Block Island, Rhode Island · Block Island · 41°10.3′N 71°33.4′W · VHF Ch 16
Old Harbor is the postcard side of Block Island — the ferry landing, the Victorian hotels along the bluff, and the shops and restaurants all a step off the dock. It's a marina stop, not an anchorage.
Tie up inside the breakwater and you're in the middle of town, which is the whole appeal. Reserve ahead in season and take a slip; there is essentially no room to anchor. In any easterly the entrance works and the basin gets rolly — most cruisers looking for a settled night round the island to the Great Salt Pond instead.
Come here for a night ashore with zero dinghy work, then move to New Harbor when the wind goes onshore.
Hazards & cautions. The basin sits behind a breakwater but a strong easterly sends surge through the entrance — uncomfortable to untenable in an onshore blow. This is a dock-and-go harbor, not an anchorage; anchoring room is minimal.
No cruiser reports yet. If you've anchored here, be the first — your note helps the next boat in.
Augusto ratings and editorial are our own synthesis of public-domain sources and cruiser reports. Always verify against current charts and local knowledge before you rely on them.