixed on Mini Venture. Good to have friends in town who have connections.. They got us all fixed up. Cannot thank them enough.

And before our time was up in Falmouth our other friend arrived with a great BBQ dinner. We ate, drank and had lots of laughs. The next day we took off with all of them and headed to Provincetown via Woods Hole, Buzzard’s Bay, the Cape Cod Canal and Sandwich. You can read about it in Part 2 of our time in Massachusetts.