Cruising the Chesapeake

24 May 2022 – Georgetown, Maryland

The Chesapeake Bay is an amazing body of water. Explored and mapped by Captain John Smith in the early 1600’s, it is 200 miles long, 30 miles across at its widest (in Virginia), has 11,000 miles of shoreline and there are 10 major rivers feeding into it. It also has 33 lighthouses. Perhaps the map below will provide some helpful information.

When asked what the greatest challenge is in cruising the Chesapeake, most people (including us) would say THE WEATHER. In fact, after leaving Norfolk (“before the storm”), we got to experience our very first (and hopefully last) “Nor’easter,” with high winds rocking us continuously in a well-protected marina for 6 days. These winds from the northeast averaged 25-30 knots non-stop 24 hours a day, with gusts to 45. There were Loopers all over the Bay hunkered down, adding extra lines and fenders to their boats and watching out for each other. We were fortunate to be with about 8 other Looper boats and were able to gather in the boaters’ lounge for a pizza party one night and went out to dinner another without getting blown away. Some people played cards and other games. We got lots of reading and art journaling done and also enjoyed listening to the Golden State Warriors making their way through the NBA playoffs. (Go Warriors!) However, during an evening of high winds and thunderstorms, the rain-soaked Ukrainian flag we were flying added too much pressure to our radio antenna and broke it; it ended up perpendicular to the top of the boat. Our replacement antenna will be installed soon (in Delaware City), but we have a spare handheld VHF radio that’s worked very well.

We also found out that boating can be very different in the lower Bay than in the middle or upper Bay. It’s rougher there since it’s much wider and closer to the Atlantic Ocean. Winds and currents are also a factor and, of course, it’s an easier ride when we’re cruising WITH the winds and currents. Going against them can make for a very rocky ride. We don’t go out if the winds are higher than 15 knots or the waves are higher than 3’, but even so, we rocked and rolled for at least an hour (and sometimes longer) during almost every outing.

And then there are the bajillion crab pots! We were told to watch carefully for them in waters 20’ deep or less. That’s where most of them were, but there were some in up to 45’ of water—sometimes a single crab pot, sometimes several strings of them and sometimes a maze of them (thank goodness they aren’t attached to each other), so we had all 4 eyes on the water the majority of time, especially in the lower Chesapeake where crabbing is more a way of life. Fortunately, most of the crab pots here have a dowel on the top that make them easier to see than those on the Gulf and along the ICW. Nevertheless, they certainly add to our adventures! There was also a variety of commercial traffic on the Bay, but there is plenty of room for everyone and we mostly stayed out of the shipping channel. It was actually fun to see some of these large ships up close…and they’re much easier to spot than a crab pot!  🙂

  This monster supply ship passed by and rocked us pretty well with it’s huge wake!

As is often the case, we have LOVED the smaller towns on the Chesapeake, including Deltaville (where we hunkered down for those 6 days) that boasts there are “more boats than people!” We especially enjoyed taking a mail boat over from Crisfield, MD (Eastern Shore) to Tangier Island (VA), a very unique  community of 600 people, mostly watermen, who love living on this unspoiled land. The crab shacks are an integral part of it all…this is where the watermen dock their long and speedy crab boats and sort out their crabs, placing them in holding tanks until they molt and are ready to eat or ship. It’s a lot of hard work and there are fewer watermen than in the olden days—all the more reason to have the opportunity to step back in time and witness the watermen’s way of life.

           

We also fully enjoyed the beautiful and peaceful marinas of Solomons Island and St. Michael’s where we marveled at the large lawns, lush landscaping and trees in full leaf, and the helpful and friendly locals (and Loopers) we met there. We’re glad we stopped in Annapolis, especially to visit with a college friend and her husband in their lovely home in West Annapolis, but staying at the City Dock was certainly an adventure. It is in the heart of town with dozens of restaurants and lots of loud music–a very lively place–noisy, crowded, chaotic and definitely “party central” both nights. It is also adjacent to the U.S. Naval Academy so we saw lots of midshipman in their crisp, white uniforms, some ready to graduate this week. (We also learned that 30% of its students are now women!). I have a feeling the locals are glad when the tourists leave and this beautiful town returns to a less hectic pace.

We also had an opportunity to see the last of the screw pile lighthouses that used to be on Chesapeake Bay. The only one of its kind still working is the Thomas Point Lighthouse off Annapolis, but we were too far away for a photo. Here’s one called the Drum Point Lighthouse that is now on display at the Calvert Maritime Museum in Solomons, together with one of the “Tall Ships” leaving St. Michael’s when we did.

           

Knowing we have some higher-stress adventures coming up (as we travel through the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal into Delaware Bay and out into the Atlantic Ocean to travel up the New Jersey Coast to New York Harbor), we chose to spend three very quiet and peaceful days on the Sassafras River on Maryland’s Upper Eastern Shore as our last stop on the Chesapeake Bay. We stayed in the very small town of Georgetown, MD and were offered a courtesy car to travel through hundreds of acres of wheat and cornfields to visit Chestertown, “a graceful town of 18^th Century houses” along the Chester River and the home of Washington College, the tenth oldest college in the Country.

           

Once again, it is the quiet towns and peaceful environments that really fill us up, together with the friendships from years’ past and those we make and nurture along the way. We continue to count our blessings and enjoy this amazing journey and look forward to telling you all about our coming adventures on S.L.O. Dancer—our home away from home that carries us along so comfortably and reliably. Thanks for continuing to cruise with us!

P.S. For the first time on our journey, ducks and geese have entertained us quite a bit. We just can’t resist adding photos here of some very interesting brown geese we discovered on the Chestertown waterfront and a very busy mama mallard at our Norfolk marina….Make Way For 13 Ducklings!!!

May there be fair winds and calm seas as we move forward! Blessings to all!