Recovering on Block Island, RI

Recovering on Block Island, RI

Block Island – a better place to relax and rejuvenate could not be found. We spent several days roaming this tiny island on our bikes. For its petite size it has some hilly roads, but the views and exercise were a welcome change to days on the water.  

Block Island has an anchorage in Salt Pond that offers nearly 360 degrees of wind protection.  However, we enjoyed nearly perfect weather during our stay.  Block Island lies a mere 10ish miles off the tip of Long Island but seems a world apart from New York and a major cultural shift from Charleston. The buildings are mostly cedar shake with a New England feel complemented by the sweeping oat grass dunes and shorelines. The Salt Pond boat dock is a short mile or so from the heart of the old harbor – a nice bike ride or walk to the touristy shops and provisions as well as numerous tempting restaurant options. We managed to sample a few and stock up at the grocery stores.  

To justify our caloric intake, we biked to all three lighthouses on the island – fortunately not all in one day.  The North Light was an 8 mile ride with a mile beach walk – but well worth the effort to see this granite structure built in 1867. 

The next day we did a circuit that included famous sights such as the painted rock, the Mohegan Bluffs, and Southeast light.  Steve climbed to the top – a special treat since very few operating lighthouses allow visitors.  This is also a historic building constructed in 1873 but moved in 1993 since the cliff on which it was perched was eroding.  The special tours are part of a fundraising effort to restore the main building.

 

Somehow we also found the energy to peddle out to the Coast Guard lighthouse that guards the entrance channel to the Salt Pond and browse the Saturday Farmer’s Market.  In between there was plenty of time to relax on the bluffs or our back deck and recover from our nautical travels. The sunset bagpipe serenade was not tough duty either!

Note that the cats did not complain about the long travel days and enjoyed their usual play time without missing a beat.

Far Away Island

Far Away Island

Nantucket was our next stop with a brief overnite in Vineyard Haven Harbor on the way. Nantucket is indeed far away – 30 miles from Hyannis on Cape Cod and exposed to the force of the mighty Atlantic.  While not as tiny as Block Island, Nantucket is also a mecca for tourists even this early in the summer.  Ferries rock the waters between Cape Cod, Connecticut and Rhode Island to bring visitors to these off shore summer enclaves. 

We were hoping to miss some of the busy season since for most of these destinations, the “season” doesn’t get in full swing until after June 25^th.  However, we have found a lot of people like to get a jump on the crowds so while not crazy busy, there are plenty of people about.  On the positive side, there are also special activities such as the film festival we hit in Nantucket. It seemed a good reason to extend our stay to see a Norman Lear documentary and meet the producer and director.

Another highlight of a visit here is a tour of the Whaling Museum with special presentations and exhibits on whaling and the tragic story of the Essex – the Nantucket ship rammed and sunk by a whale and the inspiration for Melville’s Moby Dick.

Much of the historic town center was saved because time passed it by when the whale oil business collapsed.  Unlike other towns of the era where progress led to the destruction of historic buildings in the name of urban development, Nantucket was by passed until it was rediscovered and intentionally preserved as a living tourist attraction. On the city tour we walked among historic homes from the golden age of the whaling barons to an early windmill and even homes from the 17^th century. New buildings are also carefully constructed to fit the style and scale of this quaint New England village. As Steve said, somehow they got the zoning issues settled early on.  

Fortunately, not all the streets are cobble stones since we also found time to do a little biking here in spite of the many narrow, one way streets and nearly constant vehicle traffic.  We traveled a loop on a paved bike trail to see the Sconset lighthouse that had to be moved.  Built in 1850 it was moved further inland in 2007. The sad truth is this island is eroding and therefore constantly changing and may eventually even disappear – in the distant future.  Until then it does offer a place to recharge and relax with nearly perfect mild summer temps. 

This sign says it all: