road trip day 27: nantucket to plymouth

Leaving Nantucket was hard. Brian even cried. But we were on to bigger and better things...Plymouth, Massachusetts. Plymouth, for those of you who don't remember elementary school history, was the first established colony in New England, where pilgrims disembarked the Mayflower and almost froze to death. It is also the site of the first Thanksgiving.  What Plymouth no longer contains is anything interesting whatsoever. There are no Pilgrims running about, no Mayflower (there is a Mayflower II but that's another story) and no wild turkeys begging to be eaten. The only thing that remains from 1620 is Plymouth Rock. And its history is questionable. It is really a big rock with 1620 carved on it. There is a guy hired by the city to stand by this rock and speak to strangers. He told us that the rock wasn't carved until the 18th century...and he wasn't even sure if it was the original "rock" the pilgrims saw. Thank you Plymouth!

nantucket on bicycle

Road Trip day 26:

When we embarked on this road-trip, I didn't really contemplate the repercussions of sitting hours upon hours a day. Well needless to say, we could use some exercise, so it was nice to rely on our bikes to get us around. Nantucket in late October was a perfect place to bike. We decided to weave in and out of the narrow cobblestone roadways, all the while drooling over stunning "cottages" (aka mansions).

While we were in Maine, we discovered a delicious beer called the "Grey Lady," and came to find out that it was actually brewed in Nantucket. So we decided to go find the source! Bike three miles inland from the main town and you'll run into Cisco Brewers. It started as a vineyard and branched out into a brewery and distillery. The property is charming, with none of the pretense that sometimes follows tasting rooms. The bartender was two years younger than me and a local. We chatted with him while sampling pretty much every beer they had to offer. I'm not a beer person, but I am a huge fan of their beer! After getting nice and tipsy, we ventured over to the other building, the winery tasting room. We tasted wines with another nice bartender, who told us the grapes come from Yakima, Washington. Go figure! He also took us out back and showed us where they distill their $250 a bottle whiskey. He also let us taste the stuff, which was definitely smooth but probably more alcohol than we needed at that point. It was nearing dusk and after spending three hours drinking, Brian and I figured it was probably best to hop back on our bikes. After the first attempt to peddle, we realized we were both, without a doubt, hammered! Nothing beats a long walk home pushing your bikes to sober you up!

I highly recommend biking around Nantucket. Moving slower around the island gives you a real feel for the place and lets you discover roads and areas that are otherwise inaccessible in a car.  

road trip day 25: nantucket

I am in love. Nantucket is perfect. But before I start gushing, i'll bore you to death with the details.
To get to Nantucket, you must sell your first born child. I'm not kidding. This place will suck the dollars out of your wallet before you even open it. You have to catch a ferry to reach the Island of Nantucket, located 30 miles from southern Cape Cod. The ferry, for two walk-on's and bicycles was $98. I'm still not even kidding. In Washington, for a walk-on, the ferry would cost you less than $10! So we shed a few tears, and grabbed our bikes to hop aboard the ferry. It had been Brian's dream to visit Nantucket ever since he read the book, "In the Heart of the Sea," which is about the real ship wreck that was the inspiration behind Moby Dick. Nantucket for many years in the early 19th century was the capital of whaling. After the decline of the whaling industry, Nantucket became obsolete for almost a century until the first tourists arrived. Tourists haven't stopped coming since, and for good reason. Nantucket is charming, a mix of old-world cobblestoned streets and New-England charm. We decided to spend two nights on Nantucket at one of the island's inns. The first night, as we settled into a hot toddy at the bar of a cozy wood-laden pub, we knew we were hooked.