View from Harbour Court, the New York Yacht Club’s majestic Newport station.
Rhode Island is such a state of contrasts from the elegance of Newport to the quaintness of Narragansett and fine dining to the best of seafood from beach-side shacks. Most importantly for us, Rhode Island also means spending time with good friends, seeing long-time college buddies and of course, a visit to a URI football game.
The exploring is fun since you never have to go too far (or you are in another state) to find that great antique treasure, a beautiful coastal scene or the next great lobster roll. Some notable highlights for good Rhody food include, the well-known Black Pearl on the wharf; hidden delight, Belle’s Cafe, at the Newport shipyard; Castle Hill for a killer alfresco brunch with a view; Blue Rocks Market to supply everything needed for a tasty tailgate party; and Flo’s Clam Shack (in Middletown), for fresh fried clams and everything else!
Oh yeah, and for a unique Mexican experience, try Perro Salado (Salty Dog) for some kick-ass margaritas and unusual items like fried avocado and sticky ribs. Located in a restored 18th century Naval officer’s home, they describe themselves as a “boisterous gathering space” and I can attest to the truth behind that statement. Just one caveat, watch out for who might be sitting at the next table!
Then, of course, there are the famous Newport mansions. It would take an entire summer to really explore them thoroughly. Properties run by The Preservation Society of Newport County offer reasonably priced self-guided audio tours. Allow at least an hour per mansion, but you could spend many more if you have time to take advantage of the wealth of extra information that goes beyond the basic tour and offers glimpses into the people, activities, and drama of the Gilded Age era. The Elms also features a “Servant Life Tour” which is very similar to the “Behind the Scenes” tour at Asheville’s Biltmore Estate. A $15 bargain ($12 for Preservation Society members). You can buy tickets on-line or at the door for all the tours, but the guided “Servant Life Tour” runs hourly and does book up during peak times. Single mansion tickets run under $15 and a variety of packages are available including five properties for under $35. Check out the website: www.NewportMansions.org
We never tire of the Ten Mile Ocean Drive and if time and weather permit, be sure to check out the Cliff Walk. It’s also fun to just walk around the shops and galleries in town, enjoy the restaurants and bars in the lively wharf area, shop the unique boutiques on Bellevue Ave., or relax in one of the many parks. Every time we visit I discover more wonderful Rhode Island surprises; the state is an often overlooked gem.
Rhode Island coastal beauty.
Heading to the launch from Beechbound.
The Elms.
A rocky beach.
Getting ready for the upcoming boat show at the Newport Shipyard. That yacht is in the air.
Not the biggest . . . but maybe the cutest.
It’s a bit of a misdirection, to say “by foot” because we’ve been covering a lot of ground by foot ever since we arrived. But today we are taking a walking tour of historic downtown. As with all our other guides, today’s Historical Society docent was very interesting and well-informed. We learned a lot more about the interesting citizens of Nantucket (like Macy, Folger and Ben Franklin) and in particular, the substantial role women occupied. We concluded at the old Quaker Meeting House and then continued on our own walk with a stop to see the Tiffany glass in the wonderful Episcopal Church.
This island can be a bit Disneyesque, and if they could eliminate the cars and trucks it would be close to a perfect village. As it was, I felt the vehicles got in the way of some really good pictures, and this is after many visitors have left, and things have slowed down considerably.
Lunched at Cru before getting organized to take the Hy-Line back to Martha’s Vineyard (1hr 10 minutes), and catch our connecting ferry to Quonset, Rhode Island (90 minutes) so we can get to Newport and visit our friends!
Passenger Ferry Notes:
A final commentary about the ferries: These were not auto ferries, and are specifically for passengers. All-in-all, they are pretty good – on time and comfortable, with snack bars, plugs for computers and phones, Wi-Fi (most of the time), and TVs with CNN on the Rhode Island line. The Hy-Line takes your bag(s) on and off the ferry on a luggage cart (RI- you carry-on to a luggage storage area). Be prepared for the fact there are no shelters. Nantucket has a small waiting area, the others have none. All lines to board are out in the open. Take an umbrella and dress accordingly! Schedules vary depending on the time of year and can change at any time (one of ours changed and they did call us to let us know). Bikes and fishing gear are allowed. There are a lot of options, a number of ferry operators and several departure points to get to the islands from Rhode Island, New York, New Jersey, or Massachusetts; it can be confusing.
Is our Jeep still in our garage back home? MV and Nantucket are Jeep-central.
Jeeps are everywhere you look, in every color and design.
Brant Point Lighthouse.
Steps Beach.
What a beautiful, chamber-of-commerce day; warm, but not too hot and a bright blue sky. A perfect day for a bike tour.
Since we are here for a limited amount of time, we decided to take an escorted bike tour to make sure we actually understood what we were seeing. Jason’s Nantucket Bike Tour’s 2-hour town trip proved to be a great choice. You can save a few bucks and take a self guided tour with some of the local bike shops, but we felt being with Jason and Carl was worth every penny. They were a great team, keeping us protected from traffic, pointing out where well-know figures (like John Kerry) live, joking, and giving us a local perspective, all while giving us an interesting history lesson. They made sure my camera was safe, carried my jacket, and even had sunscreen when I realized I didn’t.
We covered a number of key sites including the Brant Point Lighthouse, the picturesque Jetties and Steps Beaches, Cobblestone Hill, neighborhoods filled with waterfront mansions, and tree-lined streets of homes with lush, blooming gardens. For history’s sake, we visited the Oldest House, Windmill and the Old Gaol (jail), literally tucked away in someone’s backyard.
We, of course, had worked up an appetite and headed over to the Straight Wharf area for a bite, then back to the Whaling Museum to snap some photos from the rooftop and catch the 3 PM presentation about Whale Hunting. The Museum has a wonderful series of programs, and the volunteer docents are really terrific. This museum is a perfect place to start any visit to Nantucket, and will make everything you see more meaningful.
Back at The White Elephant, we skipped the afternoon port & cheese, and got ready to head to dinner on the 50-minute water taxi ride to Topper’s by Water – a sister property at The Wauwinet. It’s an open boat that holds about 28, and you travel all the way to the head of the harbor enjoying the scenery (with more beautiful waterfront mansions). Cheerful staff is on board to serve wine and cocktails along the way. I imagine many days would be ether too hot, cold, windy or foggy – but like I said, this was a perfect day.
Dinner was a gourmet affair, three- course tasting menu; very continental, some foam, interesting combinations, very rich; my husband survived, and I got to try duck egg for the first time. I must report, the egg was good, very large and rich; it was part of my appetizer and pretty much would have been enough for dinner.
We were tired and very full.
Oldest operating windmill in the country; dating from 1746.
A mansion in 1686, when it was given as a wedding gift by two feuding families to their children who had fallen in love and married.
The lovely White Elephant.
After a leisurely made-to-order breakfast with our Saturday Night Live buddies, we strolled around the lovely Edgartown Cemetery. The cemetery is an expansive full block in size and is the final resting place of many sea captains, their families and descendents from the mid-1800s until today. We also discovered the newly completed firehouse museum, with early engines and memorabilia on display. We had a nice chat with the retired firefighter who first launched the historic project years ago.
Then, on to the HyLine Ferry for a 70 minute ride to Nantucket.
Fog and the threat of rain dominated our trip across the sound, but once in Nantucket we managed to escape most of the inclement weather. We were met at the ferry landing by a driver from The White Elephant Hotel, where we reserved one of the cute, luxurious cottages. The White Elephant is a wonderful property; who wouldn’t be happy when greeted with a box of incredible chocolates? Once settled, we headed out to explore and started in the center of town with an interesting Gallery Tour at the Whaling Museum. I loved the intricate pie crust tools carved by the whalers – they were amazing and something I had never seen of, or heard about, before.
Throughout the center of town, we continued our explorations, eventually ending up at the Nantucket Lobster Trap for some PEI oysters, lobsters and calamari. It was a fun setting (we sat on the patio), and were surprised to hear some very entertaining live blue grass/country music performed by some moonlighting local school teachers. We left in a growing mist and made a pit shop at the Juice Bar, a local ice cream hot spot, to share some chocolate chip and Almond Joy ice cream.
Back at the White Elephant, we had a yummy cupcake (3!) treat waiting in our cottage (in delayed honor of my husband’s birthday). Why are we still eating ????????
About half of the Sperm Whale skeleton at the Whaling Museum.
