Bundle up. That was the watchword this week when temperatures plunged into the single digits at night and never climbed out of the teens during the day. Wind chill factor? Don’t want to go there. Heavy wool sweaters, long johns and ski jackets were pulled from the depths of drawers and closets as the need for warmth trumped fashion. Was that the sound of the furnace running all night as cold air seeped in through every crack in the house? But despite the bitter cold and arctic temperatures, the Island was starkly beautiful, crusted with snow, saltwater ponds rimmed with ice, hardy Island children sledding down the big hill at Sweetened Water Farm in Edgartown and the Tashmoo Overlook in Vineyard Haven late in the day, looking like play figures in their brightly colored hats, scarves and snowpants.

At long last — winter has arrived.