July 4, 2010 - Newport Harbor

There is absolutely no better place to watch fireworks than from a boat. The way the water reflects the explosions is just magical. We didn't want to let our first summer back in Newport slip by without celebrating the Fourth onboard Mata'irea. So tossing Alena kisses and promises that we'd be back in a week to finish painting and to do something about that hole in her exterior wall we hauled out of Boston this afternoon and made tracks for Newport. We arrived at Suzy's in time to offload some gear from the car, grab some quick showers, pet the cat, and pick some fish up from Anthony's to grill for our supper.

Parking in Newport during the summer can be a problem, particularly parking overnight. The meters in town run until 9pm and start again at 9am. So unless we wanted to wait until 6pm to park, we needed to find another place to leave the car. We know of a few lots where it is possible to park for free overnight and on weekends, but they are an awfully long walk from the water when loaded down with gear. Fort Adams is an pretty convenient alternative, especially with the Oldport Marine Launch doing hourly runs between the dock there and the main harbor. For $6 with out-of-state tags or $3 with in-state tags, you can buy an overnight parking permit at the visitor's center. Monthly or seasonal passes are also available.

Just as it was getting dark, Bill and Laurie came across from Jamestown on their Whaler, bearing champagne and strawberries. We finished up dinner and waited for the Newport fireworks to start. Down the coast we could see other towns' celebrations sparkling away across the sky. For entertainment closer to home we had the chicks renting the houseboat on the mooring next to us flashing every group of guys that motored by. Finally the Newport fireworks got going, and they were well worth the wait.