The Atlantis WeatherGirls Do Block Island

Day 1 - Monday

After packing up the car in the wee hours of the morning, we headed for the coast to catch the Ferry. After many stops for coffee, we arrived at the Block Island Ferry on Point Judith.

On the forty-five minute ferry ride, we mingled with all sorts of people and exchanged some great sailing stories. After quickly learning about Claire’s (a member of the Northeastern University sailing team) excitement about arriving on Block for the first time, we were thrilled to know we weren’t the only newcomers to the island. Of course, being the opportunists we are, we took the trip as our first opportunity to hand out some swag and talk up Atlantis.

Once ashore, we made our way to our hotel, The New Shoreham Inn, to drop our bags, explore the island and, perhaps most importantly, find something to eat. After downing some sandwiches from Rebecca’s Take-out, we donned our Atlantis gear and hit the streets, or in the case of Block Island, the street.

In search of Nick’s Bar, a popular spot on the island, Captain Kate (she makes us call her that, the power has really gone to her head) got some directions from a man who seemed like a credible native. Thirty minutes later, with no bar in sight and a clearer understanding of the difference between a credible native and a drunk native, we turned around and finally found Nick’s.

After a brief meeting we head down to the beach to meet some people and grab a beer. But it wasn’t til we arrived at Captain Nick’s that we really met some characters. Who knew Koozies are the best way to make new friends?


Day 2 - Tuesday

Today was our first full day on the island so, deciding to carpe diem, we woke up at the crack of eleven and began our day. We hopped in Betsy’s car and began our adventure by exploring the rest of the island. We made our way to the Salt Pond where the day’s racing would come to an end to scope out the area and plan the most efficient way of accosting, umm, approaching, unsuspecting sailors. Once we had mapped out the best plan of attack…er, approach… it was time to reward ourselves with breakfast (Czar Kate finally gave us permission to eat…and yeah, she changed her title to Czar for the day). After bagels at Ye Old Post Office (we have no idea why it’s called that either), we drove past New Harbor and around the rest of the island. Around every corner there was one spectacular view after another and, being as obnoxious as possible, we stopped about every quarter mile to take pictures and piss off the people behind us.

About fifteen minutes later (apparently, the island is really small), we were back where we started and decided to hit up a local restaurant to watch the boats and mingle. Our first big find was running into two women we met earlier telling us they had been to the website and loved all the stuff (Whoo! Go us!). Then we went over to one of the many bars that line the waterfront for a quick drink and to meet some fellow beer lovers. At the bar, Sarah, the bartender and one of the nicest people we have met so far, which says a lot because everyone here seems to be taking happy pills, informed us that not only was she going to join us on Thursday night at the Yellow Kittens, but she was going to bring the entire staff.


Day 3 - Wednesday

Wednesday morning arrived quickly. Today was our first Bundle Launch and the suspense was almost killing us.

We woke up, showered, got our Atlantis gear on and headed for the door. OH NO!!!!! IT’S POURING RAIN!!!!!!! We regrouped inside to figure out how we were going to hide all the T-shirts without getting them soaking wet. After a solid hour of deliberation, we traveled out into the monsoon (or so it felt like at the time). We stealthily hid 25 bundles around town that morning, scrounging for any bit of the island that hadn’t been soaked by rain. Trying to find a place that was dry yet relatively easy to find seemed oxymoronic.

After our morning escapades we traveled down to the docks for a little afternoon hiding. We stashed another 30 bundles around the docks. We even got the chance to speak with some of the sailors while we were down there. Sporting our Atlantis gear, we got to make a lot of new friends and show off our gear all at the same time. Even against the odds of Mother Nature, Atlantis was able to get out in the pouring rain and show its capabilities as THE foul weather brand.


Day 4 – Thursday

The Big Day had finally arrived and we were amped. After 3 days of getting the word out about the Atlantis brand of superior Weather Gear, we were excited to see how many people would show up at McGovern’s Yellow Kittens Tavern (or “The Kittens,” as the cool locals would say). After eating at our go-to, Rebecca’s Take-Out, for the millionth time that week, we loaded up our car, “the Beast,” with tons of bundles to hide around the island.

The day had cleared up nicely from the rainy and windy Wednesday, and the island looked just as gorgeous as ever as we made the quick drive from Old to New Harbor. As we walked to the dock, our presence did not go unnoticed - we were mercilessly followed by our faithful Atlantis Weather Gear fans and others looking for the famous hidden AWG bundles. Our new friends really put on the pressure and were not at all shy about getting their AWG belts, hats, and T’s… and, sure enough, just as soon as they were hidden, our “loot” was found by eager bystanders/stalkers.

When all the bundles were hidden, we headed to our favorite New Harbor watering hole and eatery, the Oar, where we handed out plenty more koozies, croakies, and key chains.

Oh, we also went to the beach for a grand total of 2.5 seconds before we made a hasty exit as a result of the near-fatal mix of heavy winds and dry sand.

We then returned to our room to take the usual power nap and get ready for the huge AWG night at “The Kittens.” Loading up the Beast once again with everything we could possibly need for the night, we headed to the bar to get set up. Finished, we went across the street for dinner at Sharkey’s where we had a wonderful meal, a few beverages, and made funny faces at the 3 children sitting at the table next to us. We also made our server and everyone else in the restaurant promise to come to Kittens and check out the Atlantis Gear we had set up.

Before we knew it, 9 PM was upon us, and we had no sooner set everything up when the place was packed with all of our new Block Island friends and everyone who had heard about the force that is Atlantis Weather Gear. The rest of the night flew by. Everyone in the bar made a visit to the AWG table to check out the gear and challenge their friends to a bowline-tying contest or sailing trivia to win a spin on the “Wheel of Cool Gear”. A few hot-shots showed us some cool knots they knew, and as the reggae beat pumped through the bar people got really competitive!

Everyone was excited to see the reemergence of Atlantis, their favorite weather gear company or to discover it for the first time. Overall, it was a grand night that we are sure will go down in the annals of Block Island history.