Aquinnah Cliffs and Gay Head Light

Banded clay cliffs at the western tip of the island, with a brick lighthouse and Wampanoag heritage

Address Aquinnah

The dramatic cliffs at Aquinnah — until the 1990s known as Gay Head — are layered orange, ochre, grey, and rust-coloured clay that drop straight to the sea at the island's western tip. The brick Gay Head Light above them dates from 1856 and was moved 40 metres back from the edge in 2015 as coastal erosion threatened to take it down. It is the most photogenic spot on Martha's Vineyard.

There is a viewing platform at the top with the best overlook; a steep stairway leads down to Moshup Beach below. Climbing on the cliffs is forbidden and bad for the cliffs anyway. Combine the visit with the small souvenir shops and clam shacks at the Aquinnah Circle, which are mostly Wampanoag-run.

things to do sight
A story
The Aquinnah cliffs are sacred to the Wampanoag, who have lived on this stretch of the island for at least ten thousand years and were formally re-recognised by the federal government in 1987 as the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah). The clays — orange, ochre, grey, and brick-red — were once dug by tribal members for paint and pottery; collecting them is now prohibited.