Family on beach with Isuzu Trooper and Avon RedshankThis trip write-up is of a very different sort than our previous ones in that it does not have a start and an end, but rather is a collection of over 30 years of memories and experiences on one of my favorite places on earth – the idyllic island of Martha’s Vineyard.

There are many phases to this journey, which started in 1980 and has still not ended, as hopefully there will be many more visits to this wonderful place.

I like to refer to the first five years, from 1980 to 1984 as our foolish youth phase, when 10 or 12 of us would rent a condo on Sengekontacket Pond each summer. There would be people sleeping on couches, mattress pads under the dining room table, you name it. We didn’t care, because we were on the island for two glorious weeks of biking, beaching, fishing, and just in general, having fun. Thankfully, few pictures remain from this era.

1985 was the big wedding year, when Herb and I tied the knot in the Federated Church in Edgartown and had our reception at the Navigator Restaurant overlooking Edgartown Harbor. The fact, that it took place the day after hurricane Gloria made the festivities even more memorable. After our wedding night at the Edgartown Inn, Herb and I joined our friends over at the Sengekontacket condos for a rather unique honeymoon with 11 of our close friends.

Once we were a bit more established in our careers and could afford to not sleep on the floor of a rental condo, we began renting a house each year out by Katama with my brother and his wife.

Then in 1989, Andrew came along and we entered our responsible parenting phase, where we continued to rent a house with my brother. Soon his first child Alex came along in 1990, and our Tommy followed shortly after in 1991. My brother’s daughter Madison joined us in 1995. Like our foolish youth phase, this phase was equally chaotic and fun – just in a different way. We continued renting houses for 10 years, with our final one in 1999 being a spectacular one on Chappaquiddick overlooking “the gut.”

By 2000, my brother had moved to Ohio and we had purchased our trusty Lazy Daze, so we moved into our RVing phase, which we have continued up to the present day. There is only one campground on the island - the Martha’s Vineyard Family Campground on the Edgartown Road in Vineyard Haven, which is quite nice. I really like having the RV on the island. Rather than having to pack up for the beach or other excursions each day, we just move our home along with us. It’s nice being able to come off the beach and make lunch, take a shower, or just get out of the sun for awhile. The only issue is parking, but we just get an early start in the morning and set ourselves up for the day.

So, as I said, this write-up is not about a single journey, but rather a conglomeration of great memories. Nor is it intended to be a complete guide to Martha’s Vineyard. For that, there are many far better choices by the likes of Frommers and Fodors. However, in the following pages, I will try to share some of our favorite places in this very special place.