After a nice evening with Jerry and Chich, Jerry gave us a lift to the market this morning, and we took a late start. We caught a favorable current in the St. Mary River as we crossed in to Georgia.
We had a bit of luck with the currents and arrived at Ft. Fredericka for an anchorage for the night. It was supposed to be an easy access for dogs, but turned out to be terrible. The banks were black, clay mud. The dinghy dock was six feet above the mud level, if I could get the dinghy to it. There was a mud flat eight feet long before we could even get to the dock. I managed to find a spot with a few rocks covered with oysters and a small flat spot where Annie jumped in to the mud and went for a muddy swim. I was able to stand in the mud as they had plastic netting on the mud to hold the rocks in place. Overall it was a slippery muddy mess. To make things worse I flooded the outboard engine and was being carried away from the boat on the current almost faster than I could row. I was about 50 yards behind the boat when a “Good Samaritan” threw me a line and towed me back to the boat.
Otherwise it was a quiet, pretty anchorage.
Saturday, April 9th
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| This green marker should be in 4 ft. of water at low tide. |
This is a two day stop for Carole to do some painting. The light through the Live Oaks and the Spanish Moss has been something Carole has wanted to paint since we were here two years ago. We had a very good dinner at “Marker 107”. It was a surprise to find a nice restaurant in this very remote area.
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| Sunset at Kilkenny Creek |
Sunday, April 10th
Warm and buggy this morning.
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| View from the plantation house |
I managed to replumb the the washdown pump for better flow and fixed the outboard gearshift so I now have neutral. I also got to watch them launch maybe 30 boats at the lift next to us. They were all small fishing boats. There is no launch ramp here, so they have a fixed boat lift to launch the fishing boats.
Carole decided that she had enough so we will move on tomorrow.
Monday. April 11th
Warm, overcast, humid and buggy again.
We started early and made good time. I had originally planned an anchorage in Turner Creek near Thunderbolt, Georgia. We were so early we decided to push on and crossed in to South Carolina. After crossing the Savannah River the Coast Guard came alongside and asked permission to board. We did not have to slow down. They were efficient and polite. We passed the safety inspection without any infractions and they left.
We anchored out in the New River near Daufuskie I., South Carolina. It was a long dinghy ride to the city dock. Annie decided to jump ship (dinghy) and go for a swim before we walked. Not much to see here. A small indoor/outdoor restaurant – it has a good reputation, but Carole had already planned dinner and the long dinghy ride back to the boat at night did not thrill us, so we ate a great dinner onboard.
This video gives an idea of the view from the helm as we pass through the marshlands of South Carolina.
Tuesday, April 12th
Cloudy and cool this morning.
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| Beaufort Harborwalk looking back to the City Dock |
We went shopping with the courtesy car and then took a walk through the old section of town. There are some really nice old houses here in town. We went to dinner at Plum's and had one of the best meals of the trip. The Caesar Salad was the best yet. Carole had Soft Shell Crabs that were great. I had Fried Catfish over a bed of Corn, Red &, Green Peppers, Onions, Andouille Sausage, and Shrimp that was superb. The Coup De Grace was the bottle of Pinot Grigio that we managed to finish off.
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| Carole on the steps of Plum's Restaurant the next morning. |
Wednesday, April 13th
Cool and clear today. Wind light from the west.
Water fill, pump out, and good walk with Annie before we start out.
Today's bodies of water – Beaufort River, Rock Creek, Ashepo River, South Edisto River, Dawho Creek, North Edisto River and Steamboat Creek – all in 40 miles. We anchored in Steamboat Creek, about 25 miles from Charleston. It feels like the middle of nowhere.
Great dog spot. Easy dinghy ride, floating dock at the boat ramp and a dirt road that is a long way from anywhere so Annie could run free.
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| View of Serendipity from the dirt road. |
Thursday, April 14th
Cool, Cloudy, Foggy early and very buggy.
Annie had another sandy romp.
When we got underway it was against the current. We were only making 4-4.5 mph on the Wadmalaw River and the Stono River. We are back in the land of mile long docks again. Since we could not get to our dock until 4 pm. Going slow was not an issue.
It is race week in Charleston so we have to dodge lots of sailboats all the way across Charleston Harbor.
The AGLCA Harbor Hosts, Jerry & Jenny had us over for a glass of wine and gave us some tips on sightseeing and restaurants. Really helpful and generous.
We went to dinner at Justine's Kitchen looking for Southern Fried Chicken. It was good,but not as good as Nashville. We had to wait outside, in a line on the sidewalk for twenty minutes before we were seated.
Friday, April 15th
Windy and Cool. A southeast wind at 15 mph really kicks up a chop here. The concrete docks kill a lot of it, but the boats are really bouncing at the dock.
Jerry took me to the airport to pick up a rental car for the trip to Harrisburg. One the way back to the boat I stopped for a haircut.
The schooner Spirit of South Carolina is docked here. I wandered over to see if a friend of mine was still involved. No one here knew of him, however a former crewmember of the A.J. Meerwald is now mate on board.
We went to “Bowen's Island” Restaurant for oysters on a recommendation by Jerry. What a Hoot! When we plugged in the address in to GPS, the question “Do you want to avoid unpaved roads?” came up. I answered “Yes”. The reply was: “You can't get there”. The “unpaved road” turned out to be a very long communal gravel road with several homes on it. At the end of the road was a rough framed building with a dirt parking area – full of cars – probably 50 to 60 cars.
Two flights up a ramp or stairway – your choice – was a bar and dining area. High round tables and a few low ones around the walls. The place was packed. I had to stand in line to order. The crowd was mixed. Everything from “old Codgers” like us to families with four year old kids, and all ages in between. There were bikers and military school grads. Our choices were shrimp, fish, or oysters – fried or boiled. We ordered shrimp boiled and oysters steamed with coleslaw, fries and hush puppies. A tray of steamed oysters and 1/2 lb. Of shrimp and we were full. I had to go downstairs to get the oysters. The oyster steamer used a large coal shovel to shovel the oysters on to a large serving tray for me to take back upstairs. Food was really good. We'll be back!
Saturday, April 16th
Annie got to run in the dog park with 6 other dogs, four of them golden labs that outweighed her by 20 lbs. When they saw her and charged across the field, she crouched down and held her ground, made no moves to sniff them, but let them sniff her. After they inspected her she joined them running around and playing. She is still learning how to play in a group. She does well one on one, but a lot of friendly dogs is a new experience.
Laundry, shopping and cleaning were the order of the day. Cocktails at The Gin Joint was a bit different. There is a huge selection of Whiskeys and all drinks are carefully hand mixed with top of the line mixes and garnishes. Dinner at a Thai – Sushi place was only average. Parking in downtown Charleston is a nightmare. The streets are narrow and mostly one way. It is however quite nice for walking. The marina is right downtown, so we can walk to everything.
Sunday, April 17th - Tuesday, April 19th
Traveled to Harrisburg for a family Seder. Two days going up. Had a great visit – good Seder – and a wonderful dinner. Food was super.
One long day coming back. Had dinner at a nearby Japanese restaurant that was much better than the Thai Sushi.
Wednesday, April 20th
Another boat work/cleaning day. The Spirit of South Carolina was gone, but the Harvey Gamage was in. Another ex Meerwald crew was onboard and we had a short chat.
Dinner at Sticky Fingers. We drove all around ( and I mean “around” due to one way streets) downtown before parking back at the marina and walking to dinner.
Thursday, April 21st
Hot and humid this morning.
Turned in the car at the airport and took a city bus back to the marina.
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| Fort Sumpter |
I have noticed on the waterway, that even in the last few years there are many more boats on boat lifts then before. They have not removed the “No Wake” signs, but there are a lot fewer boats in the water and many more boats up on lifts.
We arrived at Price Creek about 2:30 and found a nice place to anchor. When I lowered the anchor it would not hold. We raised it up to try again and the anchor was gone. A pin had fallen out of the swivel. Inspection revealed that the threads were gone in the swivel.
I put the second anchor on and after four tries it held with 100 ft. of chain out. I spent some time with a magnet on a fishing line but no joy. It was like looking for needle in a haystack.
Took Annie to a nearby beach and she had a great run and swim.
A front came through with lots of wind and rain. With all of the chain we had out we were blown up against a steep bank for a while. As soon as the wind stopped we were back in the middle again.
Late that night Carole heard noise while we were in bed, so at midnight I checked and found we were against the bank again at high tide. I was concerned that we would be aground at low tide so we tried to use the anchor to pull us out to the middle again. The chain was wrapped around the anchor in a ball, and it was not doing anything thing to hold the boat. We freed the chain and raised the anchor. The boat floated free. We moved out in to the middle and reanchored. The anchor held with only 50 ft. of chain.
I woke up at 4:30 AM to find the boat tilted 15 degrees. The port side was aground and we were a bit frightened that the boat would tip over. I tried powering off to no avail and also tried kedging off (that is using the anchor to pull the boat off by hauling in the anchor) The anchor held for quite a while, but finally pulled loose before moving the boat. We called Tow Boat US and the Coast guard. Since I had determined we were close to low tide and we would probably not tilt much more (about 20 degrees at this point) and Towboat US would get here about 6:30 am the Coast Guard was not coming. They did call every 15 minutes to check on us. It was getting to be light when Towboat US arrived (they had to come from Charleston). Since the tide was coming in we decided to wait for the tide to rise further so we would not tear up the bottom or our propeller when we were pulled off. He left until 8:00 and returned about 1/2 hr. earlier than planned. By then we were level again although the stern was 6” higher out of the water than normal. After attaching a towline and pulling slowly we came off the shelf into deep water. A quick check underway determined that there was no vibration and we were on our way by 9:00 am.
Having had a night of little sleep and lots of anxiety and some fear we decided to back track 6 miles to a marina.
A large slip with floating docks, clean rest rooms, a place to walk Annie and nice neighbors – what more could we ask for. It turned out to be a good move for another reason – it poured on and off all day. I got a good bit of inside work done on the boat.
Saturday, April 23rd
Warm & Overcast
Carole has gotten a bit gun shy and was reluctant to go with a 15 kt. wind forecast. After talking it over, it changed while we talked, and we left with a new beautiful forecast.
We saw some Oystercatchers flying around and I also saw what I think was a newborn dolphin being pushed to the surface to take its first breaths.
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| The dock on the right belongs to the house on the left. |
the wind died (or was right behind us) and out came the biting flies. They look and act like greenheads but do not have green heads. We put up the screens on the flybridge and then I entertained myself with the electrocutioner (electric flyswatter). The flies were usually stunned by it. Then they would regain consciousness in a minute or so and fly off – unless Annie ate it or I gave it a smack with a traditional fly swatter. It kept me busy and out of trouble for a bit.
Georgetown is a nice quiet old southern town. We arrived late so the Rice Museum was closed although the gift shop was not. We bought some aromatic Carolina Rice and Gulla Seasoning.
Wings at the Pirate's Den were O.K., but I missed an evaluation report. Sorry!
Sunday, April 24th - Easter Sunday
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| Georgetown on Easter Sunday Morning |
We had planned to spend a day here sightseeing, but with everything closed we just took a walking tour in the morning and saw some of the old houses – some dating back to 1740 – and left town before noon.
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| Interesting use of flower pots |
The trip up the Waccamaw River is a pleasant one. Cypress lined banks and not many houses. The ICW then heads through a narrow area in the Cypress Swamp before opening in to a canal near Myrtle Beach.
We stopped at Osprey Marina. An impressive stop at $1.00/ft. and 1st Class Service. We even got a goodie bag with crackers, 1/2lb. Cheese, and a couple of Pecan Twirls. Annie had lots of running room.
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| Cypress stumps along the waterway |
Monday, April 25th
We left a bit late intending only a short day to Little River Inlet, but we were making such good time we pushed on to Holden Beach. The first marina we called was full. The second only had room at the fuel dock with no power. The third place, Hewitt Marina, is really a boat yard. No bathroom or showers, but they had power. We got the only open slip they had.
The only thing nearby is a restaurant. We had dinner planned, but Carole figured we could go and have wings and beer. Great Choice – maybe the best wings of the trip: Crispy – 5, Heat – 3, Taste – 4, Meaty – 4 for a total of 16. A really pleasant surprise. We will stop in the fall on the way down to try the rest of the menu.
Carolina Rice and Shrimp for dinner tonight – great dinner on board.
Tuesday, April 26th
Overcast and warm.
Underway we called Art & Sandy from Magoo. They finished the loop at Sneads Ferry several weeks ago. We wanted to visit with them for an evening. It was looking like we would have to stay 3 days at a pricey marina that Art says is the pits. He suggested that we call Donna & Greg on Lady in Red. They have a house with a dock nearby and Lady in Red is on the Tennessee River. So I called and they were glad to hear from us and we were more than welcome.
Tomorrow we will go there for several days.
As we turned up the Cape Fear River I saw a large freighter coming downriver. It was not showing up on the AIS. At first I wondered why until I saw the Coast Guard Patrol boats alongside. It was a Navy Ship. I could not get out of the channel and as we were going past it about 50 yards off, the Patrol boat moved between it and us and a Guardsman came out of the cabin and was manning the machine gun on the bow. I decided against taking a picture. I am thinking that they were an ammunition Supply Vessel.
The Fish House Bar and Grill in Wrightville Beach had excellent Fried Oysters and Onion Rings.
The Bridgetender Marina is a poor excuse for a transient stop. It's only saving grace is that it is 50 cents a ft. cheaper than the other marinas in Wrightsville Beach. There is no shower, bathroom closes at 8 and the only pumpout is a portable with a handpump. Across the way for the extra money you get a shower and all night bathrooms, and a 1/2 mile longer walk to the shops, grocery and restaurants. BTW the $1.75/ ft. is 50 cents higher than the areas just before and after it.
The main saving grace for Wrightsville Beach is that it is convenient to the waterway.
Wednesday, April 27th
Cloudy, Warm and Breezy
Went shopping this morning and got underway at 1145. We are only going 16 miles to Donna and Greg's and we need to get there 1/2 tide or better.
As we arrived at the creek, Greg came out in his johnboat to guide us in. Their Dock is about a mile up the creek. On the way in we managed to run aground and the wind was pushing us further aground as the tide rose. A neighbor with a larger outboard than Greg's was able to pull the bow around and we powered off the mud. The creek has a soft mud bottom which will be sitting on about 1/2 the time while we are here. Donna and Greg treated us to dinner. The first of the very gracious southern hospitality we were the recipients of.
Thursday, April 28th
Lay around all morning. With thunderstorms expected we were happy to be tied up in a very well protected dock. The afternoon was spent on a tour of Wilmington, NC. It seems to be a varied city. Some waterfront activity and many old homes.
Friday, April 29th
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| Me, Greg, Carole, Sandy, Donna, & Art Dockside at the Howard's |
We need an early start tomorrow to get the high tide.
Saturday, April 30th
Clear and Cold (57o F) – wind N ~ 8mph.
We got off before 8 and had pretty good water depth all of the way out of the creek. We had gotten a lot of good local information from Greg and Art – places to stay and where to get fuel. We missed the Surf City Bridge opening and had to wait 40 minutes.
The pink house on the point is a “must see”.
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| Pink House on the Point |
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| Check it out. Lighthouse, Pool Slide and more. |
Stopped at New River Marina for fuel. Had to wait ten minutes to dock as they had a line of boats waiting when we got there.
We arrived at Dudley's Marina in Swansboro for the night. It is right on the waterway near Bogue Inlet. A good bit of wake action from fishing boats (outboard center consoles mostly) until dark, then it calmed down. There is lots of current and the facility is somewhat rustic, but at $0.75/ft. Including power I can't complain.
Had a great nights sleep.
Sunday, May 1st , Mayday
Clear, cool (52oF)
Starting out directly into the sun and a 10mph wind. We will probably skip Beaufort, NC (One Beaufort a trip is enough) and go to Oriental today.
We tried 3 different marinas in the area and none had anyplace to pump out our waste tank. We were referred to a small marina on the other side of the bridge - Tomorrow morning. I want to go to the Marine consignment in town and they close at 5 pm. today.
The shop did not have the two items I was most interested in – a propeller and an anchor, but I still managed to find a few things I just could not do without.
We met some other loopers at the marina and had a nice dinner and evening out.
Monday, May 2nd
Mild, Clear and Calm this morning.
Headed for the pumpout and found that it was too shallow for us. I now know why it smelled like sewage when we stirred up the mud with our propeller. There are about a 1000 boats in this area and only one pumpout. If the sailboat masts are over 45 ft. or the boat's draft is more that 4 ft. then the boat can not get there. So guess what they do to empty their holding tank. It is not only illegal, but in a closed harbor with no current it does not get washed out. Oh, and there were crab pots in the harbor. Guess where I am not eating crabs.
Beautiful travel day. Light breeze and clear sky. Several open water runs with no worry about shallow water or narrow channels. If a large boat wants to pass they have plenty of room, they do not need to slow down and the wake does not bother us.
When we arrived at Forest River Marina in Belhaven, NC we found that it was almost empty. Only two other boats there. The docks were O.K., but the Manor was closed and so was the restaurant. The marina staff were friendly and helpful. The pumpout was not working properly and a 10 minute job took 45 minutes.
Sea Cracker whom we met last night was there and they invited us to dinner along with two others on a sailboat at the dock. It was a fun evening. We returned to a charcoal grey colored boat. It was covered with insects. They looked like mosquitoes but do not bite. They completely covered all of the white surfaces that were closest to the dock light. We did not turn on any boat lights until we were inside and the boat was closed up tight.
Tuesday, May 3rd
Clear and mild with a light wind.
In the day light many of the insects were gone. There were only thousands now instead of millions. The deck was covered with insect carcasses. Fortunately a hose took care of them.
Today after a short open water stretch we have a twenty mile completely straight canal. We will then enter the open water of the Alligator River.
The wind picked up some as we entered the Alligator River which is about a mile wide and shallow so we had 1 – 2 ft. waves behind us. It made for a very rolly 3 hour ride to the bridge and marina.
Alligator River Marina is very nice. It is however 11 miles from anywhere. A very quiet night.
We expect a weather front tomorrow and will probably stay another day. Crossing the Albemarle Sound in heavy weather is not wise. It is very shallow and any wind kicks up really high waves.
Wednesday, May 4th
Warm, overcast and calm.
A weather forecast (actually 3 of them) showed no heavy weather until after noon. I convinced Carole to go as we would be off the sound by noon. Well everyone blew it. It was a beautiful start. Really calm and making great time. We will be off the sound by 11:00 – WRONG! At 10:00 the wind shifted from SSW to NE and increased from 10mph to 25mph. The temperature dropped from 75oF to 55 and the rain started. In 5 minutes we were fighting 5 ' waves and instead of going 7 mph we were do 5mph. To really top things off there were crab pots all around us. They were really hard to see in the waves, especially the ones painted black or blue. Carole was standing behind me to look for crab pots while I was steering. In spite of all that we finally crossed the sound by 11:30. It was a miserable morning. The rest of the trip to Coinjock (It means Magnolia in some Indian language) was easy and cold.
The dockhands spotted the remains of the bugs that covered the boat in Belhaven. They are called Midges. Locally in Belhaven they were called male mosquitoes. The locals in Coinjock have the best name for them - “Shit Green and Die” bugs. If you don't wash them off quickly you get green dots all over the boat that are difficult to remove.
We had the traditional Prime Rib dinner here and it was great. I had my first one here 21 years ago and they still do a great job. Now every table gets a complimentary serving of homemade potato chips and homemade ranch dressing – excellent!
Thursday, May 5th
Cold night last night 44o F. It was quite calm however. A clear cold morning with the wind in our face. We closed the bridge windows and let the solar heat do its thing.
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| Sunset at Great Bridge,VA |
Since it is Cinco de Mayo the local Mexican restaurant El Loco Toro had Corona for only $1.50. We couldn't pass it up. The food was really good. The two of us had a full meal, 4 beers, and leftovers for $25.00 including tip! Unreal!
Friday, May 6th
Clear, cool and breezy.
The trip to Norfolk went well. Lots of barges and tugs after the lock in Great Bridge. As locks go the Great Bridge Lock is almost a non- event. Only a 2.5 ft. drop. The Elizabeth River through Norfolk is always fun. Lots of ships, buildings, and Navy boats. It was a bit lumpy as we approached the James River and Willoughby Spit and then 8 large (60 + ft.) power cruisers came by and really rocked us. When we turned in to Willoughby Bay north of the Navy base things calmed down.
Rebel Marine is a great stop. Super friendly, courtesy car, well protected floating docks and a hot tub. It is also nice that Dave and Steve Briggs are friends and easy to talk to.
Saturday, May 7th
We decided to take advantage of a good weather window and head out. It was looking as if the lower Chesapeake Bay was going to be rough in the next few days so we moved north to Deltaville, VA. The Chesapeake Bay was flat calm and we arrived in time to watch the Kentucky Derby in the Captain's Lounge. A wedding Party in the next room kept peeking in to see who would win the Derby. Doziers Regatta point proved to be another excellent stop.
Tomorrow looks to be rainy so we may be here another day.
Sunday, May 8th Mothers Day
Rainy and calm.
We took the courtesy car shopping and when we returned it looked like the rain was ended. A quick pumpout and refuel and we are off to Tangier Island. About 1/2 way across the bay we lost cell phone coverage. We could not call Park's Marina (the only game in town) and no one answered the radio. I said “they”, but Milt Parks is the only one here. He is turning 80 in two months (which he told us several times) and he was upset that he was not there to help us dock.
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| Approaching Tangier I. |
We had a really good dinner – soft shell crabs and crab cakes. Then we took a long walk around the town.
Tangier Island has been a very isolated community since the 1600's. There are several thousand cats on the island and only 5 or 6 family lines in the people population. Until recently the kids went 12 miles by boat to Crisfield, MD for school. They now have K through 12 on the island. Last year they graduated 2 from High School. This year there are 5 graduating.
Tangier Island has been a very isolated community since the 1600's. There are several thousand cats on the island and only 5 or 6 family lines in the people population. Until recently the kids went 12 miles by boat to Crisfield, MD for school. They now have K through 12 on the island. Last year they graduated 2 from High School. This year there are 5 graduating.
The island is primarily watermen, mostly crabbers, and largely soft shell crabs. There about 20 shedding operations with long rows of shedding tanks. When the crabbers catch a crab about to shed (they can tell by looking for a white line along the edge of the shell) they separate them into these shallow tanks where bay water is constantly being pumped through. Every hour someone walks through and when a crab molts it is immediately harvested as a soft shell crab. If left too long (4-5 hours I think) the shell hardens and they are no longer soft shells.
There is a lot of interesting history on the island and the buildings (about 500) and town layout go back a long time. We went back to the boat after dinner and joined two other boats for an evening of drinks and story swapping.
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| A Street on Tangier |
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| Trash Can on Tangier I. |
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| Tangier docks |
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| Tangier sunset |
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| Tangier Harbor |
Monday. May 9th
Clear and Cool
Milt wants to take us on a tour of the island by Golf Cart. Having been here all of his life he is a fountain of local knowledge. We are only going 14 miles today so we can leave late. The tour was fun. It only took 1/2 hour and we saw the entire island. Not in detail mind you, but we did get the flavor. The museum was closed so we missed that.
We made the 2 hr. trip to Crisfield in the afternoon and took a walk through what town there is. The first order of the afternoon was to find Hardshell Crabs for dinner. It has been almost a year without and we have both had a craving for them. Crisfield is also a working waterman's town. There is some tourism (mainly tours to Tangier Island) and the usual Condo's. A few of the stores were empty, but overall the town appeared O.K.
We found Crabs! The local bar about 2 blocks from the marina served them up. The first we have had since last May. Well worth the stop.
Tuesday, May 10th
Clear , cool and windy. The early forecast was for 2' on the bay and wind 12-15 kts. Carole said no go so I started to settle in for the day. However, I do not take “no” easily so I checked in again at 9:00 and it looked better. We decided we would go. It worked out great. We had some 2' waves, but nothing more, and by 3:30 they were under 1' and got warm. Calvert marina at Solomons Island was so cheap we decided not to anchor. Good, clean marina with a courtesy car and floating docks. Good fuel prices also.
Wednesday, May 11th
Overcast, cool, wind east at 10mph
We started late as we expected a short day. As we left the Patuxent River we were treated to a mini air show over the Naval Airbase. We saw two airplanes flying low and slow. One appeared to to have it's canopy open and its wheels down. The other was an F18A Hornet flying nose up (almost on its 's tail). Both seemed to be traveling at maybe 50-60 mph. As they passed over the Naval Airstation the F18 flew away high and fast. The lower plane stopped, hovered rotated and stayed there. It was a Harrier! The Harrier dropped below the trees and then I thought I saw a helicopter. It turned around and it was an Osprey in hover mode. We also saw a Hawkeye and several other different planes. I think there may have been a demonstration at the air station.
We were planning to anchor in Dun Cove, up the Choptank River past Tilghman Island. When we arrived we could not find anywhere to take Annie to shore – it is now all private land with houses. Last time we were here it was all open fields. We turned around and went back to Tilghman Island Marina in Knapps Narrows. Crab dip and wine at restaurant over the bridge. Quite nice on the deck overlooking the water.
Thursday, May 12th
Clear, cool, wind SW 5-6 kts.
We headed to Annapolis with the bay flat calm. We arrived in Annapolis and met up with a couple of loopers and joined them for lunch. Two of our friends joined us for the afternoon and dinner. We had a nice day.
Friday, May 13th
Drab and dreary day with lots of rain. The Naval Academy Tour was today's highlight and it was a good tour. We were tied up in “Ego Alley”, which is the piece of waterfront right in the middle of Annapolis and along the walk that all of the tourists take. We were told that the tide was going to be very high and the power might be shut off during the night if the water looked as if it would get up over the power outlets. We unplugged so as not to worry. I did not happen.
Saturday, May 14th
Drab and dreary again. Woke up at 0630 for the start of the Annapolis Triathalon Sprint. We had front row seats. The swim started 100 yds. Away from us and the finish run was right next to the boat. It was fun watching. There were about 1000 entrants for the swim, bike and run. There was about 1/4 acre of bicycles on racks in the transition zone. It was a quick 4 hours and when it was over the whole place was clean. As very close up spectators we were offered the left over breakfast burritos that they had for the volunteers.
Our friends Dave and Cindy brought the new kid Jaden and we had a great afternoon. Jaden was a bit wary of Annie at first, but he got over it and got a good face washing, first from Annie and then from Mom. We went out to eat at Chris and Ruth's Deli and had the best Crab Cakes IMHO ever!
We also met up with Tanya, a former chief mate on the A.J. Meerwald. She is now Captain of Sultana.
A good dinner at Dave's Irish Pub in Eastport finished off the evening.
Sunday, May 15th
We had planned to sit another day to wait out the weather. After much debate and a trip to the farmers market across the basin, we headed off to Rock Hall. The weather called for rain (70%) and thunderstorms – both on Carole's NO Go list. We looked at the radar, saw nothing for the next three hours and left. Three hours later we were in Rock Hall. No rain, no thunderstorm, no wind. In fact the sun came out and it was beautiful.
Waterman's is a large Crab Restaurant with docks. This time of year if you eat there you can stay the night and pay only for electric if you can find an outlet that works.
We took a nice walk through town. We also met Carol the Bartender. She is a 60 or 70 something year old and a ball of fire. She greeted us, seated us, and talked us for (quite) a while. The crabs were, as usual, great.
Monday, May 16th
Rain predicted again – 7 hours later after a beautiful trip up the bay (with no rain) we tied up at a free dock in Chesapeake City. It is a cute town.
We expect some wet weather tomorrow. With heavy rain and thunderstorms called for we will probably not go.
Tuesday, May 17th
Overcast and rainy this morning. A look at the radar seems to show a 3-4 hour break. We watched for a while, made a last minute decision and left about noon. We only had a three hour trip and it looked as if we would have that much time without rain.
We actually got no rain at all the entire day. We arrived at Delaware City and have now completed the psychological loop as well as the empirical loop we finished in Port St. Lucie.
We Are Home!
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