This year’s Head of the Charles Regatta was bittersweet.  We rowed not just for us but for our coxswain Mary, our crew mate Linda and last but not least Little Snook, taken from us way too soon.  We rowed for friends, family members and crew mates who have battled cancer, are cancer survivors and in memory of those we have lost to the disease.

Flash flood warnings, thunder and lightning the evening before the race found us huddled in our b&b wondering if we were going to be able to row.  We could hear the rain pouring down throughout the night.  But amazingly by morning the rain and wind had stopped and the skies were clear.

It was a good day to row.

In the past we have traveled to Boston just for the Head of the Charles. We fly in, row, watch the collegiate and high school teams row and fly out.  Last year we decided we should take a road trip after the regatta.  But where to?

After much debate:

Me: How about Vermont, hear there’s good pie.

Mary: Pie? Sounds good!

Jane: Drive for pie?

Me & Mary: Yeah, duh.

That Sunday morning we found ourselves headed to Underhill, Vermont.  Four hours later we were standing inside a tiny metal toolshed that had been repurposed into the cute little pie bungalow (too small to be called a shop) Poorhouse Pies.  We picked our pies and dropped our money into the little box on the counter.  Shivering from the cold, our noses running, we sat on the tiny bench next to the shed enjoying the best damn Key Lime Pie ever. Then and there the annual post regatta road trip was born.

This year’s trip found us on the ferry to Martha’s Vineyard in search of lighthouses, lobster rolls and of course pie.  Yee-ha!

STOP.  If you ever decide to take the the ferry to Martha’s Vineyard I suggest you take it from Woods Hole.  Why?  Well, the ferry runs year around from there, important if you are going in the off season.  Ferry service includes transport of cars from there (but you will pay a premium), remember to book in advance.  But the main reason is to stop at Pie In the Sky Bakery and Cafe .  Your trip on the ferry will be ever so much more pleasant with a steaming hot cup of coffee and a scrumptious popover, buttery croissant or muffin from this rustic, cute hole in the wall. It’s literally a stone’s throw away from the Steamship Authority.  The vibe is friendly and the joint is filled with locals and ferry passengers.

 

Martha’s Vineyard here we come.