Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket

An artist takes advantage of a perfect Nantucket morning to try to capture the subtle shadings of Polpis Harbor.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

Centre Street is one of Nantucket’s lovelier shopping lanes. The town is a haven for casual wear, art, antiques and jewelry.   ( Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

Visitors stroll past colorful houses along the sea wall in Oak Bluffs, a Martha’s Vineyard town with a style and history all its own.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

The Three Bricks (1837-40), homes built on Main Street by Nantucket entrepreneur Joseph Starbuck, are considered architectural treasures.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

Edgartown’s Old Whaling Church (1843), still a church but also a multipurpose venue, was financed by Martha’s Vineyard whaling captains.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

The Gay Head Cliffs, a National Natural Landmark, provide the most dramatic coastal views on Martha’s Vineyard.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

The houses on Water Street, Edgartown, rival Nantucket’s in classic elegance if not in rigid consistency of style and materials.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

Fishermen tend to the nets on a boat docked at Menemsha, a Martha’s Vineyard port renowned for its seafood markets and marvelous sunsets.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

The Gay Head Light, on the western tip of Martha’s Vineyard, dates to 1855-56. The original wooden structure, erected in 1799, was linked in history to Alexander Hamilton and Paul Revere.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

A sea gull enjoys a fresh crab lunch near Edgartown Lighthouse, one of five lighthouses on Martha’s Vineyard.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

The Nantucket Whaling Museum, with its harpoons, scrimshaw and 46-foot leviathan skeleton, fascinates all ages.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

The lobster roll — a favorite in this part of the world, including Martha’s Vineyard — at Among the Flowers Cafe, a little place near the ferry landing at Edgartown.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

The shoreline near the ferry dock at Vineyard Haven, a relatively busy town that’s been home to some of Martha’s Vineyard’s most celebrated residents.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

Though one of Nantucket’s most popular strands in high season, Surfside Beach can provide calming solitude for visitors who time it right.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

Among the standards at the popular Black Dog Tavern in Vineyard Haven, a local favorite: fried oysters.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

Fishing for sport (and dinner) is an option offered by captains along Nantucket’s Straight Wharf.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

The Nantucket United Methodist Church (1823) is the only wooden structure that survived an 1846 fire that devastated the town. Until 1856, its lamps were fueled by whale oil.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )

Quintessential Nantucket, at 5 Liberty Street: weathered cedar, an appreciation of history and a suggestion of a warm welcome.   (Alan Solomon/Chicago Tribune )