"If you still owned the ferry, would you have kept running during the storm?"
Peter Wells heard that question more than once after the late-September northeaster. In his Chappy Town Column for the Vineyard Gazette, he wrote that he would probably have shut down by noon on Friday. "Well that's what Brian did!" came the reply.
Brian is Brian Scall, the first new owner of the Chappy Ferry in nearly 20 years. This is his first off-season running the 527-foot crossing between Dock Street and Chappy Point. Since Oct. 18, one boat has been handling all of it. Scall promised a text alert system back in March, before he owned anything. With a single boat running, that system now tells you more about the crossing than the printed timetable does.
A Captain Who Arrived Talking About Communication
Scall has captained boats for more than 35 years, with stints at Hinckley Yachts, Sea Tow and MacDougalls'. Before that he and his wife ran a coffee shop and a charter business in Hatteras, N.C., and the family moved to Edgartown in 2020. He told the Gazette that one of the ferry captains, Brock Callen, asked whether he wanted to drive the ferry one day, and "it's kind of one of those things I fell in love with."
At that first March meeting with the Chappy Ferry Steering Committee, he described what he wanted to build. "We run into all kinds of situations and it's very easy with modern technology to say 'Hey guys, this just happened, the ferry line is extra long right now because a truck got stuck or somebody's car broke down,'" he said, as the Gazette reported. A few days later he introduced himself to the Chappaquiddick community as a "ferry geek," according to the MV Times.
On May 26 the Edgartown Select Board voted unanimously to transfer the ground lease and ferry license to Chappy Ferry LLC, pending final legal review by town counsel. The ferry is privately owned but runs under that town license, and major changes such as rate increases still need the board's approval. Scall took over on June 25, and the Fourth of July weekend arrived less than ten days later. Wells told the MV Times that he would keep driving the ferry, and added, "I see in him the energy I had 50 years ago."
The Storm That Served as a Dress Rehearsal
That September northeaster was Scall's first real test, and it shows how much of this job happens before the boat moves. Wells, who now drives afternoon shifts on the On Time 2, listed the preparations in his Gazette column. Scall booked a diver to clear seaweed from the propellers before, during and after the storm. He topped off both boats and the shoreside diesel tank, checked the standby generators and scheduled captains for emergency runs. He also contacted Edgartown's fire, police and highway departments so extra apparatus could be stationed on Chappy, and sent text and email alerts to keep Chappaquiddick informed.
Winds held at 40 mph from the northeast and gusted above 50. A couple of runs went out at the height of the storm to get people home, and each one convinced the crew that regular service was too risky. Over the summer, the column notes, Scall's crew had already reinforced the Edgartown slip's fender wall and the ferry house's structure and roof.
Why There Is One Boat, and How You Find Out
The winter schedule began Oct. 18 and runs through May 26, 2027. The ferry runs continuously from 6:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., with one more window from 11 to 11:15 p.m. The single boat is planned. The ferry announced weeks ahead that it would run one boat starting Oct. 18 while scheduled maintenance began and the other vessel was prepared for a U.S. Coast Guard out-of-water inspection.
The alert history on the new site shows how that played out:
| Date | What the alert said |
|---|---|
| Oct. 5 | One boat starting Oct. 18 for scheduled maintenance and USCG inspection prep |
| Oct. 13 | Reminder of the one-boat start, with winter hours beginning the same day |
| Oct. 19 | Running the winter schedule, last boat 11 to 11:15 p.m. |
| Oct. 21 | Northeast winds building overnight, possible service interruptions |
| Oct. 24 | Winter schedule, one boat in operation, plan accordingly |
The same weather behind the Oct. 21 alert also delayed the haul-out. Wells wrote in his Oct. 30 column that three days of a dry northeaster held up the On Time 2's trip to Vineyard Haven, because the ferryboats are not built for 40-knot gusts and five-foot waves in the Sound. The boat finally left on Friday, Oct. 23. Once there it went up on the railway for a bottom cleaning, its propellers were sent off-island for reconditioning, and the Coast Guard was due the following week for its inspection.
So the ferry's own alerts are the place to learn when the second boat returns. You can sign up on the ferry's website for email alerts and opt-in text messages about delays and service changes. The site notes that message frequency rises during weather and disruptions.
The Practical Details of a One-Boat Crossing
A few rules matter more in the off-season than in July:
- Early trips are by request. Arrange them in person with the captain before 5 p.m. the day before, and pay a nonrefundable fee in advance: $25 for the 6 a.m. trip, $60 for the 5 a.m. trip.
- Emergencies go through 911. The ferry asks you to call 911 for police, fire or medical help on Chappaquiddick and says dispatch will contact the ferry captain. Do not call 911 for ferry information. There is also an emergency phone at the front of the Chappaquiddick Firehouse.
- Fares have held steady. Round trips are $5 for a passenger, $17 for a car and driver, $8 for a bike and rider, and $10 for a moped or motorcycle. Those are the rates the select board approved effective Aug. 1, 2025, when the car fare rose from $15 and the walk-on fare stayed at $5. During the ownership process, Scall told the steering committee that the purchase would have no effect on ticket prices, the Vineyard Gazette reported in May.
What Is on the Off-Season Work List
On Aug. 12, Scall held a listening session at the Chappaquiddick Community Center. The Gazette's Chappy column noted that a summary is posted on the Chappaquiddick Island Association website. According to that summary, ferry traffic was down 5% in July, which meant shorter lines. Scall's project list included a new camera system covering Chappy Point, Daggett Street and Simpson's Lane, a modernized ticket kiosk on Dock Street, and new floodlights. It also included reinforcing the Dock Street seawall, with pilings to be driven in the off-season, and renovating the ferry house and staff restroom. Scall is also comparing traffic patterns with the tides and reworking staff schedules so boats load and unload faster.
There are no plans for new vessels. The summary describes the two ferries as wood-frame, fiberglass-covered boats that can be maintained indefinitely, backed by a maintenance contract and a spare engine and parts kept on Chappaquiddick. Scall is studying who qualifies for the resident discount and wants better data on the financial impact before deciding. To help with that, the town of Edgartown agreed to share its property-tax exemption data with the ferry. "Safety is the utmost thing," he said at a meeting that spring, as the Gazette reported, and he said he planned to run the ferry for the next 20 to 25 years.
What's on the Chappy Side Through December
The crossing matters because of what's on the other side. In his Oct. 30 column, Wells noted that the Chappaquiddick Community Center keeps its programs running through the off-season. Its calendar from mid-November on:
- Saturday yoga with Craig, 10 to 11 a.m., on Nov. 14, 21 and 28 and Dec. 5, 12, 19 and 26.
- Community Open Sing, Sunday, Nov. 15, 4 to 5 p.m.
- November potluck, Wednesday, Nov. 18, 6 to 8 p.m., with an alpha-gal chili cook-off. Prizes will be awarded, and the dishes avoid mammal products.
- Holiday Tea, Sunday, Dec. 13, 2 to 4 p.m.
Potlucks usually fall on the third Wednesday of the month, and guests bring a dish to share. December is the exception. That month's potluck moves to Wednesday, Dec. 9, and doubles as the Chappy Ferry captain and crew appreciation dinner.
The outdoor destinations stay open too. The Trustees' Mytoi Japanese-style garden is open daily from sunrise to sunset and is free from November through April. Wasque is open around the clock, free for walkers and bikers, and its parking fee season ended on Indigenous Peoples' Day weekend. Cape Poge Wildlife Refuge is open daily with free entry for pedestrians. Between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m., access is limited to fishing, and over-sand vehicles need a permit. For a shorter outing, the Land Bank's Chappy Point Beach begins immediately to the left of the ferry slip.
All of these are daytime or early-evening outings. Even the Dec. 9 dinner ends at 8 p.m., two hours before the continuous service stops at 10.
If you own a home on Chappaquiddick and rent it out or open it for family over the holidays, the one-boat winter affects your caretakers, cleaners and contractors as much as your guests. At Anson Realty, we plan turnovers around the ferry schedule, early-trip requests and weather alerts. To plan your winter visits or your next rental season, request a private consultation.
