By Johna Till Johnson
Photos by Vladimir Brezina
Greenport (Bay side) around Orient Point to Greenport (Sound side)
17 nautical miles (20 land miles)
(click on photos to expand them—they look a lot better when they’re BIGGER!)
Harbor Knoll
It was an unprecedented delight to wake up to strong coffee and a delicious breakfast of bacon quiche at the Harbor Knoll Bed & Breakfast. I can’t say enough good things about this place and its gracious owners (we chatted with them both). If you’re ever in Greenport, this is a wonderful place to stay. And you can get there without paddling—it’s just around the corner from the Greenport stops of the Hampton Jitney and the Long Island Railroad.
Front the front lawn of Harbor Knoll, a view out onto Greenport Harbor and Shelter Island opposite
Then we thought about today’s paddle. Today would be a short day—we wanted to round Orient Point, but the currents wouldn’t favor us until late afternoon. We figured a launch time around 2 PM would be ideal.
The road into town
So after breakfast, we decided to stroll through Greenport and look at the sights. Much to our surprise, this gracious town featured both of the scary things we’d joked about before the trip, Jaws and Deliverance… though not in the way we’d expected!
The terminus of the Long Island Rail Road is just around the corner
JAWS!!
We pass the dock of the Shelter Island ferry
Johna inspects Greenport
Out to the harbor
We strolled around Greenport’s picturesque harbor…
But what’s this?!
DELIVERANCE!!
After lunch in town, we returned to Harbor Knoll, and begun to pack up the boats. You’d think it would be easier now that we’d done it a few times, and had a comfortable night’s rest. On the contrary, it was particularly challenging this time. We decided that indoor living was making us soft—not that it stopped us from wanting more of it!
We walk back through town…
… to Harbor Knoll
… to the boats
… under the seawall
We packed the boats and set off..
.
.
.
.
We wait for the Shelter Island ferry
Greenport’s ship graveyard
… with an osprey nest
We pass Bug Light again
… and out into Gardiners Bay
We rounded Orient Point in the late afternoon…
.
.
.
Orient Point Light
… and were finally in Long Island Sound!
One catch: We weren’t sure exactly where we were headed. We planned to paddle until dusk, then find a place to camp.
Or…..
Before we left, I’d mentioned a hotel called the Sound View Inn to Vlad. It was right on the water, somewhere close by. But we hadn’t planned to have two indoor nights so close together, so we hadn’t marked it on the chart.
Could we find it? Fortunately, before we left, Vlad did go as far as to print out from Google Maps a map of the North Fork on which the Sound View Inn was marked. But… on ordinary paper, which had long since been turned into waterlogged mush by water leaking into the chart case.
But, before the paper had completely disintegrated, some of the ink from it had transferred itself to the inside of the chart case. And, when we looked, we saw that, by some miracle, the chart case had imprinted on it exactly that little portion of the coastline on which the Sound View Inn was located.
Ironically, it was located in the same town we’d just left—the town of Greenport, but on the other side of the North Fork. If we made it there, we’d be traveling from Greenport… right back to Greenport!
Then another question arose—could we make it there by dark?
We arrive at the Sound View Inn—Vlad’s view
We decided not to worry, and just paddle. (Good philosophy in general, I was discovering!) And sure enough, just as the sun was sinking low in the sky, we saw a building facing us that looked like a hotel. …………………..
We arrive at the Sound View Inn—the Inn’s view
We arrived just at sunset—once again, we had our timing down perfectly. A woman on the upper deck shouted, “Look, kayaks!” and took our photo. Later, we found it on the Sound View Facebook Page.
Once again, Vlad suggested I was the right person to scope out the situation. I grabbed the dry bag containing the credit card I’d packed for just such an eventuality, and went in—wet clothing, caul of sunscreen, and all.
To my surprise and delight, they not only had a room, but had no issues with us stowing the boats right below the deck. The best part was filling out the registration card, which requested the make and model of our car.
Landed—a perfect hotel for passing kayakers!
Me: “I’m going to have some trouble with this… we don’t have a car…”
Receptionist: “Oh, that’s okay! Just put ‘Kayak’!”
Which I did, proudly. While wondering if, during some future IRS audit, an accountant would see it and wonder, “Kayak? What kind of car is that?”
Dinner that night was steak and salad at the Sound View Restaurant. This was the life—paddle during the day, sleep in a real bed, and eat warm food cooked by someone else! But as we were to find out, it doesn’t pay to get too accustomed to such pleasures…
Vladimir Brezina (RIP) 
Johna Till Johnson
Wind Against Current 
Great story! The hydrangeas at the harbor knoll were a delight for the eye! I was also intrigued by the green shadows on the white chairis oadirondack chairs in the lawn.. it seemed more like reflections from the grass superimposed over a shadow. made my artistic mind bend around it for a few moments to decipher exactly what i was seeing!
the map story was interesting, and i am happy that you found another comfortable spot to rest your heads at night! great story, thanks for the discipline of putting this together. you make a great team! z
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Hi Z, and thanks! Yes, Harbor Knoll was esthetically wonderful–a testament to the innkeepers’ sensibility. And thanks for the comments about being a great team–that was one of the delightful discoveries of this trip, also.
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I had a B&B for several years in Mississippi and loved the people who ‘entered as strangers and left as extended family.’ Seeing the hydrangeas made me nostalgic for my old-fashioned gardens.
I’ve traded hydrangeas for the exotics like fragrant white gingers and vivid heliconias, so i can’t complain!
I always enjoy your posts! Z
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Great photos,and narrative. The lighthouse and the sunsets are my favourites. The shots of the kayaks are wonderful too. I can almost hear those oars scooping the water. :)
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:-) Yes, Vlad loves both lighthouses and sunsets—and the photos show it. (I’m partial to bridges and sunrises–which he obligingly takes wonderful pictures of, also). I’m glad we’re able to convey so much of the experience—though as I’ve said before, I wish I could capture the briny smell of the water and the way your blood sings in your veins, too!
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You do a great job. :)
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Glad you had your time down perfectly. And, you found the photo on the Sound View FB, how COOL!
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Things move fast these days. That photo was probably on FB before our boats had even touched the beach :-)
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An amazing trip. I’m jealous! :)
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Maybe we should stress some of the pain and frustration of the trip more in future posts… don’t want you to get the wrong idea! ;-)
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Lovely!
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Thanks!
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I pined “Jaws” on Pinterest on my board called “Public/Street Art.” http://pinterest.com/gaylealstrom/public-street-art/
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Thanks, Gayle!
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Great sunset shots!
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:-)
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I liked to see the photos from so far away. Thank you! Greatings from Berlin, Germany sends Susanne
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Welcome to the blog, Susanne! More to come!
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Thank you for your welcim, Vladimier!
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Wowzers! I guess your kayaks are like our van……just on water? That’s a very impressive way to travel around with some pretty impressive vistas, thanks for sharing ^-^
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Not that different, in fact. Can’t pack quite as much in, but it’s not backpacking either. And the water makes many surprising and wonderful places accessible…
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