The July Cruise

Saturday June 29^th: Clear sky; wind ENE, less than 5 kts.  We are ready to start our vacation.  We motor to Cuttyhunk, an inauspicious start to the sailing vacation, where we raft up inside the harbor with friends and cruising buddies Jack and Pam onboard TIFN .  That evening we feasted on fresh Cuttyhunk scallops, pan-fried with olive oil, a little butter and garlic. We used to believe that the scallops were grown and harvested on a pond on the island, but they are actually brought over from New Bedford every day by Captain Borges.  Fresh off the boats they are sweet as candy and always eagerly anticipated.  The scallops alone are worthy of a trip to the "hunk".  We will stay here for a few days to decompress, get used to living on board again, do some hiking and swimming, and catch up on the island gossip since we haven't been here since the morning of September 11^th, 2001.

Sunday June 30th; Joined in Cuttyhunk by good friends Art and Peg on LIBERTY, Jim, Carey, and daughter Brooke on FAITH.

Cuttyhunk Pond 

Tuesday July 2^nd: Warm and hazy, wind SW 5-10 kts.  We all sailed up Buzzard's Bay to Hadley Harbor.  Picked up a mooring way in near the Forbes boathouse.  We were joined by Doug and Dottie on SCRIMBLESHANKS.

Had a lively cocktail party onboard LUNEA with potluck HD's. We all managed to fit in the cockpit. Great Company. Great conversation.

Cocktails at 5

The lively party

Dottie (Scrimbleshanks), who has been visiting Hadley Harbor since she was a child, was able to dispel the mystery of the large stone piling on the shore near the Cormorant's dock. Many years ago there was a huge tree that grew right on the shore. When erosion threatened one of the limbs that hung over the water, the family custom-built the piling to support the branch so it would not break.

The limb is gone but the piling still stands proud

Great view from the mooring

Wednesday July 3^rd: HOT! Wind SSW 5-10 kts. Jockeyed for space through Wood's Hole with the ferry.  Coast Guard buoy tender IDA LEWIS was parked right in the channel to make it even more interesting.  Picked up a mooring just outside the breakwater at Vineyard Haven.  Jim and Jan arrived in late afternoon on AISLING. They had an excellent sail, coming all the way from Newport in record time, with perfect wind conditions!

Continue the cruise

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