Today we dropped the dingy and headed to shore to explore Block Island. The cruising guide says there’s a public dingy dock, but doesn’t tell you where it is. On ActiveCaptain, someone mentioned it by the Oars restaurant. I found that on google and pulled up to a broken up dock with barely enough water to bring the dingy in. Time must be tough. We tied up and hit the town.
We were chatting with a couple by public restrooms and they mentioned they’re on a boat. We were the only ones on the dingy dock so I asked where they parked. Come to find out, I was at the old abandoned dock. The city built a new state of the art dingy dock this year. Sue and I ran back and moved our boat before the old dock sank.
The island is nice. More of the Mackinaw Island vibe, not the Put-In-Bay vibe I was worried it might have. I have been told it’s much different during the summer season.
We explored the beaches, walked the streets, stopped in a few shops and finally stopped for lunch. While eating, I checked the weather report and high gust warnings had just been issued.
A cold front was coming through and bringing thunderstorms with it. The warnings said these storms would have gusts to 50mph. We thought it best to head back to the boat just in case the anchor drags. We were also worried about trying to drive and dock the dingy in the waves that come with those high winds. Remember, we’re staying in the free section, it’s a long way from the boat to the dock.
Came back to the boat and relaxed for the rest of the afternoon. The winds did pick up, the storms came, and the gusts were strong. The anchor held and I had the diesel running just in case. The winds also shifted 180 degrees, which can unhook anchored pretty easily.
As promised, I got more pictures:
Kurt & Sue Sail 