Fw: 9 June, 2015. Newport Rhode Island. 41.29.15N 71.19.16W

Alcedo
David Batten
Tue 16 Jun 2015 11:13
8th June, up very early as not meant to have spent the night where we were and motored out of the Mystic River at about 06.30.  Sunny but very cold.  Motor sailing as usual to start with, through the Sugar Reef gap off Watch Hill point with Anthony in the galley preparing breakfast.  By 09.00, full sails and wind at 60 degrees off the bow, going well but really cold with not much sun and disappointingly like sailing in England.  Our cold weather gear is somewhat limited and getting rather too much exposure for anyone’s liking.  We did manage to find a mooring in the harbour, courtesy of Oldport Moorings, with an excellent ferry service even if it did seem a bit pricey at 60$ for the mooring and 3$ per person per ferry ride.  So safely attached to the bottom, we left Alcedo in an increasing and increasingly cold wind in the very mixed company of the ultra expensive and smart super and racing yachts to the tatty and small, while we explored Newport and did the cliff walk which goes along the front of millionaires’ row.
 
Welcome to Newport, taken on the way outvisasmallSetting off on the Cliff Walkdavid
 
The fort at the entrance to Newport, taken on our way out not in!                                                        The start of the Cliff Walk
 
Our walk took us straight past The Breakers, the Vanderbilts’ summer house and so we diverted in to enjoy an excellent tour with in inclusive audio guide, but no photographs in the house.  A very impressive mansion, very well restored and the audio guide gave a fascinating insight into the story of the Vanderbilts and rich Americans of the late 19th Century.   We then made our way back to the boat down Bellevue Avenue, “millionaires’ road” which is a must do on any visit to Newport.
 
Front entrance to the Breakers, Vanderbils' summer cottagevisasmallView from the patio with gardeners at work, The Breakers, Newport RIdavid
 
The front entrance of The Breakers, the grandest of the Newport Summer “Cottages” and the view from the patio at The Breakers, still maintained by the Preservation Society of Newport County.
 
The only photograph allowed giving a taster of the elaborate decor at The Breakers                          visasmallSkipper walking down one of Newport streetsdavid       visasmallFoggy morning in Newport, RI taking the boat apart to try and find Anthony's passportdavid
 
The ceiling of the covered part of the patio at The Breakers.          The Skipper walking down one of the Newport streets.  Searching for missing items in the inaccessible locker space. 
 
The following day was dreary beyond belief, cold and foggy, so at times the other side of the harbour disappeared from view.  The crew, with the exception of Anthony, spent the morning reseating a leaking turning block and drilling into an inaccessible locker space in the hopes of finding a passport, some credit cards and Jane’s missing dollars.  The credit cards did emerge, but sadly no passport or money other than a few euros.  Meanwhile Anthony had found fresh lobsters for supper, which he cooked in the new saucepan purchased by the K-Hs for just such an occasion.   While the lobsters were cooling down after lunch, we visited another fabulous Newport Summer Cottage, The Marble House, built for and under the command of Alva Vanderbilt after her marriage to William Vanderbilt, the younger brother of the Vanderbilt who had The Breakers built.  Money being no object, it has the most fabulous interior with marble walls throughout the downstairs rooms and again, we were supplied with an excellent audio guide.
 
visasmallThe Marble House, Newport, RIdavidvisasmallRosecliff, Bellevue Avenue, Newport RIdavid
  
Marble House from the lawn leading to the sea view.                                                                    Rosecliff, another impressive summer cottage, seen from Bellevue Avenue.
 
After seeing how the other half lived, we stocked up on fresh provisions at the Stop and Shop at the downtown end of Bellevue Avenue and then repaired to the boat for an excellent lobster supper.
 
Tomorrow should be better weather and we are heading for Onset with its narrow entrance off a fast flowing tide down the end of Buzzard’s Bay.
 
Alcedo.