Early in the morning, we got ready to get underway, enroute to Cuttyhunk, a small island in the chain of islands between the Massachusetts coast and Martha's Vineyard, in the area where JFK Jr.'s plane went down tragically in 1999.

Map of Cuttyhunk

Unfortunately, the wind was coming directly from where we wanted to go, Northeast, an unusual occurrence for the area.

Chris plotted our course on the charts and on the PC and GPS and, sure enough, we determined that we would have to motor for a while to make time and to make the best use of a favorable tide.

We refer to motoring as "charging the batteries", since it's a shame to have to motor on a sailboat, though we can blast the stereo louder with the engine running.

We motored most of the way up the coast past Point Judith and gradually approached the North coast of Cuttyhunk and the western end of Martha's Vineyard, past numerous wrecks in the tricky waters that the area is noted for.


The guys perfected their knot-tying skills and we all took naps along the way, while the stereo played everything from James Bond themes to traditional Irish folk songs to smooth jazz.

We made our entrance into the harbor in Cuttyhunk, as Chris secured the sails and selected the appropriate music for our entrance.

We selected a nice spot in the anchorage for our extended stay there. All of the neighboring boats watched nervously as we demonstrated our perfectly executed, precision anchoring maneuvers.

As we slowly set the hook, one of the ladies on a larger boat from the Virgin Islands nearby, came out from below and gave the baseball umpire's "SAFE" hand signal, with a huge smile on her face...

I guess you could call it "sliding into home".

Kevin, Happy Cause We've Arrived

The island only has 35 full-time inhabitants and virtually no automobiles. Most residents use their own golf carts for transportation around the small island. A seaplane and barges make regular trips to the island to bring the mail, food, supplies, building materials, and whatever else might be needed there.

This is a beautiful island and a very well-kept secret, for its proximity to the mainland. A ferry, called "Alert" , brings passengers back and forth to the island, and there is a small wharf for transients. It's a quiet little spot in the shadow of the larger island, Martha's Vineyard, which is just a few miles to the south.

Cuttyhunk, Massachusetts

Cuttyhunk Island Information

We saw Gary, the seaplane pilot, make several landings and take-offs right near us in the harbor, where they have his landing zone marked with floating white balls.

We dropped the hook and secured Zayda, then relaxed and took a swim off the boat and visited with our neighbors, including friends from our home port, the Petzolds.

We headed ashore for an exploratory trip and to track down some dinner at dusk.


The first place we found was a pretty little restaurant called "Bart's Place".

"Where the elite meet to eat!"

Bart's Place is named after Bartholomew Gosnold , who discovered the island in 1602.

We were seated promptly and immediately we felt welcome there. Tamsin was our waitress, a college student studying mechanical engineering.

Since the island is "dry", we provided our own wine - they provided the glasses. They had everything from Prime Rib to Clam Chowder to Lobster, and the specials all looked great. Tamsin explained it all to us in detail.


Before long, realized that we were sitting right next to the owners, Chuck and Dawn Vogt, and Chuck was bragging about how good the food would be, particularly the Prime Rib. He was right. Everything was great!

We had a nice chat with Chuck and Dawn as we ate dinner, and little did we know we had met the honorary "Mr. and Mrs. Mayor" of Cuttyhunk. Of course we plan to go back. We met all the girls and their "Executive Chef", and even got a tour of their spotless, new kitchen.

Nice Folks and Great Hosts
Tell them "Doc sent you".

The Crew of Zayda at "Bart's Place"

Pirates Cruise Continued