An island south of Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard is well known for its country feeling, its beaches and some of its wealthy residents. In the summer it can get very busy and the ferry is often fully booked, but it is easy to get to by bike! There are also several bike trails on the island, so it is easy to get around without a car. But the main roads are busy and narrow, so we stuck to the trails and used the bus to get to/from the west side of the island.
The itinerary for our three day trip was:
- Day 1: Parked the car at a friend’s house near Woods Hole on Cape Cod and caught the noon ferry to Oak Bluffs. Biked to our campsite south of Tisbury and set up our tent. Then biked into Vineyard Haven for apero.
- Day 2: Biked from our campsite to Oak Bluffs to check out the Gingerbread Houses and Tabernacle. Then biked to Edgartown to have lunch and explore the town. We then caught the bus to Aquinnah to check out the beach and a coastal road. We took another bus to West Tidsbury and then biked back to our campsite via the State Forest Bike Trail.
- Day 3: We packed up our stuff and biked into Oak Bluffs to catch an 11 am ferry.
In general, we had a great visit. The island was busy, even in June, and the bike infrastructure was not as nice as we were expecting. But, there were so many bikes everywhere and it truly had island vibes!
Getting to/from Martha’s Vineyard
There are several ferries that go to Martha’s Vineyard from Cape Cod. We opted for the Steamship Authority ferry from Woods Hole at the southeastern tip of Cape Cod. From here ferries go to both Vineyard Haven and Oak Bluffs. The cost was $20 USD / person, plus $8 USD / bike for a round trip fare. We arrived 10 minutes before the departure and had no problem getting on.
We took the Oak Bluffs ferry simply because the timing was more convenient. The Vineyard Haven ferry terminal is closer to the Martha’s Vineyard Family Campground, but we didn’t mind the extra 5 km to get to Oak Bluffs because there is a nice bike path along Beach Rd.
Oak Bluffs ferry terminal to campground – Long Way
When we arrived in Oak Bluffs it was pouring, so we sheltered under the covered boardwalk for about an hour. We passed the time eating lunch and playing crib — Adrien won. We then decided to take the long way (18km) to reach Martha’s Vineyard Family Campground because we couldn’t check in until 3pm. We biked along Seaview Road and Beach Road on what was mostly a shared path. We then turned right onto Edgartown-Vineyward Haven Road and took the path the rest of the way to the campsite. The path was next to a main road, so it was a little noisy, but very nice that it was separated.
Campground to Oak Bluff’s ferry terminal – Short way
When we left our campsite to go back to the ferry terminal we took a more direct path (8km). We took the bike path along Edgartown-Vineyward Haven Road until Skiff Ave where we meandered our way through side streets to get to the bike lane on Beach Ave. We then followed the bike signs to take side streets past the Gingerbread Houses and on to the ferry terminal.
Martha’s Vineyard Family Campground
We spent two nights in this campground located south of Vineyard Haven. The cost was steep at $65 USD / night for a walk-in site, but it was the only campground on the island, so our options were limited. We were given campsite Q4, which was tucked in the woods, about 200m from the main area and the bathrooms. We were able to bike all the way to our site, but the ground was a bit sandy and pebbly in areas. It was nice and quiet in June and the fireflies came out at night!
The campground was well equipped with a convenience store, games room and dish-washing area. It was also centrally located which made it a good place to explore the island from.
Vineyard Haven (i.e. Tisbury)
The first day, after checking into our campsite, we biked a few kilometers to Vineyard Haven (called Tisbury on the map). We stumbled upon a group of men racing model sailboats on the dock, which was pretty entertaining. We then sat at a picnic table by the beach and had apéro. We did a quick tour of the town before returning to the campground.
Oak Bluffs
In Oak Bluffs, we enjoyed biking and walking among the so-called “gingerbread houses”, officially the Martha’s Vineyard Camp Meeting Association. Because we had done no research we had no idea these were here, so it was a nice surprise.
In one of these houses, there is a little museum that recalls the Methodist camp meetings of the 1800s where the original tents were replaced by the cottages of today.
We also went to check the Flying Horses Carousel, a vintage merry-go-round that seemed to be a popular place. It was fun to see riders try to grab for the brass ring to try to win a free ride.
Edgartown
From Oak Bluffs, we took the bike path along Beach Rd. to Edgartown. We parked our bikes at a huge bike rack on the edge of town and walked down to Memorial Wharf, by the ferry terminal. There, we ate lunch at a covered picnic table while watching a small ferry go back and forth to Chappaquiddick. We saw several bikes get on/off this ferry, so it might be a good destination to explore.
After lunch, we walked around town and checked out the Victorian architecture. It is notably different than both Vineyard Haven and Oak Bluffs with signs of wealth prevalent on every street.
Aquinnah
Because we didn’t want to bike 30 km to Aquinnah on a road with no bike lane and no shoulder, we took the VTA bus.
The bus has a bike rack at the front and departs every hour. It took us about an hour to do the trip from Edgartown to Aquinnah.
In Aquinnah, we went up to the Gay Head lighthouse and then down to the cliffs.
We then biked to the mouth of Menemsha Pond, hoping we could take the bike ferry to cross to the other side. How cool would that be?! Unfortunately, on the way there, we saw a sign that said that the ferry was closed so we rushed back to catch the bus. [The website says that it opened on June 30th, 2024 and operates from 9-5]
The State Forest trail
From Aquinnah, we took the bus to West Tisbury then hopped on our bikes again to take the State Forest trail.
To access the trail, we biked north on the Old County Road until we reached a parking lot where we turned right into the forest. We were hoping to access the trail earlier, but couldn’t find any obvious entry point. We tried Elias Lane, but eventually reached a driveway that said Private Property.
Once on the trail, we then went west for 5km on a glorious section of paved trail that passed by a large meadow. The trail then turned northward and turned noticeably rougher. There were large cracks in the pavement across the entire width of the trail that were hard on the wrists. Still a nice passable trail, just tougher. The trail eventually reached Airport Road that had a bike trail on the side. From there, we biked back to the campground.
But then, as we were arriving at the campground, Adrien realized that he had forgotten the saddlebag with the passports, the car key and the money in it! Justine rushed back to the bus stop, which by then was 12 km away, while Adrien tried to find someone who would call a taxi in the hope that he could get there faster.
Thankfully, when Justine arrived at the West Tisbury bus stop, she found the bag untouched, sitting on a bench, waiting to be picked up! She breathed a sigh of relief, snacked on some chips, and then biked another 12 km back to the campground. She was exhausted, but treated to a beautiful pink sky at dusk. She also saw 5 deer, at least 10 wild turkeys and countless fireflies!
Final Thoughts
Martha’s Vineyard was pretty easy to travel by bike, especially if you add in a few bus trips. The ferries are cheap and you don’t need to book them in advance if travelling by bike.
Because we had good weather we were able to see almost everything we wanted in three days, but if we had more time we probably would have tried actually relaxing at a beach. There is only one campground on the island though, and we imagine it is pretty full in the high season, so last minute trips might be tough.
Despite decent bike infrastructure, the culture on the island is still very car-centric and the roads are narrow. Most of the “trails” are multi-use paths just next to the road so they can be busy and noisy, but they are better than many of the roads that had no shoulders.
We really enjoyed our trip and were pleasantly surprised by the history of the small towns. The amount of wealth on the island was somewhat shocking and we felt a bit out of place in our sweaty clothes!
We are very happy we went, but it won’t be a regular vacation spot for us!
Be Active Like V 