We treat all of our guest as the unique people they are. Our goal is to offer our guests a custom itinerary and sailplan that works best for them and their party. Below is a menu of ideas that we can use to build a custom itinerary for your time aboard Our Passion.
Day Trips
Around the Bay Day Sail – Based on the tides and currents, we can always create a sailplan that will allow our guests to experience a few hours of sailing around Buzzards Bay or Vineyard Sound depending from where our guests would like to embark. We know many coves and lagoons to drop the anchor to enjoy a break and a snack, and then we can sail back to the same place we started.
Sunrise and Sunset Sails – Our favorite time of day to sail is when the sun is rising or setting. The light on the water and the ability to enjoy the Earth and Ocean transitioning between day and night from a boat is priceless. Our vessel is well equipped to operate during the evening based on the timing of sunrise or sunset. We can organize a three or four hour itinerary that will allow you to enjoy the transitional times of sunrise and sunset.
Explore Cuttyhunk – Ten miles south of Padanaram Harbor and 15 miles west of Vineyard Haven, Cuttyhunk is Massachusetts smallest island town with a year round population of approximately 20 people. The island has a beautiful harbor with a lobster shack that serves the freshest lobster you will ever eat at. A twenty minute uphill walk from the landing rewards guests with the highest point overlooking all of Buzzards Bay, Vineyard Sound, the Gay Head Cliffs and Block Island Sound. Our Cuttyhunk trips are for customers who are looking for a more extended trip. The island is 2hrs from Padanaram and 3hrs from Vineyard Haven each way. The trip will take the majority of one day and is best started before 10am on a summer day. The trip can be combined or shortened with a stop or drop off in Menemsha Harbor on Martha’s Vineyard.
Harbor Party – If our guests prefer, we can use the vessel as a floating platform for a harbor party. Enjoy music in the cockpit and the coming and going of the other boats in the harbor. Sunbathe or relax in the shade. Sit on the bow or enjoy the stern platform. Go for dinghy rides in our hard bottom RIB tender. We can also move the boat short distances to find the most secluded spots for quiet and privacy.
Nonquit and Round Hill – We begin our tour in Padanaram Harbor in Dartmouth Massachusetts which was recently voted best Harbor in the United States twice in the span of a few years by USHarbors.com. The harbor is filled with quintessential New England charm and filled with sail and power boats of all sizes. A true yachtsman’s harbor and enjoyable all by itself. As we depart the harbor, guests are brought out into the wide open expanses of Buzzards Bay but still protected from the prevailing Southwest wind by the beautiful shores of Dartmouth which are lined with summer mansions. As we continue south, we pass Nonquit; quite possibly the first gated summer cottage community in the United States, which is still home to exclusive mansions of old money families. As we continue south we will have a choice based on the exact wind conditions and sea state at that moment to go outward into the bay to circle White Rock, named for the deposits left by the areas many avian residents, or to stay close to shore as Nonquit’s beaches turn into the shoreline fronting the Hetty Green Mansion also know as Round Hill. If the conditions are right and time allows, we can proceed a little further south to the tip of South Dartmouth where, on a clear day, full views of Buzzards Bay and the Forbes family’s’ Elizabeth Islands, punctuated by Cuttyhunk Island frame the other side of Buzzards Bay. This tour can be enjoyed in almost any weather conditions and also makes for a great sunset over the hills of Dartmouth while reentering Padanaram Harbor. This trip can be achieved in as little as two hours or can be done at a more leisurely pace in four to six hours. A longer pace would allow for dropping the anchor, going for a swim and a snack as well as time to spend in Padanaram looking at what the harbor has to offer.
One Way Trips – are always negotiable. If you have always wanted to have the experience of departing from one harbor and arriving somewhere else by sailboat, we can accommodate this. On the Vineyard, we recommend Vineyard Haven to Edgartown, Oak Bluffs, or Menemsha or any other combination of the four ports. On the mainland, Padanaram (Dartmouth Harbor) to New Bedford/Fairhaven, Mattapoisett or Marion or any other combination of the four are also possible.
Guests are welcome to help the crew with the sailing tasks as much or as little as they would like and we are always willing to teach beginners and intermediate sailors about the boat and how to sail. Guests are also welcome to just sit back and relax and watch the crew perform their tasks.
Food and Drinks should be brought by our guests. The vessel is equipped with a refrigerator and freezer. If you have any allergies or preferences, please let us know in advance so we can help make your trip more enjoyable.
We will make every effort to sail however not all combinations of weather patterns/conditions and wind directions will allow for all itineraries to be made entirely under sail. The vessel is equipped with a 58 horsepower diesel motor that allows for motoring or motor sailing in almost all conditions. Some trips will be made entirely or partially under power from the motor. All safe efforts can be made to sail if that is the choice of the guests and it is deemed to be safe by the Captain.