Travelogue

Day 1 - Arrival at our Airbnb in Aquinnah and Lobsterville Beach

Our Aquinnah AirbnbAfter flying into Boston and spending our first night in Falmouth, we took the ferry the next morning from Woods Hole to Oak Bluffs. Boy! Did this bring back memories, from trips in our 20’s, through our wedding in Edgartown, and then with our sons for another 20 years.

The kids weren’t arriving for another 5 days, so Herb and I would spend some time alone in an Airbnb in the town of Aquinnah, located on the western end of Martha’s Vineyard (referred to as “up-island”), bordered by the Vineyard sound to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south.

Herb fishing on Lobsterville JettyIt is home to a year round population of 311, half of which are members of the Wampanoag tribe.

We were very pleased with our Airbnb rental, a cozy and beautifully furnished Cape house, just a 3-minute walk to Lobsterville Beach, one of our old favorite spots to fish and watch the sunset, which is unique to do on the East Coast, but this beach faces west.

After settling in, despite the light rain, we drove the short distance to Lobsterville Beach, so Herb could cast into the Atlantic Ocean for the first time in over a decade. Unfortunately, the fish were unimpressed, but still it was nice to see him standing on the jetty, rod in hand, once again.

Day 2- Run, Lone Star Tick Bomb, and Menemsha

Our lovely AirbnbThe next morning we decided to go for a 5-mile run to the Aquinnah lighthouse, the official name for what we once knew as the Gay Head lighthouse. The name change happened in 1997 when the town of Gay Head officially reverted to its original Wampanoag name, Aquinnah (pronounced ah-KWIN-ah), which means "land under the hill."

Being somewhat paranoid, to say the least, about the lone star ticks prevalent on this part of the island, I kept nagging Herb to stay away from any vegetation that came too close to the road we were running along.

Our lovely AirbnbAfter running for about 2.3 miles we came to the path to the Lighthouse, where I carefully stayed away from any lurking lone star ticks waiting to jump on me.

Set atop the stunning Gay Head (or is it Aquinnah?) cliffs, this lighthouse was opened in 1799 to guide ships through the treacherous waters between the Gay Head Cliffs and the Elizabeth Islands. In 2015 it was moved back 129 feet from the edge of the eroding bluff to its current location.

Aquinnah Lighthouse and CliffsThe historic move took place over three days, during which the entire 400-ton brick and mortar structure was painstakingly lifted and slid along steel beams to its new foundation, 129 feet away from its original location. The relocation was a massive community effort and a significant engineering achievement, undertaken to save the iconic 1856 lighthouse from tumbling into the sea due to the rapidly eroding Gay Head Cliffs.

Aquinnah LighthouseFrom there we continued our run around the tip of Aquinnah to continue our run along State Road back to the house. A tiny little piece of vegetation that was sticking out into the road brushed my leg and I kiddingly said to Herb, “Oh no, vegetation touched me.”

We continued on for a bit, until I stopped to scratch my left (vegetation-side) leg, which was starting to itch. To my horror, the side of my left calf looked like it had been sprinkled with pepper. I yelled ahead to Herb that I think I might have ticks on my leg, but he didn’t hear me.

MenemshaUnsure what to do, I brushed them off my leg. One still remained, so I scratched him (or her?) off. Then I scratched the whole area thoroughly, which began to bleed from each of the little red spots where they tried to violate me.

I finally caught up to Herb and told him what happened. I admit to being in a bit of a panic. Somewhat fortuitously, we came upon the Aquinnah town hall and actually found the office for the health administrator inside. She looked at my leg and said that it looked like I had been the victim of a "tick bomb," but got them off in time, so that made me relax a little bit. We also bought 6 permethrin treated socks for $1 each to wear as a precaution if necessary.

MenemshaBack at the house, I immediately took a hot shower and then Herb used his magnifying glass and tweezer to try to pull out anything that might be in my leg. He pulled on what looked like tiny little strands from my leg and when we looked at them closely, they appeared to have a bulbous head. OMG, I thought - that's disgusting and horrifying.

Menemsha Fishing Shack DoorAfter the tick trauma, we decided to take a ride to one of our favorite places - Menemsha, a quaint little fishing village so picture postcard perfect that it seems more fake than real. In fact, it was used as a stage set during the filming of the movie Jaws.

Menemsha Village lies on the eastern shore of Menemsha Pond where it flows out into Vineyard Sound. On either side of the channel out to the Sound, there are rock jetties, very popular for surfcasting.

Before heading to the jetty, we walked out on Boathouse Road. I went ahead of Herb to take pictures while he stayed behind to talk to a Wampanoag boat captain. Herb loves to talk about fishing, but he developed a new love for talking about ticks and what had happened to me earlier this morning.

He told us we needed to get to a pharmacy to get permethrin cream, which would kill any remaining ticks that might have embedded in my leg. It is most effective if applied within 24 hours of the bites.

So rather than strolling on the jetty, we spent the next 4 hours trying to get my health insurance company to call in a prescription to a pharmacy in Edgartown, a half hour away. Unfortunately, they did not respond in time for me to get it that day.

Day 3 - Chilmark General Store and Moshup Beach

Chilmark General StoreWhen we woke up the next morning, I thought we would be spending another day wasting time trying to get the permethrin cream prescription.

However, after discussing my situation, Herb and I came to the same conclusion, that the miniscule bulbous headed threads he had pulled out of my leg with a tweezer yesterday were not in fact ticks, but rather nubs with the hair follicle on the end. We felt like idiots.

We still were convinced that I had been the victim of a “tick bomb,” but were pretty confident that I had gotten them off in time.

Strolling Moshup BeachSo, today we would go to beautiful Moshup Beach and not worry about ticks for the day.

But first a quick stop at the Chilmark General Store to pick up sandwiches. I love this store. Besides having a great selection of sandwiches and prepared foods, they have a lovely covered porch with rocking chairs to sit on and talk about the Vineyard news of the day.

Moshup BeachI felt so confident that my tick situation was under control that we bought meatball parmesan to have with pasta tonight. Take that alpha-gal meat allergy syndrome.

Then it was on to Moshup Beach, a beach so stunningly beautiful that the Travel Channel selected it as one of the top 10 beaches in the country.

The beach lies at the base of the 130-foot high stunningly beautiful and multicolored Gay Head cliffs, named for its “gay” brightly colored red, brown, yellow, and tan striations.

Back for sunsetIn many parts of the beach, rivulets of red clay seep out of the cliffs and flow towards the ocean. In the 1960’s and 70’s this became a popular spot for nude sunbathers to partake in “clay baths.” Today that is no longer allowed. However, there is still a section of the beach that is clothing optional.

Well, so much for not talking about ticks today. Herb has found a new way to make friends, as everyone on the island wants to talk about these stupid lone star ticks.

Sunset at Moshup Beachveryone had something to say about my situation, but the final consensus was that I got them off in time and would live a long life filled with happiness and meat.

We spent a couple of hours soaking up the sun on this seasonably warm Vineyard day, enjoying some very entertaining conversation with our new friends.

Sunset at Moshup BeachThe colors of the cliff are best photographed at sunset so we went back to the house for a few hours before returning once more to this truly lovely spot.
The cliffs did not disappoint, but put on a spectacular show making their layers of red, yellow, and orange appear even more vibrant.

Back at the house I ate my meatball parmesan with impunity.

Day 4 - Menemsha and Moshup Beach for Sunset

MenemshaSince our visit to Menemsha was cut short 2 days ago because of our panic over getting a permethrin prescription, we decided to go back.
Menemsha is one of my favorite places on the island, and one where we have spent many wonderful times.

Over the years, we have done a lot of fishing from the Menemsha rock jetty, which is usually pretty crowded with fishermen trying to land a blue or striper. We have had our fair share of success over the years with many a fish at the end of our lines. Unfortunately, stripers have become so scarce that they are no longer included in the annual fishing derby.

Menemsha JettyWith a little encouragement, Herb got his fishing rod out and joined the other fishermen on the jetty. Unfortunately, no one was having too much luck, even though the Annual Fishing Derby was in full swing. The word was that the fish just weren’t coming in yet.

Since nothing much was going on in terms of fish on the jetty, we started reminiscing about past times here.

Moshup Beach at sunsetI remember coming to the Vineyard once in October before Herb and I were married. We came down to Menemsha to watch the sunset and do some fishing. We didn’t have much money then, so we were going to cook dinner on Herb’s camping stove on the jetty.

I was not exactly a very good cook then – not that I am that great now – but I was particularly inexperienced at the time.

Moshup Beach at sunsetI did not understand the concept of how much rice expands when you cook it. Before I knew it, I had enough rice to feed a family of 10 and it was bubbling over the pot onto the jetty. I think that is when Herb realized he wanted to marry me. Somebody had to do it and it’s lasted 40 years.

Done with the fishing portion of the day, we strolled along Dutcher Dock, past the weather-beaten fishing boats and fresh seafood markets.

Moshup Beach at SunsetWe stopped for lunch at The Galley, where I had my first of many clam chowders of the trip.

After a nap back at our house, we headed out once more to Moshup Beach to photograph another beautiful sunset.

Then it was packing up for an early departure tomorrow morning to meet the kids at their ferry in Oak Bluffs to begin our week-long stay in Edgartown. Very very excited!