Travel Guide Chappaquiddick Island

"Chappy" is home to fewer than 200 year-round residents. Visitors come here to enjoy the peace and quiet, when the rest of Edgartown becomes too busy. The island is also known for the Chappaquiddick Accident, which took place on July 18, 1969. That evening, Ted Kennedy, brother of former US President John Fitzgerald Kennedy, drove his car across the Dike Bridge and swerved. The vehicle plunged and sank, killing the passenger, a 28-year-old Democratic primary campaign organizer. Ted Kennedy escaped unhurt, returned to his hotel and did not notify the authorities. The vehicle was found the next day. For deserting the scene of the accident, he was given a two-month suspended prison sentence, too lenient in the eyes of public opinion. The event scandalized America and scratched its image forever. Although part of Edgartown, Chappaquiddick forms an island in its own right, occasionally linked to the rest of the town by Norton Point, a 3 km sandbar that sometimes disappears for many years. Norton Point is only accessible by all-terrain vehicle. The best way to reach the island is by ferry (chappyferry.com). They carry a small number of passengers and only 3 cars at a time. Chappaquiddick Island boasts a golf course, the Cape Poge nature reserve and a Japanese garden.