Nantucket Landmarks

There are a lot of great landmarks in Nantucket that should be visited if you're on the island.  Being such an old city the landmarks in Nantucket have a lot of history behind them and are very interesting.  Some of the great landmarks that should definitely visit are Great Point Lighthouse, The Nantucket Whaling Museum, and Brant Point Light house.  All these landmarks have great history and are really amazing to see.

  Great Point Lighthouse is one of the most history filled landmarks on Nantucket.  It was originally built in 1784 out of wood but was destroyed by a fire in 1816.  It was reconstructed as a stone tower in 1818 and was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.  It was then destroyed by a storm in 1984 but rebuilt yet again in 1986 and is still standing today.  It sits at Great Point on Nantucket which is a small stretch of land that is surrounded on one side by the Atlantic Ocean and by Nantucket sound on the other.  Great Point Lighthouse is an almost synonymous image to Nantucket and is a great place to visit.

Great Point Lighthouse

 The Nantucket Whaling Museum is another great landmark in Nantucket.  The museum allows one to look into Nantucket's past and see what life was like for people 400 years ago there.  The museum contains a large collection of whaling artifacts and memorabilia.  It has things such as long boats, and harpoons.  But the main exhibit in the museum is a 46 foot sperm whale skeleton that hangs from the ceiling of the museum.  The museum before it became a museum had been a candle factory.  When whales were brought into Nantucket they were brought here to make candles, and so to stay true to its original purpose the building still has an exhibit on candle making and how the business works.  The whaling museum is a great exhibit and should be visited when on the island.

Sperm Whale Skeleton in Nantucket Whaling Museum

Brant Point Lighthouse was first constructed in 1746, this lighthouse was made of wood and burned down in 1758.  The current Brant Point Lighthouse was built in 1901 and has been in use ever since.  The lighthouse marks the entrance to Nantucket Harbor and is settled nicely on Brant Point with a small rock wall and beach surrounding it.  The lighthouse has been a landmark on Nantucket ever since its construction and it is a great place to visit.  Something fun to do when visiting Brant Point is to go when the 10:00 PM ferry is coming around the point and it is an amazing thing to watch.

Brant Point Lighthouse

Best Fishing Spots In Nantucket

Nantucket is a place that is known for its fishing.  There are so many great places to go fishing on the island.  There are a variety of fish to catch and if you know where to go your bound to catch some nice big fish.  Some of the best places for catching fish are; The Airport, The Bonito Bar, Great Point, along with many ponds throughout the island. 

Sunset Fishing on Nantucket

The Airport is one of the best places on Nantucket to fish.  Located about a mile offshore of Nantucket Memorial Airport there always seems to be fish jumping there.  It may be because of heat that emanates from the airport itself, or the shelf where the water depth suddenly drops, while it is probably a mixture of the two the only thing that matters is that it produces a great fishing experience almost every time.  The Airport is home to huge blue fish, blues of three feet or more are regularly caught here.  These salt water "piranhas," because of their razor sharp teeth, are a blast to catch as they put up a great fight and usually make acrobatic jumps into the air.  If your looking for variety though you may want to head somewhere else as mostly all you will catch here are blues, even though there's nothing wrong with that.

Bluefish and its razor sharp teeth

Another great place to fish in Nantucket is the Bonito Bar.  The Bonito Bar is located near Tuckernuck on the ocean side and while it is not always a sure bet that you will catch something, if the conditions are right you could catch some very nice fish.  The Bonito Bar is a place where you will find a very wide variety of fish; Bonito (hence the name), Bluefish, Tuna, and even sharks can all be caught here.  The Bonito Bar is a place that must be fished with patience but if you wait your persistence will pay off.  Huge fish have been known to hang around the Bonito Bar and it has become a hotspot for charter fisherman.  The Bonito Bar is a solid fishing spot, and you may even see some seals swimming around here trying to grab some lunch before going back to the beach to rest for the day.

Bonito

  Probably the best place to fish in Nantucket is Great Point.  Great Point has the biggest fish and probably the most variety too, but the main draw for Great Point is the striped bass.  The striped bass is one of the most highly prized fish, and the ones caught at Great Point are trophy fish.  Great Point is located at the northern most tip of Nantucket and is easily recognizable because of Great Point lighthouse.  When fishing at Great Point trolling works best.  When trolling at Great Point you will almost always catch some huge bluefish, and hopefully you will also catch some striped bass.  Great Point also yields tuna, dolphin, and of course some sharks.  Most of the charter boats out of Nantucket will regularly take trips to Great Point, and sometimes you may even see Jimmy Buffet's personal boat out there as he is also hoping to catch some Great Point stripers.

Great Point