24 Hours…in Martha’s Vineyard

Edgartown Lighthouse, Martha's Vineyard

There are few things as pleasant as Martha’s Vineyard in the off-season. Rain boots, sweatshirts and fall hats serve a purpose that only a true New Englander can appreciate.

Gone are the tank tops and flip-flops, and in their place are fleece cover-ups and cotton scarves.

New to the off-season is the Martha’s Vineyard Food & Wine festival, which is now in its third year. The ferry left at 6:15 pm Friday night and just made it — there was a storm coming in and the seas were getting rough. We arrived in Vineyard Haven 45 minutes later and made our way to Edgartown. Navigating Martha’s Vineyard in the dark isn’t easy, but thankfully, the rain had held off long enough for us to reach the Harbor View Hotel.

The hotel is perfectly placed on the harbor with amazing views of the Edgartown Lighthouse. The wrap-around porch is welcoming with bright blue rocking chairs and an inviting restaurant. Each room is decorated in blue and brown tones and my favorite part: instead of bottled water in the room, the hotel provides its guests with water bottles (free of charge) to fill up on their way in and out for the day. A great green effort!

Storm approaching

The first morning we walked to the lighthouse. Wayde Johnson was on his way to open the lighthouse for guests, but thanks to a higher-than-usual tide because of the storm approaching, there was no way to enter the lighthouse. Instead, I watched from afar as the clouds rolled in over the vineyard. The sky was flecked with little bits of sunshine in between the dark storm clouds. There was a storm coming, and everyone on the island was preparing for a wet night.

We grabbed breakfast at Flowers cafe — asparagus and feta omelette with rye toast and a large coffee. At 2 p.m. I made my way to the Food & Wine festival’s seminar with Andy Husbands, the owner of Boston’s Tremont 647 and Sister Sorrel. He chatted about shrimp salads and various types of tomatoes, made chicken tacos and sipped red wine. We left the seminar and made our way to the Grand Tasting, which featured over 100 wines and various cooking demonstrations. I sipped pinots and sauvignon blancs as I made my way through the white tent that separated me from the pending storm.

Harbor View Hotel bedrooms

The rain started early that day. By 9 p.m., meteorologists were predicting a Nor’Easter for Sunday, which means we were unlikely to get off the island. I’ll admit, there was something very appealing about being stranded on Martha’s Vineyard, curled up with my computer in the big white bed at the Harbor View Hotel. I woke up at 7 a.m. the next morning and pulled open the shades — it was dark, windy and rainy, and immediately crawled back into bed. In an effort to test fate, we decided to motivate and catch an earlier ferry off the island.

(Read the Travel Journal’s blog post: Rain boots & hunter hats)

We made our way back to Vineyard Haven only to be told to turn back. Our ferry reservations were for 3:45 p.m. and they weren’t going to let us on before. There are nearly 100 cars waiting to get off the island, and I was in no hurry.

Martha’s Vineyard is a writer’s inspiration. Driving up island to Aquinnah and Menemsha I found myself captivated by the fall foliage that paved the way down dirt roads. I found beauty in the fog and gray sky, and captured photos from the car as we drove through the abandoned streets.

Our afternoon ferry time was fast approaching. It was time to leave the island, but not without a hot cup of cocoa from the Black Dog Bakery and a quick run through the rain.

One of my favorite places in the world is Martha’s Vineyard. I’m lucky enough that the vineyard is only a few hours from Boston, which makes it very easy to get to, but I’m even luckier to know the vineyard in the off-season. The crowds have dissipated, the beaches are bare, and there’s something inviting about the cool breeze that blankets the island.

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