Sailing Intermezzo: Not Much of a Storm, Cycling, Then Nantucket

Tropical storm Isaias didn't amount to much as we lay at anchor in Lagoon Pond on Martha's Vineyard on Tuesday. It blew a steady 20-25 knots for most of the afternoon and evening, but the biggest gust we recorded was just under 35 knots. We didn't get much rain, either.

I was a bit disappointed, as I had rigged Intermezzo to ride out hurricane force winds, paying out extra chain, rigging a second anchor bridle and setting up the backup Fortress anchor on deck, ready to deploy if we started to drag. All for naught. Our standard ground tackle and trusty Rocna anchor have ridden out far worse blows than what this one turned our to be. Oh well, good practice for the next one.

Yesterday was a beautiful day, so we took the Montague bicycle to shore in the dinghy, rented another bike and rode around the eastern third of Martha's Vineyard, visiting East Chop, Oak Bluffs, Edgartown and Katama Beach, about a 30 mile ride in all.

The weather was clear and sunny, with a breeze just enough for cooling, not enough to impede cycling. We rode through a variety of scenery, beach roads, residential neighborhoods, village centers, farmland and busy thoroughfares that cut through the interior of the island. We stopped for lunch on the beach south of Oak Bluffs and, after touring the elegant side streets of Edgartown, took a power nap on the beach at Katama where the post-storm surf was breaking heavily on the southern shore. We ended the day harvesting a big bag of mussels from the little bay near the dinghy dock and eating them for dinner.

This morning we stowed all the gear taken out for the storm and headed out through the drawbridge for our passage to Nantucket. The wind was very light from the northeast, so it was a day of motoring, which was good as we needed to run the watermaker to replenish our supply. It was an uneventful trip under mostly cloudy skies on a calm, grey sea.

We're anchored in the eastern side of the harbor, the only place you are allowed to anchor which, unfortunately is also along the route to the popular, undeveloped Head of the Harbor and so we have power boats regularly whizzing by. We put up with it because mooring balls are over $40 a night here and a slip would set us back over $200 while anchoring out is free. The current runs through at about 1.5 knots in both directions, so we and the other boats waltz back and forth as the tide changes and need more swinging room than usual.

Lisa hates to waste food but today ate some old poisonous prosciutto from the refrigerator and is proving the wisdom of my bias, which is to throw out anything remotely suspect of being "old". I hope she feels better soon. All crew on Intermezzo has to agree with the boat's medical protocol which is, if it doesn't get better on its own or from basic first aid treatment, we go right to euthanasia, nothing in between. I find this policy results in apparently swift recoveries with minimal whining.