Hyannis

Hyannis appears as a seasonal threshold to Nantucket: a quiet winter town where a storm interrupts the expected ferry crossing and turns a delayed departure into a last-minute flight. The brief episode defines the place through its role in the journey, linking weather, transport, and the narrator’s arrival on the island.

Winter Crossing

In the off-season, Hyannis is deserted and closed for winter. A storm has cancelled the morning ferry sailings, and rough seas may also prevent the evening crossing. The ferry office confirms the disruption, but points to another possibility: the last flight leaves in fifteen minutes. Hyannis becomes the point at which the journey’s original plan gives way to an urgent alternative.

The Last Flight

The narrator boards a light aircraft on a darkened runway, seated beside the young pilot in the co-pilot’s seat. As the aircraft rises, the town’s lights recede and the route passes over the sea; lighthouses mark a shape on the horizon. After about twenty minutes, the plane descends through clouds toward lights meeting in the mist. The passengers land on Nantucket, where Flint, a boxer dog, scents home. The flight makes the interrupted crossing possible and gives Hyannis its significance in the episode: not as a destination in itself, but as the departure point from which a storm-bound journey continues.