For some reason, it has not, and will probably never be, Nantucketized. There are no trophy houses and no tony shops here, although it boasts restaurants that the pickiest New Yorker would love. In autumn, though, you practically have Block Island to yourself. Most of its restaurants and beautiful century-old Victorian hotels stay open for a few more months, but you can swim alone on the state beach and set up a picnic on what looks like a vast Scottish moor and never see another person until you're back in the tiny, only, town of New Shoreham. Better still, in autumn, you'll see more birds than people.
Many species stop off in Block Island on their way south.
If you hit the right weekend, you'll come across a group of National Audubon Society birders and can listen in on their expert lectures. You probably won't have TV or air conditioning in your room. Instead, you'll find pristine white curtains billowing in the ocean breeze, and downstairs in the parlor, checkers or chess to while away the evening. Originally published in the Boston Globe Calendar's Autumn Adventures section. Inc. Click here for assistance , or to read our privacy policy .