Nantucket Charter/Bareboat

[disco_stu]

Hello

I will be in Nantucket this summer and would like to do some charter sailing. There are not many companies in the area who offer bareboat. I have sailed in the NE frequently, and want to take my family out for a few days around Nantucket/Martha's etc.

Any insight on charter companies in the area?

Thanks!

[Shrew]

Honestly, I'm not sure I would call Nantucket Sound "Charter Friendly". It is riddle with shoals and strong currents. Woods Hole is sketchy if you time the tides wrong.

There are limited destinations in Nantucket Sound (Nantucket, Edgartown, Oak Bluffs, Vineyard Haven, Hyannis, and maybe Hadley Harbor). Oak Bluffs and Hadley and Hyannis are tiny. From Nantucket to Cuttyhunk would be a multi-day sail on a charter.

You'd have better luck doing a bareboat out of Newport.

[dcondit]

I don't think there are boats available at the islands, so you'll need to use one of the charter companies on the mainland. I recommend New England Sailing Center. I've used them and then taken friends/family over to the islands. They have a a variety of nice boats and are easy to work with.

[sogin]

Originally Posted by Shrew

Honestly, I'm not sure I would call Nantucket Sound "Charter Friendly". It is riddle with shoals and strong currents. Woods Hole is sketchy if you time the tides wrong.

There are limited destinations in Nantucket Sound (Nantucket, Edgartown, Oak Bluffs, Vineyard Haven, Hyannis, and maybe Hadley Harbor). Oak Bluffs and Hadley and Hyannis are tiny. From Nantucket to Cuttyhunk would be a multi-day sail on a charter.

You'd have better luck doing a bareboat out of Newport.

Nantucket sound, Martha's vineyard and Buzzard's bay are great places to sail but "dcondit" is correct - I think it would be challenging to find a charter from any of the Marina's in that area. As for shoals and strong currents, there are very few shoal areas that will cause problems and all are well marked. Currents can reach more than 2 knots but you can use them to your advantage. Woods Hole passage is hardly sketchy - you just need to remember that the red-green convention marks passage towards Boston. Currents can reach 4 or more knots but again the peak velocities are short lived and can be advantageous. The number of interesting harbors and "warm weather" are numerous - Our favorites include many listed by Shrew (Edgartown, Nantucket, Hadley, Cuttyhunk) but also Woods Hole, Falmouth Harbor, Tashmoo, Menemsha as well as many in Buzzard's Bay (Reb Brook Harbor, Padanaram, Marion, West Port etc.

[dcondit]

One other things I just thought about -- if you've got some extra coin, you may be able to get one of the shore side charter companies to bring the boat to you.

[hlev00]

I charted a boat out of Buzzards Bay through Swift Yacht Charters. Give them a call.

crewed and bareboat charters british virgin islands, usvi, bahamas yacht charters, new england sailing, yacht broker

[mochifanta]

I completed a bareboat charter booked through sailo.com and Dream Yacht Charters out of Warwick, RI. We sailed to Cuttyhunk and on to Menemsh, Vineyard Haven, and Edgartown on Martha’s Vineyard.

It was pretty straightforward and manageable. I have read a lot of horror stories about DYC, but this went off without a hitch.

7 days with the family on a Lagoon 380.