Late Onset.

We are underway westbound in Buzzards Bay, bound for Newport, Rhode Island. We've been in Massachusetts for a little over six weeks. As enjoyable as it has been, we wanted to reserve a little of what's left of the season for New York, and we have a stop to make at the boatyard that will cost us a week or two.

Vector at anchor in Onset Bay, as seen from Wickets Island.

In my push to get the last post done and posted while we were underway, I managed to omit an important milestone, namely our 21st "nomadiversary," which passed on our final day in Cambridge. Our peripatetic life is now old enough to drink. We did lift a glass to mark the occasion at dinner.

Shortly after I posted the blog, we made the turn into Onset Bay, which, at nearly max current in the canal, involved a couple of very big rolls as I centered the boat in the channel in a broadside cross-current. This somewhat tricky entrance is old hat for us now, and I was ready for the eddy right at the entrance to try to spin us around. We had the hook down in our usual spot (map) before 4pm, and we tendered ashore for a pizza and a pitcher at Marc Anthony's, which has become an Onset arrival tradition for us.

This "toy library" is adjacent the public beach.

Friday the conditions were not favorable on Buzzards Bay to continue, nor was the tide cycle favorable for westbound current in the morning, and so we settled in for the day. I had a nice walk around town, at the end of which I stopped in to the market for some stout, and the local Ace hardware just to browse. They have a great selection of stainless fasteners and some marine hardware, and I was stunned to find a very good price on Rustoleum Cold Galvanizing Spray, so I grabbed a can. I had been disappointed when I went down to our paint locker during the thruster replacement to find I had none aboard.

1883 Lounge at the Glen Cove Hotel.

At dinner time we returned to the historic Glen Cove Hotel, which looks for all the world like a haunted house from Disney or maybe the Addams Family. This time we dined in the 1883 Lounge, which is in the basement with the exposed stone foundation from that year. It was quite interesting, even though there is no natural light whatsoever. The prime rib, offered on weekends, was tempting but we felt we could not do it justice and we each ordered something lighter instead. We were done and gone before the musicians even arrived to set up.

Having stayed through Friday, we were now committed to stay through Sunday as well. Just driving the boat on the second- or third-busiest boating weekend of the year is a challenge, but finding anchorage at the end of the day is nigh impossible. Places like Cuttyhunk, Woods Hole, Marthas Vineyard, and even New Bedford are popular destinations even on normal weekends, and are overbooked on the holiday. Newport would be right out, and even Onset was busy.

I paid $2 for a day pass, though I only needed to spend $1.50 for the round trip. Next month the bus service will become free, as it had been in New Bedford on our last visit.

The Onset/Wareham buses only run six days a week, and so on Saturday I made an excursion to the Cranberry Plaza to pick up a few things. I replenished the "disposable" paint brush supply at Dollar Tree and loaded up on groceries at the Stop & Shop. They do not carry beer so I also stopped at the package store next door, where I was happy to discover the Sam Adams Octoberfest is now available. With an hour to kill between buses I also browsed Tractor Supply, but needed nothing there.

We tendered back ashore for dinner at the Stonebridge Bar & Grill, who have the least expensive lobster rolls we've seen in quite some time. On our walk afterward we noticed the town starting to fill up for the annual Illuminations festival. We only knew about this because the police had set up road signs warning about the traffic. There was music in the park all evening, and at 9pm, 1,500 red flares were lit all around Onset Bay. We took it all in from our flybridge; it was impressive, and more pleasant than we had expected. The anchorage and moorings were full for the event.

Illuminations.

After the show the rest of the evening was quiet. Well, right until Louise turned in for the night, when I noticed flashlights just off our bow, where a big Krogen was trying to drop anchor, literally right on top of ours. I barked at them on the radio, Louise came back upstairs, and moments later the harbormaster, who was out and about patrolling after the chaos of festival departures, intervened. I think someone from the patrol boat actually boarded the Krogen to help them get situated, as they were clearly fatigued and confused. They left at 5:30am, so I expect they were not any more rested at their next port.

I tried to capture the scale with this 360° video. The gaps are where there are docks or rocks instead of beach.

Yesterday was a quiet day aboard after a morning walk. For dinner we walked to Quahog Republic, completing the entire circuit of Onset dinner joints. The beachfront place next to the town pier went out of business earlier in the month, closing for the season before even completing their live entertainment bookings. We decked the tender after returning to Vector for an early start today.

This row of gray circles on the beach at Wickets Island are the ashes of the flares.

As I finish typing the plotter is projecting an arrival into Newport by 2:30. Marine Traffic shows a giant exodus from the harbor, which gives me some hope for a good spot in the anchorage. We need to be moving on from there by Wednesday or Thursday to make Long Island Sound before the weather turns against us, and I am hoping we'll get a chance to see our friends in town in the two or three nights we'll be there.