… well not quite the 4th of July … as if you may recall 4th of July last summer was when Hurricane Arthur rolled through. There were actually quite a few boats in Edgartown (and Nantucket Harbors) that broke moorings that day, most I believe smaller boats. Jon Eisberg was nearby, he was in Lake Tashmoo I think, he had an interesting evening if I recall correctly. They postponed the fireworks show that night, because of Arthur, until the next night, Saturday the 5th. We were in Newport on the 4th, it was darn ugly. I thought for sure there'd be carnage ashore the next morning but, surprisingly and fortunately I saw none. We left Newport around noon on the 5th and thought we'd make Woods Hole, but the wind was still blowing 25 to 30 NW, which was perfect really for our trip, we made it to Edgartown. We called ahead and were told moorings were first come first serve, we pulled in around dusk and got a mooring, I think there were a few others left. I paid $40 … which is a steal compared to some $80 you will pay in Nantucket during summer, which IMO is simply ridiculous seeing you can anchor for free a short distance away Nantucket … AND, they charge you for the launch service on top of that !?!

Anyhow, what a lot of folks do in Edgartown for the fireworks show is anchor just outside the harbor, just off the Chappy Beach, there were a lot of boats out there this year, but there was plenty of room. Looked like fun to me. Suspect the anchoring is bomber, nice deep sand, not that much depth, just off the beach. Really Great view of the fireworks show from there. We didn't anchor as it was getting late, sort of dark when we came in, there was a mooring available. The fireworks show from inside the harbor on the mooring was fantastic, we sat there with beers and watched, impressed. Would be a bit better outside for sure.

I thought it was all good. Edgartown is a bit different than I remember, lots of drunk college kids running around Town at the Fourth, I guess because the mainland ferries are so close, but Edgartown is always nice. It will be PACKED for sure. If that's where you want to go I'd get there a day or two early, then if the weather is okay, leave the dingy on the mooring and go anchor outside during the FOURTH and get a good spot for the Show, it's pretty cool. Come back in that night or the next morning. You don't want to be anchored outside off Chappy if the breeze is north and stiff, but any other direction or no breeze you'll be fine. You CANNOT (at least legally) anchor inside the harbor in Edgartown. You probably could sneak away with it for a night or two down harbor closer to Katama Bay where it opens up more, but you won't have nearly as good a view of the fireworks from there.

You can call Charlie Blair, the harbor master, on Tuesday, but I don't think you can make a reservation … maybe you can ? Make sure to ask for Charlie, he's very cool, been around there doing this a long time. At any rate, we paid $40, which is half that of Nantucket. And the night before we paid $65 for an Ida Lewis YC mooring in Newport, so relatively speaking, a fair price and about the norm for Cape and the Islands. I am quite frankly surprised how much moorings cost on Cape Cod in the summer, but then, we are most always at anchor.

Cheers, John