A Summer Day Trip to Martha's Vineyard

It's named after British explorer Bartholomew Gosnold's daughter, Martha, and is the third largest island on the east coast. It was originally the home of the Wampanoag Indian Tribe and was once a part of New York (until 1692) It was one of the earliest known deaf communities and its' deaf residents developed Martha's Vineyard Sign Language, a precursor to American Sign Language. You can only get there by plane or ferry and there isn't a Starbucks or McDonald's to be found on the island. The year round population is about 16,000 but it swells to 100,000 in the summer so it's one of the most popular summer colonies in the US. It's Martha's Vineyard, or The Vineyard as it's simply known. And I visited there by ferry  for my first time for an enjoyable day trip. Come along and see what it has to offer.

We boarded the Sea Streak ferry from New Bedford, Massachusetts bound for Oak Bluffs in the morning with our return scheduled for late in the afternoon. So time was tight but we were going to give it the college try to see and do all we could. Rather than rent a car we decided to use the bus system, the Martha's Vineyard Transit Authority, to get around. We bought a bus pass and were able to visit Edgartown and the Aquinnah Cliffs from Oak Bluffs where we exited the ferry. It was super easy and there were plenty of buses running for us to make the most of our day.

Oak Bluffs

Oak Bluffs has the feel of a beach town with its' arcade games, souvenir shops, ice cream parlors and the Flying Horses Carousel, the oldest operating carousel in the country (since 1876). 

One of the main draws of Oak Bluffs is visiting the Oak Bluffs Campground and its' colorful gingerbread cottages. Originally a Methodist camp meeting location where New England Methodists would gather for a week to immerse themselves in religious preaching, it's now a National Historic Landmark and a can't miss location to visit. The gingerbread cottages were not part of the original landscape - simple tents were erected to house visitors. But the tents gave way to platform "cottages" which then evolved into the cottages you see today. They have been handed down within families for decades and some are now available to rent. There is even a cottage that serves as a museum for visitors to see inside. 

The highlight of the year at Oak Bluffs is the Grand Illumination, traditionally held on the third Wednesday of August. Ornate chinese lanterns are hung from the cottages, in the trees, and on stakes in the ground. Then there is a community sing along in the tabernacle followed by a band concert.

Edgartown

Edgartown, the first colonial settlement on the island, is filled with tree lined streets and white Greek Revival houses, many of them former Sea Captain's homes. It's home to fine restaurants, upscale shops and art galleries. We spent our lunch hour here at the Seafood Shanty at an outdoor table overlooking the water - it was fun to see boats coming and going along with a raft of elementary school kids who had probably been at sailing school. Mr. UR had the lobster, of course, and then we took a walk through town stopping in some of the shops.

Aquinnah Cliffs

Our last stop of the day was at the Aquinnah Cliffs located on the southern coast of the island on the Wampanoag reservation. (There are booths set up with wares to sell by local Native Americans and a snack bar available also) These are dramatic clay cliffs (overlooking an unofficial nude beach) adjacent to Gay Head Lighthouse which was featured in the film Jaws. It's one of the islands most visited spots though it wasn't very crowded when we were there. You can explore the lower beach paths or take the trail over to the lighthouse which is what we chose to do. 

We took the bus back to Oak Bluffs and since we had some time until the ferry departed we opted for drinks overlooking Oak Bluffs Harbor at Nancy's restaurant. Once again we enjoyed watching boats come in and out until it was time to board our ferry and watch the sunset on the way back to the mainland.

I really enjoyed Martha's Vineyard and though it wasn't super crowded while we were there - and it was July - and I'd love to do an off-season visit and stay overnight, or more. It's definitely some place I would go back to!

How about you? Have you been to Martha's Vineyard? Would you like to go?

Linking up with: My Corner of the World at Photographing New Zealand!