I visited my sister on Martha's Vineyard from October 12-17, 2023.
The first step (besides the six hour drive to Woods Hole) is to
take a ferry to the Island.
I took a bunch of pictures on the ferry. Here are some highlights.
This ferry I was on had a proper bow and stern
(front and back, but in a way that sounds more nautical). The other
one has dual bridges, so what's the bow on one trip is the stern on
the other. The vehicles in the ferry drive straight through. So
for our trip, we backed out of the dock, turned around and went to
the island, and then backed into the dock. It makes sense if you
think about it or draw a diagram. The trip takes about 45 minutes
and the sun was setting when we arrived.
Below is a brief video of the ship's wake while we were en route.
001-DSC_7311: The end of the ship, while docked at Woods Hole,
pointing away from land.
002-DSC_7314: Looking beyond the dock (the starboard/right side).
003-DSC_7316: The other side (port/left side).
004-DSC_7317: The back of the wheelhouse or bridge.
005-DSC_7319: The area around Woods Hole.
006-DSC_7323: The dock we just departed. Two other docks are to the
right and left.
007-ferry_Panorama1: The smallest panorama, just 2 pictures stitched
together, looking to the right of the dock before we turned around.
008-DSC_7331-header: The High Seas (or Vineyard Sound)
008-DSC_7331-headertext:
008-DSC_7331: The bridge of the ferry.
010-DSC_7334: A red buoy clanging in the water. I recorded a video
but it was all wind.
012-DSC_7340: The wake from the ferry.
013-DSC_7343: The wavey wake from the ferry.
014-DSC_7344: The wavey wake from the ferry reflecting the late day sunlight.
015-DSC_7347: The sunlight across the water.
016-DSC_7350: Sunlight on the water.
017-DSC_7352: Sun reflecting off the water with the horizon above.
018-DSC_7359: A tugboat is hauling a barge, with a ferry in the ditance
behind it.
019-DSC_7361: The tugboat pulling a barge.
020-DSC_7362: The tugboat.
021-DSC_7363: And the barge being towed.
022-DSC_7364: As we leave, the other ferry arrives.
023-DSC_7366: The Island Home ferry, which is symmetric front-to-back and
has two bridges. It never has to back up.
024-DSC_7368: Hey, that's my shadow on the telescope.
025-DSC_7370: That made me want to take more shadow pictures against the ship.
026-DSC_7371: And me waving while holding the camera in the shadowed area.
027-DSC_7372-header: Approaching The Island
027-DSC_7372-headertext:
027-DSC_7372: The East Chop lighthouse is visible in the center of this photo.
030-DSC_7375: The ferry dock is to the right of the boat in the center
of the picture.
031-DSC_7376: East Chop lighthouse in the center of the picture.
032-DSC_7377: Another picture of East Chop lighthouse.
034-DSC_7381: The Katama, a smaller freight ferry, is heading to Woods Hole.
035-DSC_7383: The entrance to Oak Bluffs harbor, the tops of the churches
in the Campground are visible on the horizon in the center.
036-DSC_7384: The sun just over the horizon of Martha's Vineyard from the ferry.
037-DSC_7387-header: Arriving at Oak Bluffs
037-DSC_7387-headertext:
037-DSC_7387: The entrance to the Oak Bluffs harbor.
038-DSC_7389: A more sunset-y version of the Oak Bluffs harbor entrance photo.
039-DSC_7390: The dock for the ferry that sticks out from shore.
040-DSC_7392: Getting closer to the Oak Bluffs ferry dock.
041-DSC_7396: The boat aims just beyond the far bumper and then backs
into the dock.
042-DSC_7398: The boat revs the engines to slow down as it gets close,
churning the water.
043-DSC_7399: The door where the cars are opens.
044-DSC_7400: Closer...
045-DSC_7402: Another engine rev to slow down further.
046-DSC_7403: About a meter or a yard away from the car ramp.
047-DSC_7405: Docked. The ramp is lowered securing the boat and lines
are tied too.
048-DSC_7409: A view of the Oak Bluffs pier at sunset from the ferry.
Bottom: