Old Harbor

Sometime around Labor Day the light begins to noticeably change. It's subtle at first; only recognizable in the hours surrounding dawn and dusk. By the middle of September, however, it becomes obvious even to those not paying attention. Gone is the haze, the glare, the short shadows, and the long summer days.



Block Island in the summer sometimes feels like a spring break inspired theme park for the middle-aged. Old Harbor, with its ferry-terminal, and tipsy balance of Victorian architecture, bars and moped rentals grows too crowded, expensive, and commercialized. The views can be spectacular here, but they often go unnoticed as you weave your way between the taxicabs and foot traffic along Water Street.



In September, the tempo around Old Harbor begins to change. The ferries still run regularly, but the traffic, while steady, is no longer overwhelming. The carnival atmosphere gives way to a working waterfront which reappears from the shadows of waffle cones and Bacardi umbrellas.



Old Harbor once had a sizable commercial fleet, but the Great Depression, combined with the Hurricane of '38 provided a knockout blow. Now, the logistics of an island fishing industry are no longer economically feasible on a large scale. Seafood not sold to local restaurants and inns, needs to be transported again to distribution centers on the mainland. Today the fleet is more modest and specialized.



As the crowds thin however, the island's past image as an outpost in the Atlantic comes back into view. Commercial boats chased away by the limited summer space, will once again use the docks as a convenient layover port. Transoms which read Point Judith, Montauk, and Stonington lie berthed alongside the native fleet.



The light is different this time of year, the boats in the harbor are different too.

Boating Local: Destination Block Island

Providence Journal: Saving Block Island

Boating Local: Old Harbor Bulkhead Repair

Providence Library: Old Harbor Fleet 1930's

Soundbounder: Block Island North Light

Map

Watch Hill Lighthouse

Watch Hill Lighthouse

Built: 1856

Automated: 1986

New England Lighthouses: Watch Hill Light

Lighthouse Friends (map included)

Panoramio: Schooner Passing Watch Hill Light

A Case Of Gansett

Good ideas on the drafting table don't always succeed in actuality.

Gansett, a converted and restored 50 foot lobster hull, plied the waters last summer between the harbors of Stonington and Watch Hill. Part-ferry service and part-tour guide, the 25 minute narrated trips served up such local favorites as Narragansett Beer and Del's Lemonade, while transporting passengers to-and-from Dodsons Boatyard and the Watch Hill Docks.

Upon first learning of this last year, I thought it was a wonderful idea. Though separated by just three miles of water, a trip by land between the two villages is nearly 12 miles, and includes the added hassles of beach traffic and parking. Arriving by car, day trippers and weekenders were likely to stay put.

Also, many travelling yachtsmen with a limited schedule visit one of the harbors, but rarely the two; preferring not to waste a day of travel on another nearby port. The Gansett provided the opportunity to visit both towns, regardless of where you dropped anchor.

So, I was saddened last week when I learned the Gansett has moved her operations back to Newport, Rhode Island for 2011. Disappointed, but not entirely surprised. With tickets priced at $25, the fares were too expensive for a short ferry ride.* 

As a tour boat, the trip seemed too limited in scope to draw mass appeal. While Gansett was the only excursion boat serving Watch Hill and Stonington, nearby Mystic offers a slew of choices ranging from schooners to 19th-century steamboats. It is a competitive field.  

Hopefully the waters of Newport provide a more lucrative home for Gansett this season. She is a pretty boat which has been meticulously restored, and I can't help but think she'll strike gold somewhere. 

As for a ferry serving Watch Hill and Stonington....I still think it's a good idea...at least on paper!  

Gansett Cruises

About M/V Gansett

New London Day: New Ferry Service (June 2010)

Grab A Gansett: Vintage Beer Ads

View Larger Map

*Since each excursion/ferry boat offers something unique, prices alone are not always a fair comparison. Still, I thought they were worth noting. A one-hour tour of the Thimble Islands is priced at $10; a round-trip ticket on the North Ferry, connecting Shelter Island with Greenport costs $8; and a 2.5-hour sail on the schooner Argia costs $42. Of course, none of these boats serve Narragansett Beer.

Block Island North Light

Block Island North Lighthouse, September 2009

Built: 1868

Automated: 1956

Deactivated: 1973

Relit: 1989

New England Lighthouses

Lighthouse Friends (map included)

Waiting For The Storm

Recollections of my September visits to Block Island are mostly rose-colored, but in 2008 I spent several days there fearing the force and path of Hurricane Kyle.  I am not in Block Island presently, but I have been thinking about that  trip quite a bit today.

Much like this week, there were several days of spectacular, late summer weather. In the forecasts however, were the rumblings of a storm one thousand miles to the south. The weather remained golden, but by the fourth day, the forecast grew dimmer and there were slight signs of the approaching storm.

Walking around in Old Harbor, the roar of the surf  could be heard smashing ashore. There was still sunshine and mild breezes, but the seas were building. I walked out on the breakwater admiring the surf, but in typical Soundbounder fashion, I went too far. Somewhere beyond the halfway point, I was hit hard by the spray and drenched  thoroughly. Is it any wonder my camera has condensation issues?

By evening, the winds arrived and  blew for two straight days, reaching a high of 62 mph at 4 AM on the second night. Kyle passed Block Island several hundred miles to the east, eventually reaching landfall in Nova Scotia. Funny, I still regard that vacation as one of my best ever.

I've been thinking about that trip today as Hurricane Earl approaches, and this time it doesn't seem so fun. I have removed Carina's dodger, along with her mainsail to reduce windage. I also added some chafing protection to her mooring lines. Hurricanes can obviously change direction, but at this moment, the path appears to be further east. That means the strongest winds will be from the east and north, which gives Carina better  protection in her mooring field. I am off the boat, and will not return until Saturday. Still, I can't help but worry and wonder what else I should have done.

Yes, I  look back at Hurricane Kyle with rose-colored glasses, but Hurricane Earle remains an open book. 

The Ocean House

A landmark is one of those words that has a different meaning ashore than it does at sea. On land, it is mostly used to describe a historic or signature building that is often a popular attraction. When navigating however, the word still maintains its traditional usage: a structure or geographic feature that is easily recognized; a reference point. The Ocean House in Watch Hill fits both definitions.

On the 20-plus mile, harborless passage from Point Judith, it is this building I first spot as I make my way west towards Long Island Sound. There is a lighthouse nearby, but it is no match for the large yellow victorian with the mansard roof, rising high above the bluff.

Built in 1868, the Ocean House was one of many grand hotels that dotted the shoreline. While Block Island still boasts several of these grand old ladies, most others have been lost to fire, redevelopement, and plain old decay. In the past few decades, it seemed as if the Ocean House would meet a similar fate. Each time I saw her, she looked a little more rundown, and by the late 1990's large portions of the building were no longer in use. Unable to meet the fire-code, she closed in 2003. A new owner drew up plans to build 5 McMansions on the site.

Efforts were made to save the hotel, but it was not until New York investor Charles M Royce stepped in that it became a possibility. Hoping to restore the building, it was soon determined that the structure was too far gone and would need to be replaced. Rather than  restore, Royce would replicate. Thousand of items including fireplaces and moldings were salvaged before the original Ocean House met the wrecking ball in 2005.

The rebuilt Ocean House is now open, though after looking at their rates ($1700/weekend for 2-meals not included) I won't be staying there tonight. Yet when I am in Watch Hill, I will often walk  by and take a look. And when I am 7 miles from shore, I will be looking for her too. As with all good landmarks, I just like knowing she is there.



Art In Ruins: Original Ocean House (photos)

Hartford Courant: New Ocean House Opens

Ocean House.com

Centerbrook: To Save It We Had To Destroy It

Map



References: Summer By The Seaside: New England Coastal Resorts

photo credit: original Ocean House (bottom) Art In Ruins

The Battle Of Point Judith

It was May 5, 1945. Adolph Hitler was dead, and the European campaign of the second World War was drawing to a close.  The Nazi government had issued a cease-fire for all U-boats patrolling the North Atlantic. German submarine U-853 never received the order.

Twelve days earlier, U-853 had fatally torpedoed PE-56, a patrol boat working off Cape Elizabeth, Maine. Only 13 of the 67 crewmembers survived*. To avoid detection, U-853 moved south and remained submerged as often as possible, with no communication. 

Meanwhile, the U.S. collier Black Point was transporting 7500 tons of coal from Norfolk to Boston. Built in 1918, the 369 foot ship had left her convoy in New York Harbor, and proceeded eastward through Long Island and Block Island Sound.  At approximately 5:40 pm, 3 miles south of Point Judith, a torpedo ripped into her stern, sending her to the bottom within minutes. Twelve crewman lost their lives.

An SOS signal was immediately sent out by the Pt Judith lightkeeper, and the Yugoslavian freighter Kamen, which had witnessed the explosion. The anti-submarine warships USS Ericsson, Amick, Atherton, and Moberly had just left New York, bound for Charleston, and were redirected to Pt Judith. On the morning of May 6, two blimps arrived from Lakehurst, New Jersey to assist in the pursuit.

After a 16 hour attack of hedgehogs and depth charges, a liferaft, chart table and officers cap floated to the surface, seven miles east of Block Island.

The wreck sits in 130 feet of water, with its periscope still extended, and the remains of the 55 crewmembers  aboard.

On May 7, less than 48 hours after the sinking of the Black Point, Germany surrendered. 

Ralph DiCarpio: Battle Of Pt Judith (well researched)

USMM.org: Black Point; The Last U-Boat Victim

Providence Journal: Nazi Sub Sunk Off Block Island

Providence Journal: Vets Honor Merchant Ship Crew

BNET: The Last U-Boat Battle

Wreckhunter (go to Wrecks Of Rhode Island)

AquaExplorers: U-853 & Black Point

Wikipedia: Battle of the Atlantic 1939-1945

* The sinking of PE-56 is an entire story unto itself. For decades, the US Navy denied that she had been torpedoed. Only in 2001 were the crewmembers awarded Purple Hearts.

Boston Globe: The Truth About PE-56

photo credits: USS Moberly launching hedgehogs (top) Wikipedia

U-Boat 853 (middle) AquaExplorers

USS Black Point (bottom) Ahoy-Mac's Weblog

Fort Mansfield

                                     

At the western end of Napatree Point in Watch Hill are the ruins of Fort Mansfield. This was a fort constructed during the Spanish American War to defend the northeast entrance to Long Island Sound. It consisted of three gun batteries that could fire upon enemy ships in the narrow Watch Hill Passage that separates Fishers Island from Napatree Point. First manned in 1901, Fort Mansfield was found to have serious flaws and vulnerabilities. With all of its guns and cannons aimed to the south and west, a ship could approach from the east and fire upon the fort's blind spot. Rather than correct the flaws, the U.S. Government closed the fort in 1917, upon entrance into World War I.

In the summer of 2001, I walked out here, but never got too close. The overgrown brush and vines made the paths difficult to follow, and I was worried about ticks. During a recent winter visit the ruins were much more accessible, but dangerous nonetheless. Much of the concrete remains were covered with a thin film of ice, so I made sure not to walk to close to the edge. I avoided the tunnels and shafts as well.

Hurricanes and time have taken their toll on the old fort, leaving not much left to see. Unfortunately, what does remain of the structure has been heavily vandalized. Broken glass was everywhere, and nearly every wall contained grafitti telling me that Kevin is a #%@*! (I already knew that), and Susan %#@*'s.

There is something about ruins that makes people want to ruin them even more.

Ghost Town: Fort Mansfield

Ghost Towners: Code Of Ethics

Wikipedia: Fort Mansfield

SOUNDBOUNDER: Napatree Point

SOUNDBOUNDER: Harbor Seal At Napatree

Map

Hodge Family Wildlife Preserve

Approximately three miles north of the Block Island ferry dock sits the Hodge Family Wildlife Preserve also known as Hodge Farm. This is 25 acres of mostly-meadow, that slopes to the west, providing spectacular views of Block Island Sound. Created in 2002, the preserve is the result of a 20 year effort by the Nature Conservancy, Block Island Land Trust, Block Island Conservancy, the town of New Shoreham (Block Island), and individuals.

Over 40% of Block Island is publicly accessible, protected land. Opposition to a proposed 1971 housing development in Rodman's Hollow is often credited as the beginning of the preservation movement on the island. The partnership and commitment between conservation groups and individuals has led the Nature Conservancy to list Block Island as one of the Last Great Places in the Western Hemisphere.

On a beautiful, late summer day this September, I spent a good portion of the morning walking out to North Light, and then following a portion of the Clay Head Trail. Reaching the Hodge Preserve, I could have continued on to West Beach, but I instead chose to stay right here. The meadow of goldenrod, with it's views of ponds and ocean in the distance was all too apealing.

*

Providence Journal: Saving Block Island

Nature Conservancy: Hodge Family Wildlife Preserve

Block Island Conservancy

Block Island Land Trust

R "2"

R "2", Little Narragansett Bay, July 2009

Mohegan Bluffs

Although Block Island is not part of Long Island Sound, it would be incomplete to have a site devoted to the Sound that did not include it. There are ferries that arrive here from both Long Island and Connecticut, and the island is often visible from the eastern portions of the Sound. It would be like discussing Cape Cod without mentioning Nantucket and Martha's Vineyard.

Block Island is easily accessible to many boats and tourists who flock here in the summer months.

Sometimes it seems almost too accessible. Four years ago, I arrived here one day in July only to learn that no moorings or docks were available. The designated anchorage area was packed with boats as well; several boats (including my own) dragged anchor because there was not enough space to let out the proper amount of scope. The town was crowded too. It was not a relaxing visit.

Last year we visited in September and were truly able to enjoy all the beauty that Block Island has to offer. A good part of one day was spent visiting Mohegan Bluffs on the southeastern coast of the island. These are clay cliffs reminiscent of the Pacific Coast and Gay Head on Martha's Vineyard. In 1590, a war party of 40 Mohegan Indians was driven over these bluffs by Block Island Indians- The Manisseans.

A wooden stairway descends the bluffs and leads to a boulder-strewn beach with heavy surf. I walked along the empty beach watching the waves crash upon the large boulders. Every so often I would catch a glimpse of the Montauk Lighthouse, approximately 18 miles to the southwest. The Southeast Lighthouse, located at the top of these cliffs is no longer visible from the beach. Erosion of the bluffs had threatened the structure, and it was moved back from the edge of the cliffs in the early 1990's. I can still remember walking here years ago and having a Planet Of The Apes moment as I looked up from the beach at the iron above.

When the summer crowds are gone, you can almost feel as if you are the only living soul here. As Thoreau wrote about Cape Cod to the east: A man may stand there and put all America behind him.

*

New York Times: On Tiny Block Island, Summer Lasts Longer

Block Island Conservancy

The Nature Conservancy: Block Island

Bloom: Block Island

Map

Rainy Day On Block Island

Rain (and fog) at Payne's Dock, Block Island, September 2008

Napatree Point

It is hard to walk this shore without thinking of the Hurricane of 1938. Seventy years ago, the full force of that September storm hit Napatree Point, altering it's landscape severely. Thirty-nine summer homes, as well as several beach clubs were washed away, with fifteen lives lost on this narrow stretch alone. The land itself was transformed too, as Sandy Point was separated by water from Napatree and became (and remains) an island.

Napatree Point also represents the northeastern border to Long Island Sound. The glacial moraine that forms the North Fork of Long Island continues across the Sound, rising above sea level on several islands, before reaching the mainland in Watch Hill. From here I watched the open sea roll through the narrow stretch of water between Fishers Island and Napatree. The currents run strong here, although not as much as they do in the Race and Plum Gut. In the distance, several early season fisherman worked the tides of Sugar Reef Passage.

Napatree Point is managed by the Watch Hill Conservancy, and there are signs posted reminding visitors to avoid the sand dunes and nesting areas. I have read somewhere that this is a popular spot for viewing owls in the winter. I did not see any owls, but I did spot a seal sunning himself in the morning sun. In the past, I had only witnessed seals from a far distance, so it really made my morning to be able to view one close-up.

I walked the full length of the point, eventually reaching the ruins of Fort Mansfield (this will be a separate post). From here, I crossed over to the north side of the peninsula and worked my way back. North of me was the shallow waters of Little Narragansett Bay, a popular anchorage in the summer season. I took one last look at the island of Sandy Point, and tried to imagine what it looked like before 1938.

In the end, nature always wins.



Map Community Walk

YouTube: Kayak Surfing Off Napatree

Providence Journal: Napatree Point

Napatree 1938: Before & After Photo (scroll down)

New York Times: Remembering The Great Hurricane

SOUNDBOUNDER: September 21,1938

Harbor Seal At Napatree

Full Tilt Sailing Blog: Harbor Seal In Milford (video)
New York Times: Return Of The Seals
Kings Point Waterfront: Harbor Seal At Kings Point