Just 11 miles from Point Judith, Rhode Island, Block Island seems like 100 years from life on the mainland. Arriving by ferry at the Old Harbor town is like sailing back in time to a seaside resort from the Victorian era. The mansard roofs and gingerbread gables are remnants of the island’s last building boom, which began during the Grant Administration. Since that time, not a lot has changed on Block Island.

And the locals prefer it that way. Unlike the commodified Cape and trendy Martha’s Vineyard to the northeast, Block Island has retained a good deal of the old New England. Since the island was purchased from the Indians in 1661 and settled by dissenters fed up with the Puritan regime in Massachusetts, the town meeting has been the focal point of local government. To preserve their way of life, islanders have voted to limit the number of mopeds available for rent and forbid camping altogether. A more recent debate centers on where to drill the island’s new well.

While yachtsmen have visited Block Island for a century or more, surfing has only become popular in the last 40 years. Still, the number of local surfers is small and the breaks are rarely crowded. When there’s a swell much of the island’s east and south sides will be working and in hurricane season the surf can approach epic proportions. Stormchasers have reported massive point break action as big swells wrap around the curvature of the island. Be careful though: the 1938 hurricane flattened many of the buildings on the island and destroyed its fishing fleet.

When the surf is small head for the southeast corner of the island, below the Mohegan Bluffs. There sand-sifted rock reefs will wedge up even the weakest Atlantic ripples into something rideable. Wherever you surf on the island, leave the attitude at home and give the locals their due. After surfing through a Block Island winter, they've earned it.And don't forget to smile -- this is New England waveriding at its best.

Block Island can be reached by ferry from Montauk, New York, and Gallilee, Rhode Island. The Viking Line operates a passenger/bicycle-only ferry from Montauk. Call 516.668.5709 for more info. Interstate Navigation runs a car ferry from Gallilee, but reservations for vehicles must be made well in advance: 401.783.4613. In summer boats also sail from New London, Connecticut (203.442.7891) and Providence, RI, (401.483.4613).

New England Airlines (401.596.2460) also flies to Block Island from Westerly, RI, several times a day in summer.

There’s no shortage of hotel rooms on the island, but few bargains with rates starting at $70 per night. A better bet would be to rent a house or cottage, which can be had for as little as $600 per week. House rentals are handled by local real estate agents. See www.blockislandguide.com for more information.