No more guessing! The breach is closed up. You can walk from Chappy to the Vineyard with getting your feet wet. I was there at the time of high tide for Wasque on Tuesday afternoon. The high tide in Katama Bay was still two hours away. Norton Point is now firmly attached to base of the bluff.

The top of the sand dune on the barrier beach was at least four feet above the water in the bay. Every wave that washed up onto the dune on the Atlantic Ocean side left another layer of sand a couple of grains thick. What a week ago had become a mere trickle of a sea level channel is now buried under a 50-foot-wide beach.

If the northeaster predicted for this Sunday sends waves washing all of the way over the dune, that will only fill in the remains of the breach channel even more.

This was an unusual way for a breach to close up. Normally it must migrate all of the way to Muskeget Channel to have the north-south current dump sand into the channel quickly enough to stop the flow. The southeast storm that did so much damage to other parts of the south shore actually served to arrest the erosion that the breach was causing at Wasque. We can thank the sandy cliffs at Wequobsque way back in Chilmark for providing the material that healed the breach.

Perhaps enough sand will accumulate at the corner of Wasque to allow vehicle traffic. It’s been years since driving to Chappy has been possible.

The next Chappy Community Center potluck dinner is on Wednesday, Jan. 17 from 6 to 8 p.m. All are welcome. Please bring a dish to serve eight. Potlucks will continue on the third Wednesday of the month.

On behalf of the Chappy Ferry captains and crew, thanks for the holiday treats and gifts showered upon them by appreciative Chappaquiddickers.

Keep an eye on the foul weather forecast for this coming Sunday. The wind may be gusty out of the northeast at the time of the 8 a.m. high tide. With the breach no longer providing an outlet for wind-driven storm water, there will likely be flooding along the waterfront. The morning tide was going to be a high one even without the wind.