The Vineyard is at her best in October around Columbus Day and always the holiday brings the return of Island friends. For the first time since Labor Day the pace of Island life slows enough to leave time to explore those qualities that set the Vineyard apart from most other communities – a windswept beach, the russet colors of meadows and salt marshes, the quiet walking trails in autumn woodlands and the ancient stonewalls that still mark the old boundaries of another Island and a different age.