Sailing Intermezzo: Nantucket

We're anchored in Provincetown at the tip of Cape Cod, but I thought I would wrap up our time on Nantucket before writing about our passage from there to here.

The old whaling town of Nantucket is very pretty, thoroughly gentrified with cafés, boutiques, art galleries and other businesses serving well-heeled visitors and summer residents. I couldn't help but get a bit depressed by how COVID social distancing puts a pall over places like this that would otherwise be much more friendly and lively. People were very conscientious about wearing masks and staying apart on Nantucket, the bars and restaurants are either closed or have limited well-spaced seating. I appreciate why this is necessary and people certainly enjoy themselves, but in a subdued way. I miss how things would normally be. Just to be able to sit down at a bar for a beer and talk to the person next to me and see their facial expressions. Amazing what I took for granted my whole life up until now.

We had mixed weather, some beautiful sunny days, an overcast one and some foggy nights and mornings. We took a dinghy excursion up to the Head of Harbor and harvested more shellfish- clams, scallops and mussels. We took a bike ride around the east end of the island with a mid-ride beer stop in the little historic village of Siaconset.

I enjoyed Nantucket more than I did Martha's Vineyard, There is more undeveloped and natural land, evidence of wealth is more subtle and there is a thriving sailing community. I sense that the politics are more progressive, too. For example, separation of refuse into recyclables and compostables is mandatory on Nantucket. On Martha's Vineyard, everything goes to the landfill.

I did some planning while on Nantucket. I need to fly back to California in September for a board of directors meeting and leave Intermezzo somewhere safe. I think Portland, Maine is a good spot; now I have to find a slip at a reasonable price; dockage is really expensive in this part of the country. I also need to get some engine and sail drive work done. The port sail drive is leaking lubricant into the bell housing of the engine, the shaft of the starboard sail drive is wobbling and the starboard engine has a mysterious slow coolant leak. Portland seems to be a good place for getting that work done, too. What remains to be figured out is where to go as the weather gets colder in the north but hurricanes are still a threat down south. And what will be the end point of this voyage?