Harbour

Nantucket

3.8Nantucket, United StatesCape Cod and the Islands

VHF channel: 68

240-berth marina inside Nantucket Harbour, on the north shore of Nantucket Island, Massachusetts.

Guide

Approach and anchoring

Approach from the north through the buoyed channel past Brant Point Lighthouse, the second oldest lighthouse in the United States. Hail the boat basin on VHF 9 or 11, or Nantucket Moorings on VHF 68 for the 125 rental moorings in the harbour. No tidal lock, but watch shoaling either side of the channel at low water.

Practical

Floating pontoons take vessels up to superyacht size, with diesel and petrol at the fuel berth, water, shore power and pump-out. Town pier has free pump-out, showers and heads at 34 Washington Street.

Ashore

Cobbled streets of Nantucket Town start at the marina gate, with the Whaling Museum on Broad Street 200 metres from the berths. Jetties Beach is 1 mile north on foot or by bike along the Cliff Road path.

History

Nantucket was the world's leading whaling port from the mid 18th century until the 1840s, when the harbour bar and the discovery of petroleum ended the trade. The shipyards once lined Brant Point on the harbour's north side.