New England Journey
Seashores, eating places, and different key stops in your journey.
Step off the ferry and inhale that salt air deeply — that may be a feeling that has known as guests again to this island off the coast of southeastern Massachusetts 12 months after 12 months. The Winery, with a historical past of presidential guests, has a popularity as a respite for the elite, a story that prompted Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida to ship two planeloads of migrants there with out warning final fall, throwing the island within the nationwide highlight as soon as once more. Regardless of the stereotypes, the Winery’s many cultures — African American, Brazilian, Jamaican and islanders that return dozens of generations or way more, together with Native People — have come to redefine this longtime summer time vacation spot as a spot of neighborhood and pleasure.
Itinerary
-
5 issues to do on Martha’s Winery
Friday
6 p.m. | See colourful cottages
Catch Oak Bluffs, an eclectic city on the island’s northeastern shore, because the solar begins to peek by way of the ornate cutouts of the gingerbread cottages which have lined the downtown streets for greater than 160 years. The brightly coloured homes had been constructed by a Methodist motion for his or her rising neighborhood and mimic the tents its members initially gathered in. Most of the 300-plus unique cottages could be present in Wesleyan Grove, the historic district encompassing the outdated campground. Afterward, stroll a couple of minutes east to admire a few of Oak Bluffs’ grandest houses, which line Ocean Park, together with the Joe Overton Home, a Victorian mansion inbuilt 1875 that was finally owned by a Black union organizer from the New York Metropolis neighborhood of Harlem, for whom it’s named right this moment. The home was a frequent vacation spot for civil rights leaders, together with Martin Luther King Jr., and is a part of a vibrant custom of African People in Oak Bluffs.
7 p.m. | Dine on the harbor
Summer season is on full show alongside Oak Bluffs harbor, the place ferries and constitution fishing boats pull proper as much as a dock filled with bars and eating places. Nancy’s Restaurant, a sprawling, multilevel area that has anchored the waterfront for greater than 60 years, serves seafood classics like native littleneck clam linguine ($35) and fish tacos ($23) together with Mediterranean staples like fattoush salad ($17). When you wait in your desk, head downstairs to Donovan’s Reef, the place Donovan Clarke, for whom the bar is called, holds courtroom, pouring Soiled Bananas (a riff on the mudslide cocktail, $13) each summer time, when he travels to the island from Jamaica, a part of a strong worldwide summer time workforce. If Nancy’s is packed, strive the Pawnee Home, a quiet bistro on a nook of Kennebec Avenue with an expansive menu that features vegan choices and inventive cocktails.
9 p.m. | Dance in a dive bar
Music has lengthy been an integral a part of the Winery (the island was a folk-music vacation spot within the Sixties, drawing the likes of James Taylor and Carly Simon); lately, there may be stay music each night time of the week throughout the summer time. The Ritz, a year-round dive bar with stay music (entry $5), could have you dancing to native bands like Johnny Hoy and the Bluefish and Dukes of Circuit Avenue. Up the block, you possibly can watch the summer time crowds from the porch bar at Purple Cat Kitchen, the place punches (from $17) and nonalcoholic cocktails (about $11) go down straightforward. For a respite from the noise, you will get ice cream at Ben & Invoice’s Chocolate Emporium: Adventurous eaters might attain for the lobster taste (for those who actually suppose you’ll just like the style of frozen crustacean, go loopy), however classics like peach and black forest are the true winners.
Saturday
9 a.m. | Hike peaceable marshes
About 40% of Winery land is protected, managed primarily by conservation teams which are looking for to protect the island’s fragile ecosystem. A lot of that land is accessible by public strolling trails. Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary, greater than 200 acres alongside the island’s northeastern shoreline managed by the Massachusetts Audubon Society, has 4 miles of trails alongside Sengekontacket Pond that seize practically every thing the island has to supply: woodlands, meadows, ponds, salt marshes and shorelines. If you happen to’re fortunate, you’ll see an osprey soar, almost certainly on the lookout for meals to convey again to a close-by nest on prime of a pole. The paths are open each day from daybreak to nightfall ($4 for adults, members are free). If you happen to’re trying to discover additional, obtain TrailsMV, a free app created by one other conservation group; it’s the official information to the entire Winery’s public trails.
11:30 a.m. | Pack a seashore picnic
You’ll must recharge after your hike, and Mo’s Lunch is definitely worth the quick drive to Oak Bluffs. The small takeaway counter opened in 2021 contained in the corridor of the Portuguese American Membership, the house of a benevolent group with roots within the island’s seafaring Portuguese heritage. Sandwiches like a cauliflower soften ($14) and an Italian sub ($15) are sufficiently big to separate, however there’s a reasonably good likelihood you gained’t need to share. Behind the counter, desserts like Key lime bars ($5) and large cookies with sprinkles ($3.50) are stacked excessive like one thing out of a baroque nonetheless life. You’ll be able to eat at just a few tables contained in the corridor, however these beneficiant sandwiches and candy treats are greatest loved on the seashore.
Midday | Go to ‘Jaws’ minus the chunk
A day at Joseph Sylvia State Seaside, a 2.2-mile-long barrier seashore that divides Sengekontacket Pond and Nantucket Sound, has choices for adventurers and seashore bums. Take out a kayak or a stand-up paddleboard to discover the pond; Island Spirit Kayak, a kiosk close to Little Bridge, rents both possibility at $30 an hour and likewise affords guided group excursions. Or simply park your self beachside alongside the bay’s calm blue waters. Driving farther down the seashore on Seaside Highway, you’ll cross what locals check with as Huge Bridge and what film followers will acknowledge from the scene of a monster shark assault in “Jaws,” which was filmed on the island in 1974. However there may be nothing scary about these waters, which make it straightforward to swim out to close by sandbars.
3 p.m. | Head up-island
Spend a day in Aquinnah, on the Winery’s western tip. The city, the ancestral dwelling of the Wampanoag Tribe, was previously known as Homosexual Head, named by settlers for its brightly coloured clay cliffs, earlier than the residents voted to revive its unique title within the late Nineties. You’ll be able to see the kaleidoscopic patterns from the highest of the Homosexual Head Lighthouse, which was inbuilt 1799 (open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., $6) or from a close-by overlook, the place a kiosk shares historical past concerning the Aquinnah Wampanoag. Cease by one of many close by retailers, that are all managed by tribal members, just like the Homosexual Head Retailer or Aquila MV, for a refreshment.
6 p.m. | Slurp oysters on a dock
Within the coronary heart of the city of Chilmark, within the island’s southwestern nook, is the fishing village of Menemsha, the place boats usher in a recent catch and the U.S. Coast Guard operates a rescue station. Whereas lots of the nice island fishing households have largely put down their rods and nets, the Larsen household has for many years owned and operated Larsen’s Fish Market and Menemsha Fish Market, two neighboring locations alongside Dutcher Dock the place you possibly can slurp down a dozen oysters (about $34). Attempt a mixture of oysters from each Katama Bay (bigger and brinier) and West Tisbury (smaller and sweeter). Parking could be a difficulty, so the transit authority affords a free shuttle generally known as the Sundown Bus between a parking zone up the street and the village.
7 p.m. | Eat a fish dinner
The Homeport has been a cornerstone of Menemsha’s (small) eating scene since 1930, serving lobster dinners and native catch from a spot overlooking Menemsha Pond and Winery Sound. The restaurant, which got here into new possession final 12 months, affords three programs for $79: Smoked bluefish pâté, fried fluke and chips, and a slice of peach pie seize the essence of a Winery meal. Chilmark is the final dry city on the island, so be sure you convey your personal bottle of rosé ($15 corkage price). The restaurant additionally affords free parking. For one thing a little bit extra low-key, Menemsha Galley serves burgers ($9), fish sandwiches ($14.50), lobster rolls ($27) and smooth serve ice cream ($6) and has a small deck within the again with a view of fishing shacks.
Sunday
8 a.m. | Begin off with a swim
Most of the Winery’s seashores are restricted to city residents with parking and walk-on passes throughout the summer time months; others are privately owned and gated, a system that dates again to a seventeenth century regulation supposed to encourage property homeowners to put money into the waterfront. However for those who go earlier than 9 a.m. or after 6 p.m., anybody can benefit from the calm waters and white sands of Lambert’s Cove Seaside in West Tisbury. Stroll down the oak-shrouded path, depart your sandals on the base of the dune and wander by way of the seashore plums to search out this protected bay seashore alongside Winery Sound. Simply make certain to depart by 9 a.m., when parking is enforced.
10 a.m. | Absorb whaling historical past
Edgartown was the Winery’s first colonial settlement and went on to turn into a significant nineteenth century whaling port. A lot of that historical past — and the wealth it generated — continues to be seen within the city’s Greek Revival and Federal-style houses which have been preserved over the centuries, with the Previous Whaling Church, which was inbuilt 1843 and mimics an historical temple, because the crown jewel. Faculty, South Water and North Water streets are lined with houses that after belonged to whaling captains, and for those who look intently, you’ll see plaques with names of the captains and years the homes had been constructed. After your stroll, pull up a stool on the Dock Road Espresso Store, a single-counter greasy spoon, and recharge with eggs and residential fries ($8).
11 a.m. | Embrace the presents
Edgartown isn’t just nautical historical past and immaculately groomed roses and hydrangeas pouring over white fences: There may be additionally loads of buying to be finished. Edgartown Books has titles by native authors and Pulitzer Prize winners, and often hosts each for e-book signings on its entrance porch. Once you stroll into Salte on South Water Road, you would possibly suppose it’s one other want-everything, need-nothing retailer. But it surely’s the proper respite on a sizzling summer time day: a cool, up to date design inside a historic constructing, with a group of housewares, native artwork and solar necessities. Down the block, the partitions of the North Water Gallery show Winery life — rolling hills, golden gentle and dealing harbors — at its best. Its assortment contains Ray Ellis, whose work seems within the everlasting assortment on the White Home.
1 p.m. | Lunch on the farm
Morning Glory Farm, a five-minute drive from Edgartown, started promoting greens out of a shed practically 50 years in the past. Within the many years since, the Athearn household has remodeled it right into a market overflowing with island-grown greens and flowers, baked items and ready meals. The farm stand additionally sells island-made items just like the award-winning Prufrock cheese, a washed-rind selection from the Gray Barn; yogurt from Mermaid Farm and Dairy; and native sea salts. As one of many largest farms on the island, with greater than 250 acres of whole farmland, Morning Glory affords a salad bar that’s always up to date with seasonal greens ($12.95 a pound). There may be additionally a meals truck out again that has BLTs ($12), farm salads ($12) and burgers ($12). You’ll be able to get pleasure from your lunch on picnic tables exterior the stand or on a rocking chair on the again porch.
Key stops
Joseph Sylvia State Seaside, a greater than 2-mile-long barrier seashore alongside Nantucket Sound, affords straightforward swimming and could be very accessible.
Mo’s Lunch, a small takeaway counter throughout the corridor of a Portuguese American Membership, has sizable sandwiches for an ideal picnic lunch.
The Homosexual Head Lighthouse affords panoramic views of the dizzying colours within the clay cliffs.
The Previous Whaling Church epitomizes Edgartown’s whaling historical past and is a prime sight in a stroll by way of the city’s Greek Revival and Federal-style structure.
The place to eat
Nancy’s serves seafood shack standbys and Mediterranean fare proper on the harbor. It has a vigorous bar downstairs, Donovan’s Reef.
The Pawnee Home has an expansive menu and inventive cocktails.
Purple Cat Kitchen has a porch to soak up the summer time scene with a housemade punch.
Ben & Invoice’s Chocolate Emporium has strains out the door for ice cream and sweet.
Larsen’s Fish Market and Menemsha Fish Market present lobster traps and lengthy benches to take a seat on when you get pleasure from your oysters (simply be careful for diving seagulls).
The Homeport has a eating room that overlooks Winery Sound.
Menemsha Galley is ideal for a lobster roll, a fish sandwich or a burger, however don’t skimp on the smooth serve ice cream dipped in chocolate.
Dock Road Espresso Store, a single-counter greasy spoon, hasn’t modified a lot in its practically 50-year historical past.
The place to remain
The Harborside Inn in Edgartown is unfold all through a handful of historic buildings alongside the waterfront, with the oldest home relationship again to the 1700s. Newer buildings and facilities have been added through the years, together with a pool overlooking the harbor. Rooms from $325.
Summercamp in Oak Bluffs has hosted visitors on the base of the Methodist campground, overlooking the harbor, since 1879 (with completely different names and homeowners), and was extensively reworked in 2016. Rooms from $300.
Discovering an affordable place to remain is just not straightforward on the Winery, however the HI Martha’s Winery Hostel in West Tisbury has beds in shared dorm rooms from $50 an evening.
This text initially appeared in The New York Occasions.
Want weekend plans?
One of the best issues to do across the metropolis, delivered to your inbox.
