Our Adventures on Ocean Blue

After heading back south through the Cape Cod Canal we decided to explore some of the anchorages at its mouth in an area known as Buzzards Bay. An area 28 miles long by 8 miles wide with many small bays and anchorages. Buzzards Bay was named by colonists after the birds they saw and called Buzzards. The birds are actually Ospreys, and some remain.

We had a relaxing two nights in Onset, a bay just to the southwest of the canal. We took the dinghy up some of the inlets and also spent some time getting used to the paddleboard. Going ashore with the bikes one day we found ourselves in the annual Cape Verdean Festival – With over 70 vendors, music and a great party atmosphere, groups of descendents from the Cape Verdes celebrate their heritage the other side of the Atlantic. Cape Verdean communities come from Florida, Texas, Georgia, Ohio and as far as Ontarion, Canada to join in the fun.

A short trip east took us to Phinney’s Harbour, another quiet pretty anchorage but with a little less to explore.

Leaving Phinney’s Harbour we headed for Fairhaven, a town on the east bank of the Acushnet River, directly opposite New Bedford on the west bank. Our reason for visiting here was to collect a spare skin fitting which might help us with our ongoing issue of the fridge losing gas.

There is a tidal barrage across the entrance of the river and having entered the river we could find nowhere to anchor for the night so left and anchored outside since the harbour master was not responding by radio or telephone. In the morning we called and were pleasantly surprised to hear that we could use one of the mooring buoys inside free of charge as long as we left before night time, and there was a dinghy dock we could use close by. How welcome we felt. We picked up the buoy and took the bikes ashore to collect the fitting and enjoy an afternoon exploring the towns. The New Bedford Whaling Museum was fascinating and even included a 30 minute movie – the first time we had been to a cinema for a long time!

We had arranged for some spare parts to enhance our battery monitoring to be delivered to Newport so we left the next day for the sail southwest. As Newport appeared in the distance we spotted a delightful looking bay that looked like it would give us a pleasant sheltered evening, so we changed our plans and dropped anchor off Third Beach, just north of Flint Point on the Sakonnet River.

The next morning we sailed the short distance west to Newport where we had first arrived in the USA a month or so earlier.

Since the large supermarket was right next to the place where our parts had been delivered to, Lesley was in her element re provisioning in a familiar store.

Previously in Newport we had visited one of the mansions and our ticket allowed us to visit a second one, so we duly took the opportunity to see more opulence at The Elms which was the summer residence of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Julius Berwind of Philadelphia and New York. Mr. Berwind made his fortune in the coal industry. In 1898, the Berwinds engaged Philadelphia architect Horace Trumbauer to design a house modeled after the mid-18th century French Chateau d’Asnieres outside Paris.

Construction of The Elms was completed in 1901 at a reported cost of approximately $1.4 million. The interiors and furnishings were designed by Allard and Sons of Paris and were the setting for the Berwinds’ collection of Renaissance ceramics, 18th century French and Venetian paintings, and Oriental jades.

Mrs. Berwind died in 1922, and Mr. Berwind invited his sister, Julia, to become his hostess at his New York and Newport houses.

Mr. Berwind died in 1936 and Miss Julia continued to summer at The Elms until her death in 1961, at which time the house and most of its contents were sold at public auction.

The Preservation Society of Newport County purchased The Elms in 1962 and opened the house to the public.

Sightseeing, shopping, ideas of grandeur and collections completed, it was time to start working further west into Long Island Sound.

After refuelling, we dashed across Newport entrance to Cuttyhunk in the Elizabeth islands in poor visibility. When we arrived early evening we anchored next to two boats we knew and settled in for an early night. In the morning we were completely fog bound and couldn’t even see Cuttyhunk which was only a few hundred feet away!

It was a ‘full English breakfast’ type of morning so after our brunch and a morning of catching up with work we were ready to explore.

The island only has about 35 permanent residents and the small museum depicts the basic lifestyle over the years. The nearby 75 acre Penikese island, has had a variety of uses. In 1904 it was purchased by the state of Massachusetts for $25000 to use as a leprosy hospital then closed in 1921 when the state burnt and dynamited the buildings! It was also briefly considered as an isolation island for people with AIDS and from 1973 to 2011 a private residential school on the island was used for juvenile detention of troubled boys and operated a substance abuse treatment programme.

We decided to leave late afternoon as the visibility was adequate and we had no wish to be fog bound again. This is a fairly typical weather pattern for the area. We had a pleasant sail, passing some of the other islands on route to Hadley harbour in convoy with two other boats, and on arrival even managed to russell up a meal for six. It was a beautiful setting with a few grand isolated and very private holiday homes. As the sun set a deer came down to explore the small sandy cove.

We moved from the outer harbour to the inner lagoon for the next night and explored the shallow creeks in the dinghy, deciding to leave the next afternoon for Martha’s Vineyard as the weather was benign and settled.

Martha’s Vineyard, a Massachusetts island, sits in the Atlantic just south of Cape Cod. A longtime New England summer colony, it encompasses harbor towns and lighthouses, sandy beaches and farmland. It’s accessible only by boat or air. Vineyard Haven, on the eastern end, is a ferry port and the island’s commercial centre. Another village, Oak Bluffs has Carpenter Gothic cottages and an iconic carousel.

We arrived mid afternoon and anchored in Vineyard Haven. We took a quick trip ashore to get our bearings and decided to eat ashore. We had a good meal in the Black Dog pub. The story is that Robert Douglas, born in Chicago in 1932 spent his childhood summers escaping the hustle and bustle of the city at his parents’ summer home in West Chop. He watched the Vineyard ferries traversing the waters between the island and the mainland and in 1960 he left the Air Force and built a topsail schooner for himself, using early construction techniques and materials wherever possible. He later acquired a black Labrador dog and the inn.

Out of his love for the sea, his island home, and of course, his dog, The Black Dog brand was born. So says their website!

We decide to sail the next day to Edgartown on the east side of the island to get a more protected spot away from the passing ferries.

We went up the river but found there was no anchoring allowed so returned to the outer harbour. Boats of all shapes and sizes, traditional and modern were here. Including one of the worlds largest super yachts called Le Grande Bleu. She is 113 m long, 18m wide and comes complete with a helicopter pad, 72 foot sailing yacht and 68 foot motor boat, both of which can be winched into the water! Originally owned by Roman Abramovich, he reputedly gifted it to a colleague, when he bought a larger one!

We met up with some fellow ARC sailors on Supertramp who were planning to sail north to Maine. We swapped details on experiences so far and plans for the future, including potentially getting our boat wrapped and updating equipment over the remainder of the summer.

We enjoyed the facilities at The Edgartown Yacht Club which perpetuates the maritime traditions of Martha’s Vineyard and Edgartown and encourages friendly competition on the waters around the Island and ashore which was founded in 1905. The social life of the Club – so creative and active today – began in these earliest years with clambakes and old-fashioned ice cream socials.

Those first few years of the twentieth century were a time of great change in the town of Edgartown. The whaling era, which had come to a sudden end after the Civil War, still animated the memories of the oldest inhabitants, and family vacationing through the summer season, as we know it now, was some years away.

We took the bus to explore the island because apparently cycling can be a little risky on the island! We went to the Gay Head light, which had had to be moved to stop it falling into the sea from the eroding Aquinnah Cliffs — the clay cliffs, formerly known as Gay Head — were carved by glaciers millions of years ago. From the top we could see the Elizabeth islands we had previously been to.  The Aquinnah Cliffs are part of the island’s Wampanoag reservation.

The Wampanoag are one of many Nations of people all over North America who were here long before any Europeans arrived, and have survived until today. Wampanoag, means People of the First Light.

In the 1600s, there were as many as 40,000 people in the 67 villages that made up the Wampanoag Nation. These villages covered the territory along the east coast as far as Wessagusset (today called Weymouth), all of what is now Cape Cod and the islands of Natocket and Noepe (now called Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, pursuing a traditional economy based on fishing and agriculture.

We left Bermuda at 09:00 on Thursday 29 June. We arrived in Newport, Rhode Island, USA, another previous home of the Americas Cup, after sailing for just under 4 days on Monday 3 July at 07:00.

The hazy view and the eary sound of the fog horn on Beaver Tail Point lighthouse guided us into Newport where we anchored in Brenton Cove, where you can anchor for free outside the moorings for up to 14 days. After a quick tidy up we contacted the customs office to organise our customs and immigration clearance.

We were given several options of docks to take the boat into to meet the customs officer who would do the paperwork and potentially search the boat for items that are not allowed to be brought into America. We chose Perrotti Park, a dock which turned out to be very easily accessible and where we met another British boat also waiting for customs. The customs clearance was quick and easy – too quick unfortunately as the customs officer, who was new in her job, despite taking our money omitted to issue our cruising permit, a document legally required when cruising in the US. (Eventually after many phone calls and emails we did get a copy, but it took several days)

It always surprises us how friendly everyone is in the long term cruising world. A chance encounter provided an invitation to sundowners that evening and the opportunity to meet other cruising boats who had previously crossed the Atlantic in a different rally called the Barbados 500. We had briefly met most of these boats in Bermuda just before we left – they left together the night before us. Their occupants provided a new social circle and the opportunity to learn about other destinations, intentions and experiences.

Having cleared customs we returned to the anchorage and started by cleaning up the boat and getting settled for some time exploring, plus some sleep.

We had hoped to make it to Bristol to see one of the oldest 4th July parades in the states, however we were quite tired from the journey and woke up too late to catch the bus to make the best of the day. Instead we watched an amazing fireworks show from the boat which was one of the best spots in the harbour.

Although American independence from British rule is widely and happily celebrated there was no animosity towards us joining in the party. Houses and boats were cheerily dressed in red white and blue. Everyone was enjoying the holiday atmosphere and the events.

Newport has a a holiday atmosphere and although it is clearly centred around sailing there are plenty of other activities too. We spent almost a week here acclimatising to living in America.

There was the visit to the chandlery to purchase charts for the area, several very good bike rides with a handy leaflet marking routes, cliff walks, beaches, surfing and several historic houses to visit and also there was the opportunity to provision the boat at a fraction of the cost of in the Caribbean.

We spent a happy half day at the Breakers Mansion on Orchre Point Avenue – the grandest of many huge mansions, learning about the 1890s summer cottage, it’s construction and lifestyle.

Commissioned and owned by Cornelius Vanderbilt II, whose family fortune was made in steam ships and later in the New York Central railroad. The mansion was built in the Italian renaisance style with lots of excess, gold gilt and platinum on the walls and ceilings.

Lavish parties and the importance of being seen and dressed for the occasion were clearly the order of the day, with the women of the household changing outfits five times a day for different activities. It was a totally different world for the rich families of the gilded era.

We used the bikes to explore and shop for provisions. The more or less flat environment was a welcome change after the volcanic hills and narrow roads of the Caribbean which made cycling impractical.

We had Sunday lunch at the New York yacht club’s Newport base. A lovely old house with a commanding presence and view over Newport Sound and the anchorage.

After a few days we decided to explore the rest of the estuary and sailed up to Bristol for a visit to the Herreshoff museum.

We were able to pick up one of their free buoys and also got a discount on the entrance fee for coming by boat! A very interesting exhibition and the opportunity to look inside some of the old vessels built by the talented brothers.

We spent the night in Potter Cove, on Prudence Island,  a wonderful national estuarine sanctuary with an abundance of green grass and variety of trees, another reminder of home and a complete contrast to the Caribbean.

It was time to move on so we left early to exit the river via Dutch harbour and purchase some fuel from a commercial fish quay at Galilee, in Judith’s point harbour. This was the cheapest place for refuelling our 1000 litre capacity fuel tanks, so worth the slight detour west before continuing east again towards the Elizabeth Islands.

The random names here are great. Most have been copied from English towns and villages, based on their heritage and the area was very reminiscent of Beaulieu, with the large houses set in sweeping lawns only ending at the river bank and their private jetties.

Even the weather was cooler and variable much like England! The main difference is the size, everything is bigger! It is New England, USA.

St. George’s is a lovely quaint town which used to be the capital of Bermuda. It has lots of history and it’s great to wonder around and read the information plagues and follow the trails.

The main square has free wifi and most sailors seem to gather with computers, iPads or phones to connect to the outside world. We exchanged wifi codes with others and compared where the best speeds could be found. One girl who was boat hopping her way back home and about to leave for the Azores happily shared the local knowledge she had gained while she had been on the island. There was an immediate sense of community not just within the visiting sailors but the locals have been fantastically welcoming and helpful here.

Bermuda is made up of lots of islands joined together by roads and an old railway track.  It is divided into nine parishes. Everyone is happy, perhaps because they have the highest per capita income in the world!

We walked across the tip, to  gorgeous beaches and views. We snorkeled, picnicked and came back for ice cream!

The next day we ventured into Hamilton on the bus. A system where the price is calculated on the number of zones you go through to your destination. You purchase a token at a participating shop for the fare which is cheaper than paying on the bus.  Alternatively you need the exact money if paying on the bus.

It was great to see more of the islands during the journey and arriving in the busy bustling city of Hamilton felt like we could have been in England with red pillar boxes etc. We collected our Americas Cup spectator boat flags and checked out facilities ahead of arriving here by boat later. Sampling a ‘Dark and Stormy’ in a bar with Goslings rum, as Bermuda is the home of the cocktail, felt like a must do!

After a few days in St. George’s resting, washing and exploring the East end of the island we  did a last shop in the supermarket in St. George’s called Sommers, which offers us a 5% discount on our groceries as a visiting yacht. Worth asking for if we visit again. Then we sailed around to Hamilton so that we were ready for the start of the racing. We also wanted to find a sheltered anchorage before some forecast windy weather was due to come through the next day.

We chose a likely spot in the designated anchorage but before we could settle in, a local launched his rib and came to see us, not to say that we could not anchor in front of his house, but to welcome us and impart local knowledge about the forecast, and the best sheltered place to be in the harbour. After exchanging telephone numbers and with the invitation for a beer later in the week we moved to Hinson’s Island, or ‘Cat Alley’ as we got to know it as, since it was the designated anchorage for the charter cats, which was a lovely spot to hide from the wind.

We were with friends on Nisida, and decided to leave one boat anchored and take the other out for the racing each day. We soon fell into a pattern leaving the anchorage at midday, sussing out the race area for the best place to view from and having lunch on board before the racing started.

Although not competing in the racing , no guess as to who started the sweepstake for the challenger series then the finals picking the results each day and culminating in prizes of Rum and Wine!

Whilst we watched from the boats most days, on Friday 2nd June we headed for the AC village to sample the racing from ashore and to get a close up of the boats. It provided a great atmosphere and well worth doing but not the same as being alongside the race course on the water.

The event was amazing, the locals incredibly friendly and we had a ball. We got to know the locals at Sandy Boat Club and met people who were supporting the race teams or involved with running the event such as the super yacht course marshal who invited us to the race area with the other ‘super’ yachts the following morning. Basically it was a six week party and one that will always be very close to our hearts. The 36th America’s Cup will be held in the southern hemisphere in the AC75, a fully foiling monohull in March 2021. The organisers will have to do something very special to match Bermuda.

We went to the top of the lighthouse, walked part of the disused railway, swam and snorkeled off the external reef, went underground to see the crystal caves, learnt about the rain water capture from the roofs, climbed and explored several old forts, danced in the streets with the Gombeys. We had visitors on board for short trips and meet and made some  great friends. We also learnt to paddleboard, so now we need to buy our own! And tried to kitesurf but had more success with the board as a wakeboard!

All too soon it came to an end. We wished friends a safe trip as we all headed off in different directions. Many back to Europe and ourselves and others, North to the USA for the summer.