Martha's Vineyard, Mass. (May, September, October)
Scheduled trips: Please
contact us to schedule a custom trip!
Trip Cost: $1,695 - (5 Days/4
Nights)
There is a $300 single supplement charge
Five miles off Cape Cod's
southern shore, this island has long been a favorite destination for exploration and
recreation. Famous for its beauty and diverse
geographical landscape, visitors to The
Vineyard quickly become enchanted by "the land beyond the sea beyond the land". Its
maritime climate creates a long warm autumn that we like to take advantage of, and that
can even include a pleasant ocean swim or two!
Scenic beaches, the traditional cedar-shake saltbox-type houses, and a
variety of land preserves are among the many attractions for walkers here. Since we plan
this outing after the busy summer season is over, we can also enjoy interesting town
walks in historic Vineyard Haven, Oak Bluffs, and Edgartown without the hustle-bustle of
tourist season.
Perhaps the most surprising feature is the hilly middle section - the
terminal moraine ridges and hillocks left by the glaciers which formed the island. A
favorite walk that highlights this is the one to Wascosims Rock, a giant "glacial
erratic" deposited on the moraine, and the superb view from the nearby "summit". Another
surprise is the beautiful, diverse woodlands found in several locales from dwarf,
wind-sculpted oak-and-beech forest to the open, aromatic pine forests.
Other interesting activities include
seeing the "gingerbread" cottages in Oak Bluffs, the Chicama Vineyards, which are the
first plantings of European wine grapes in the state since colonial days, and the beach
stroll below the mile-long clay cliffs of Gay Head in Aquinnah on the west side of the
island.
We stay at a secluded, mid-island lodging that is comfortable and
oh-so-peaceful. No activity is longer than a 1/2 hour drive away. Dinners are at some of
the finest island restaurants.