Dan, I used to be based in Westbrook CT, so here are my recommendations for Eastern Long Island Sound. This is based on several summer cruises on our C&C 34 with wife and two younger teenagers. Westbrook - slip at Brewer's. Huge full-service yard. Pool, showers, restaurant (expensive). Gas BBQ grills and picnic tables at the head of each dock. There is a picnic area at the channel entrance with gas grills, picnic tables, and a clubhouse with kitchen facilities and a TV room. Great spot to hang out in the evening and watch the boat traffic. That was our regular hangout. Mystic - slip at Brewer's. On the right, just before the railroad bridge. Easy dinghy ride to the town dock. Decent swimming pool. Be careful to stay in the channel, and do NOT try to cut left of the rockpile at the entrance to Noank (you'll see what I mean - there's a confusing dogleg). Get ice-cream at the store by the lifting bridge. Of course the Seaport Museum. In general, any Brewer's yard along LIS is a good stopover. Shelter Island - good moorings at Piccozzi's Dering Harbor Marina. Decent showers. Nice small town with decent bars and restaurants. Explore the island by bike - rentals at Piccozzi's garage. Fun trip in through Plum Gut. Newport - we would stay at Dutch Harbor. Moorings for rent, launch service, showers and laundry. Walk to foodstore and restaurants. Harbor shuttle across to Newport. More peaceful than craziness of Newport. Martha's Vineyard - we were disappointed with available moorings. The best we found were in Vineyard Haven. Services not great, and serious wakes from car-ferries. Still, the Vineyard is a must-see. Rent a Jeep. Go to the Jaws locations. Block Island - Great Salt Pond. Rather than scramble for town moorings, we would book a "slip" at Champlin's Marina. In reality, you're likely rafted, and it gets very congested with powerboats at weekends. Still, it is a fun experience. Decent pool, bars, takeout pizza, cinema (for kids), all without leaving the marina. And then of course there's Block to explore! Rent bikes. Great beaches. Cuttyhunk is our favorite destination. If you get there on time, there are town moorings in the inner harbor. Otherwise, plenty of moorings available outside, but with more wave action. Beautiful island. No cars, one small restaurant, boat goes around each evening selling fresh shellfish and lobsters. Great beaches (at harbor entrance, and over the bar at the far side). Channel can be tricky, so be careful. Last time we were there, we watched another sailboat solidly aground on a falling tide. No fun. Cape Cod Canal is a beautiful ride. Make sure to time your transits with the tides. Some serious wave action on the southern entrance - you'll be surfing in, then it gets flat. Sandwich Marina is a decent stop at the northern exit from the CCC. showers, food-store nearby, decent restaurants. Feel free to discuss more offline. damian.gre...@yahoo.com Damian GreeneC&C 34 GHOSTBass Harbor, Maine
_______________________________________________
Email address: CnC-List@cnc-list.com To change your list preferences, including unsubscribing -- go to the bottom of page at: http://cnc-list.com/mailman/listinfo/cnc-list_cnc-list.com
