Long Island - heading east to the Hamptons

Finally our part arrived, Mark fitted it and we were ready to head off, we had decided that we had become so sick of motoring that we would only move on if we could sail.  So we left Port Washington for Huntington, we left with sails up but by the time we were out of the Bay and in Long Island Sound the winds were light and we were motor sailing! So much for no motoring!  But it was great to see so many other sail boats, it was the weekend and there was racing and cruising boats heading in all directions.

This was a short hop 17  miles to Huntington, we never went into the main harbour but anchored off a sandy beach, it actually looked quite appealing, the water was looking slightly less like a muddy river.

Beach at Huntington

Next day we were off again and yes there was more motoring! It seemed that we just had the main sail up for show! But we preserved and at any opportunity tried to sail.  Next stop was Port Jefferson.  Being a Sunday it was busy with boats in and out of the harbour plus the ferry which sends a huge wash down the entire harbour every hour!

Port Jefferson ferry

The shelter is good in the harbour as you can tuck round behind a sand bar, which was good because as we anchored the wind started to pick up from the north and blow directly into the harbour.  There was quite a bit of swell wrapping round the sand bar which made for a bumpy night.

Next day and we moved to try to get close to the town but the harbour is full of moorings and we did not want to pick up a mooring at it would have cost us over $75 for the night.  We managed to sneak in a little further but we still had a lengthy dingy ride into town, we were also not impressed by the $10 fee to park your dingy, not very welcoming.

Busy Port Jefferson harbour

The town is just a few streets mainly for the tourists with restaurants, cafes, some tourist shops including a really good Tea Shop.  There was a small deli to pick up a few essentials and then we found a coffee shop and took advantage of their internet.

The next day was a windy one and we sat at anchor and were unable to get off the boat, these days are always frustrating!

At least we were treated to a lovely sunset

When we could final leave we had another long day, the morning was filled with motoring frustration but thankfully the wind picked and and we had a fantastic sail most of the afternoon and into the evening.  We were now at the east end of Long Ilsnad and rounded into the forks, The scenery here is very pretty, it is lush and green with little rocky out crops and various small island.  First stop was Sag Harbour, this is part of Southampton ( the Hamptons) and we where told it would be full of Superyachts.  There were a few large powerboats in the marina but not quite what you find in some of the luxury resorts in the Med – Palma and Porto Cervo. 

Anchorage at Sag Harbour - you can see a few of the larger powerboats in the marina

Sag Harbour marina - on a very grey day!

The village is small, there are quite a few antique shops, cafes and restaurants.  What is nice about this location is the have not been able to knock down the original properties so often the shops are in the front room of what was originally a house.  The Sag harbour coffee house was pretty good to kill an hour but not much else to see.

Next day we moved from Sag Harbour on the south fork to Greenport on the north fork, only around 15 miles.  Greenport had a bit more going on than Sag Harbour, here rather than the antique shops there were Art Galleries along with the cafes and restaurants that make up this small touristy resort.  Greenport did have more for the locals and here was a nice farmers market on the Saturday. 

Sandy spit on entrance into Greenport

Sun setting from the anchorage tucked in behind the seawall - still pretty rolly

View to Shelter Island from anchorage