We don't need a bigger boat

The weather was a mosh mash today - started quite overcast in the morning at 6am when we woke up, it brightened up mid morning but began raining towards the afternoon. Nether the less, today was the day I was going to step inside my favourite movie. 

We were up and out of the hotel by 6:45, without even so much as a cup of coffee and made our way to the Wood's hole ferry. It was going to take us to Martha's Vineyard, the setting for the movie Jaws! Before coming to America, I had researched places that I wanted to see and even scrolled through the film it's self to find familiar scenes. 

The island it's self is much larger than the film would have you believe and since the filming much has changed. I watched the island come into view from the bow of the ferry.

Once we were on dry land, our treasure hunt tour began. First stop was police chief Brody's house. The house had been renovated since the filming but The Internet told me it could still be found. With a rough location and a general idea of direction, we sought it out.

The house in the movie. And as it stands now.

I was surprised at the change but I can still tell its the place. 

Next stop was the causeway over the lake entrance. Where the shark attacked the man in the boat after the false alarm in the ocean. 

Shark! Sh....shark! It's in the lake! I looked but I just couldn't see it, maybe another false alarm?

By this point I was getting incredibly excited and rather nerdy. I think Sam found this very entertaining. Every piece of the film we found she chuckled as my face lit up. The beach where the Kitner boy got gobbled up was the same one as the causeway and I walked a little way along the sand and found it!

Looking at these photos now, side by side is giving me goose bumps. Anyone who knows me, knows how much I love this film and this was like Christmas! 

We then made our way into Edgartown, what is known as Amity in the film. It's a beautiful little town and we were admiring the place when we almost forgot to find somewhere to park. Sam found a stop right quick and I had to do a double take. We were bang on! She'd parked right outside, what was the hardware store and bank! Way to go Sam!

We took a stroll trying to find the film's police station which was just a little way up the road. There was a fire hydrant on the corner where the chief does a famous little skip on his way to the hardware store. 

Now we lined this up and took, what I think is one of my favourite pictures of the day...

Although, that's more a limp than a skip. The whole town was gorgeous and I'm glad we visited when the trees were green. I can see why they used this place. It's right out of the screen of Hollywood. 

I'm hoping these are enough pics mum but even these don't do the place justice. 

I believe this to be, if not it but close, the Harbour master's shack. Martha's Vineyard was a whaling town sometime in history and references to it are all over the place. Like this rather delightful monument.

The stones in front of the white fence are all etched with names of men and families who used to whale or were connected with the whaling industry on the island. Each brick, it's own monument to that person. 

The Chappy ferry was next to find.

The ferry has changed, looks much safer than the one in the movie with a better dock, thankfully. Whenever I see the film I think the things gonna sink!

We were hunting for the lake where the Orca was sank at the end of the film but I needed a rest stop. It so happened Sam stopped a place she remembered reading about some time ago. So we took a little look at a non Jaws related attraction. It was called Mytoi. A garden set up many years ago by a Chinese man but when he died the local authorities took it on and retained it. It's not that large and didn't take long to look around but it was really pretty.

There were little water features like streams and springs all over the place and the sound of trickling water was most relaxing.

There were little spots to sit and admire the garden. We almost drove past this had I not needed a rest stop.

The garden was free but we left a donation and got back into the car. Pretty as it was, it wasn't on my tour list and I was eager to see what else we could find. 

Next on the list was the beach BBQ scene, and the Chrissy attack. Right at the beginning of the film, the kids are out at night drinking and having a BBQ, when Chrissy goes for a late night skinny dip, only to become Bruce's first meal.

The sands often shift and after the years it was going to be impossible to find the exact location of the scene. It was also rather windy and sandy. I find it difficult to go too far on such ground. However, we did find the beach.

And the dunes that they ran along.

The lake in the middle, is where the scene at the end of the film was filmed, where the orca sinks and the shark is blown to bits. 

By now the weather was beginning to turn and we started off towards hooper rock and the setting of the beach sign. Although the sign had long gone, only there for the movie, we found Hooper's rock.

Sam got quite wet when she took this. If it hadn't been raining, I would of spent a little more time getting the picture a little more like it is in the film, but even so, I'm proud as punch of this. During the film, the camera turns back and there is a light house....

Perfect!

We had one last place to scout. I REALLY wanted to find this. It was Quintt's shack. Quintt's is my favourite character, the salty sea dog shark hunter that comes out with such lines as "Here's to swimming with bowlegged women!" When making a drink toast, and which I adopted too. Poor Quintt gets eaten by the shark but he goes out fighting. I knew his shack had gone. Again, another building only there for the filming.

His shack is the one in the upper left of the picture, with the tall side building. The boat is the Orca, leaving for it's fatefully journey. We arrived at the harbour and the road just ended and Sam pulled in to a parking space. Another perfect piece of parking as it was right on the spot the shack had stood.

I took a sneaky walk up a side alley and managed to snap a few quick snaps of the harbour itself.

Following the track of the camera as the Orca set sail out of the harbour. 

We'd done it. I had found what I had wanted to see all this time and I was extremely happy. 

It was now a drive back to the other side of the island where we had a quick bite to eat and boarded the ferry back to the mainland. 

I know many of you haven't seen the film for a long time, if ever. But if you are so inclined to watch it, hopefully you will be able to see some of the places I visited and see why I was so happy to have visited.

http://maps.google.com.au/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&vpsrc=0&oe=UTF8&msa=0&msid=217987465323941346249.0004a422c690f08eb9263

We arrived at the hotel and relaxed for a bit, Sam took a nap and we then worked out what we were going to do that evening. As it happened we decided to check the hotel restaurant so we washed up and headed down. A couple of beers and a burger later.

The rain had stopped and it was wet but not raining. Warm and a little humid. The sky had just started to spark and rumble and I had wanted to take a little stroll but after the two beers and big meal we decided to go sit on our balcony and turn in for the evening, looking forward to a sleep and a lay in.