Nantucket

So things did not go quite as planned with the nav gear. 

On Tuesday the electronics guys came out to the boat while we were moored in Mattapoisett.  Good news was that the software for the computer was installed, bad news was that it appears that the autopilot may need some work done to it.  The autopilot motor was taken off and taken in to be bench tested.  It will be a few days until parts come in and we know the outcome of the tests so we decided to press on tomorrow.  At least now we have a functioning chart plotter and some really cool software.

Wednesday - Sailed out of Mattapoisett heading for Martha’s Vineyard.  Beautiful day and enroute we stopped at a lovely bay called Tarpaulin Cove for some lunch.  We rigged up a line from the masthead and the kids had a ball swinging off the boat into the water. Spent the night anchored in Vineyard Haven (one of three main towns on the island). 

Tarpaulin Cove

Entrance to Woods Hole

Heather and kids exploring

At anchor in Tarpaulin Cove

Thursday - Calley, Nic and Scott went ashore early in the morning to get some breakfast at the famous Black Dog bakery.  Also managed to get a delicious real coffee - unfortunately for Nic we have not yet got the coffee thing sorted out on the boat.  Currently we are using a plunger type arrangement but this will have to be changed - maybe after the autopilot is fixed.  Once we had breakfast we raised the anchor and took off again as the real objective was to get out to Nantucket and meet up with one of Heather’s friends on another boat.  The wind was approx 15kts to 20 kts gusting 25kts so it was a good sail and luckily we could reach all the way to Nantucket.  (Apologies for any sailor type terms used but some folks may recognise them and it helps to give the perception that we know what we are doing).

Reached Nantucket late Thursday - what a really cool island.  It was pretty busy, lots of boats, lots of people.  Nantucket is an old whaling town which when the whaling industry died, kind off went into hibernation and did not wake up again for close to 100 years and then it realised that its future lay in the preservation of its past.  As a result the main town of Nantucket is full of beautiful historic homes on gorgeous tree lined cobbled roads.  There are lots of quaint shops and small eating places.  Have included some photos to try and give you a feel of the place.

Dulcinea anchored in Nantucket (big white mast in centre)

Beautiful Nantucket

Sam in Nantucket Harbour

 Spent Friday exploring Nantucket.  We wandered around the streets looking at all the beautiful buildings, had some lunch at a little cafe on the street and then took the kids to the whaling museum which was fantastic.  Once back at the boat we had drinks and dinner with Heather and Skip.  Skip is another professional skipper and a friend of Heather’s.  He has been really great helping us with a number of issues on the boat over the last three weeks and also showed the kids how to fish.  Really great day.  Ideally we would have stayed a couple more days in Nantucket but what with the outstanding works and some prior appointments for Heather and Skip we had to leave on Saturday.  Hopefully we may be able to come back on the way to or from Maine.

Today (Saturday 28th) we motored all the way from Nantucket to Newport as the wind was non existent.  Was good to give the engine on the boat a long run and am happy to say all went well.

So the plan now is to finish off any outstanding works over the next week, have a bit more sailing practice and then take off for Maine in maybe a weeks time.  Big difference is that when we leave Newport this time we will be on our own.  Also this week we may take a look at the school work for the kids.

Thought we might make general comments on life onboard leaving out the trials and tribulations of the first couple of weeks. 

• Biggest issue at the moment is the lack of an espresso machine as mentioned earlier.  No immediate solution in sight but we have a couple of possible remedies - will keep you posted.

• Another irritation is the noise from the kids moving around the boat.  Noise carries and reverberates through the boat and as such you need to try and tread lightly but Calley especially moves around like a little elephant.

• The dodger - the dodger is the cover over the companionway which is the entrance to the main salon which is the ships living room.  It is canvas with a steel frame and everyone bumps their head on it as they go below - everyone taller than 5’3”, that is. There’s something to be said for being short!

• Injuries and mishaps have been in abundance. Scott has ripped his hand raw hanging on to a rope just a bit longer that he should have and cracked his head whilst trying to manoever his 6 foot frame under the floor boards to find a leak. Nicole fell down the two steps from the saloon to the foreward cabins (the floor just seemed to disappear!). Sam, who has taken to fishing, has been cut with fish scales and stuck with more than a few hooks, has kicked every toe he has on bits of hardware on the deck, and slammed his finger in the hatch.  Calley has taken a few spills navigating the boat inside and out, most recently taking a tumble down the companionway stairs. As they say, a lot of ways to get hurt on a boat. Thankfully nothing serious.

  

  Child labour - we need drinking water!

• Nicole is still trying to find an elegant way to get in and out of the dinghy.

Life onboard is exhausting.  We are busy all day and at night just collapse.  Must have something to do with the fresh air.  No doubt we will get used to it - otherwise may need a holiday to recover!

Nantucket