2019: Chesapeake Bay

13 October 2019
Depart: Summit North Marina, Bear, DE 8:50
Arrive: West River Anchorage #1 4:00
Distance: 63 nm

After walking it a couple of times, I decided to look at the app on my phone that measures the distance I walk. To the closest restroom from the boat was .33 miles (each way). The one we walked to last night for our showers was further away than that. I got my morning exercise by walking to the toilets and back before we continued on our journey.

We traveled the remainder of the C&D Canal this morning. As we passed by, we checked out the Chesapeake City free dock. Because of the spacing of the boats there, it appeared to be quite full. We thought all the boats would have left first thing in the morning.

Free Dock at Chesapeake City, DE

On the opposite side of the canal, we saw twin boats docked near Schaefer's Canal House Marina.

Schaefer's Canal House on the C&D Canal

Our trip today included a couple of interesting barge sightings - both with drogues.

A barge carrying barges!

A barge carrying a classic wooden boat. A Trumpy?

Drogue is visible in the water behind this barge.

We dodged a lot of debris in the water again today. With the size of the objects, a hit could cause considerable damage!

Tree / limb at least 6 feet long!

When we could take our eyes off the obstacles in the water, we enjoyed the view of the bridges and lighthouses.

Baltimore Light on Chesapeake Bay

William P. Lane Memorial Bridge

Thomas Point Shoal Lighthouse 

14 October 2019
Depart: West River Anchorage just south of Annapolis, MD 8:00
Arrive: Mill Creek Anchorage off the Wicomico River in VA 4:50
Distance: 76 nm

We planned an early departure, but when Clark got up and took a look, he found a very foggy sky. He let me stay in bed an extra few minutes before we got up and got going.

"Home Too" in the foggy West River anchorage.

Morning mist in Maryland

As we did yesterday, we again dodged tree limbs and pilings in the water. If not for the debris in the water, it would have been a rather boring ride. The debris fields kept us on our toes!

Another tree-sized piece of wood floating on the waterway
due to severe flooding in the area.

As the sun lowered in the sky, Clark captured a silhouette of a passing ship.

We decided to anchor in Mill Creek as we have been here before and liked it. The one drawback it has is the lack of services - weak cellphone and no digital television. As we approached the anchorage, "Sunset Delight" turned off to port and "Home Too" continued on to our starboard side. They needed to refuel before tomorrow's travels.

As we dropped our anchor for the night, it made sounds like a squeaky wheel. I found it unpleasant to listen to, and Clark found it disturbing from a wear-and-tear point of view. While we waited for Franklin and Cathy to come into the anchorage to join us, Clark and I disassembled the windlass to lubricate the parts in an attempt to eliminate the noise.

We have taken apart the windlass a few times now. It takes two. One to pull the pieces off and the other to read the step-by-step instructions and make sure nothing blows or rolls off the deck. Clark had a devil of a time finding the squeaky culprit until suddenly he had an ah-ha moment and realized it was the infamous "stripper" that was causing the noise. Once he applied liberal lubricant to that part, the noise disappeared completely.

Clark had the last piece to be complete the reassembly in his hands as "Home Too" entered the anchorage. By the time they finished fueling and found the anchorage, the sun had set.

Sunset at Mill Creek, VA

As they started to anchor the anchor roller broke. Consequently, they rafted with us. Fortunately the next few nights for them are in a marina, so they will have a chance to fix the roller before needing to anchor again.


15 October 2019
Depart: Mill Creek Anchorage 9:05
Arrive: Hampton, VA Anchorage 4:15
Distance: 53 nm

The trip from Wicomico River to Hampton felt like it took forever. Although we had not even a ripple in the anchorage, as soon as we got out in the open, we found 15 knot winds and rocky seas. On the bright side, we did not find any debris on today's travels. Despite watching intently, we did not see any traps on the water either - even in the fish trap zone.

Starting early afternoon, we repeatedly heard a Coast Guard Securite announcement concerning a super tanker due to arrive at Thimble Shoal Channel at 2:00. As we also approached Thimble Shoal Channel, we kept a watch out for the vessel named "Cosco Jasmine". Finally, around 3:00 we saw the ship on the horizon. AIS revealed that we our paths would cross in approximately 30 minutes.

1200 foot long super tanker heading for Norfolk, VA

This sailboat looks very small beside the cargo ship.

Getting up close and personal with the cargo ship was the excitement for the day. As the ship turned towards Norfolk, we turned to Hampton, Virginia for the night. Entering the Hampton River, we saw familiar sights including Hampton University.

Old Point Comfort Lighthouse

Hampton University

Great boat name ... "Dessert First"

Franklin dropped off at the Hampton Public Piers for the night while we continued on under the nearby bridge to anchor in a spot we have used a few times.

Our anchorage for the night in Hampton, VA

As I worked on the blog update and Clark did some repair work on a propane leak, we heard someone shouting at us. It turns out some sculling boats were passing by. The person who yelled told Clark that his parents were from New Jersey. He had obviously seen "Rumson, NJ" as our home port shown on the hull of our boat.

Clark wants to attend a Snowbird Boaters' Rendezvous here in Hampton starting Thursday and lasting until Sunday. There will be seminars and opportunities to meet more boaters. Clark is particularly interested to hear Chris Parker speak. Chris Parker's weather broadcasts provided us with the critical information we needed to be able to travel safely on "Sea Moss" in the Bahamas in 2016.