Up at 4.30am. Set off at 6.30am and drove to Woods Hole ferry terminal in Massachusetts. Uneventful journey at that time of the morning. Advice was to arrive an hour before your sailing to Martha's Vineyard which we did exactly. Got put in a lane to wait for the 8.35am ferry to Oaks Bluff. Then some cars in our lane started moving. Got to the front and was asked if we wanted to catch the 8.15am ferry instead. Said yep, so drove onto the ferry.
Ensured parking brake was on. Unlike the Lake Michigan ferry we could stay in the car but eventually we decided to go up to the passenger deck. Went and looked out the front of the boat but it looked too cold and windy so we didn't go out. Sat down and thought about how to use our bit of extra time when we arrived. Also had to see which dock we were going to. Turns out we were heading to Vineyard Haven.
Got called back to vehicles and then were unloaded very quickly. We drove to the Black Dog Bakery Cafe. Got drink and doughnut and sat for some time. Was fascinated by the man making the orders because every time he called a name out it sounded exactly the same no matter what the name was.
Eventually we left and drove to our first stop, Martha's Vineyard Museum which opened at 10am. Took the first photo outside when we saw this.
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| I want them hung up by their Buster Browns |
Went in and then did the museum, they had a special Jaws exhibition to celebrate 50 years since it premiered. Went straight to the rest rooms and as we did so, saw this model which had been made.
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| Der dum |
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| Had to |
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| and again |
Got annoyed by a family who seemed to think it was ok just to move and stand in front of you whilst you were reading the information about an exhibit. Was some interesting stuff although there wasn't a massive amount of things to see other than the Jaws stuff.
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| One of the two actual Ben Gardner heads used in filming |
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| Quint's actual harpoon |
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| One of the barrels. |
It started to get busy so we left. Next stop was Edgartown which was used as the backdrop for the town in the film. Drove south and soon found out it was very busy in the centre of town. Very very busy. Tried to find somewhere to park but it was rammed. Eventually gave up and started heading out, but suddenly we saw a space in some on street parking so nipped in.
Had a walk about the town to see some of the filming locations and to do some shopping.
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| Where Mrs Kintner slaps Chief Brody |
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| The ferry where the Mayor tells the Chief it wasn't a shark |
Bought some stuff from a shop. Got chatting to the guy in the shop. He asked how Europe was viewing the States at the moment and thanked us for coming over on holiday. He spoke about how the island has changed from being very sleepy pre Jaws to the mayhem it is now. He then gave us a photo of people outside the premier of Jaws fifty years ago.
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| Free gift |
We headed back to the car and drove out of town towards, quoting Independence Day, 'the big Tomali', the iconic Jaws bridge. Parked up on the roadside and went to have a look.
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| Shark! in the pond! |
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| The pond |
Went back to the car and watched the bit it features in to work out where each bit was filmed. Satisfied we'd done that we drove along the road and parked up so we could see the beach. Ate a packed lunch in the car as it was very cold and windy outside. Found out that all return ferries from Oaks Buff were being moved to Vineyard Haven due to the conditions.
We were going to head over to the other side of the island to see Menemsha and Aquinnah but realised it was an hour and a half round trip and we would barely have time there. Headed instead to Oak Bluffs to have a look around there instead but it was rammed as well and we could not find a parking spot despite two attempts going round. So we decided to head back to Vineyard Haven and park up there instead. Found this also rammed however did get lucky again and managed to get an on street spot. Mooched around the shops but they weren't great.
Eventually it started raining so we headed to the car and back to the ferry terminal. Sat in the queue before boarding. Didn't bother getting out the car on the journey, just reclined the seat and tried to sleep.
Got off the ferry quite quickly again despite being parked at the side amongst all the support poles. Drove the hour back home in the pouring rain. Had dinner watching Jaws of course so we could see all the places we had been.
Now absolutely knackered and ready for bed. Tomorrow morning we pack up and leave for our very last spot before heading home at the weekend.
States visited - 14
