Meeting friends old and new

One of the joys of cruising is the people you meet and we have had good fortune to have met a lot of wonderful people along the way in our first year.

Morning Coffee

So as we know a few folks in these parts we emailed fellow Island Packet owners, Hayden and Radeen and asked some advice on anchorages for our stay in the Chesapeake. Hayden was straight back to us and gave us lots of good tips so we were well set for the next few weeks itinerary. The first stop was the Sassafras river, though a bit further in than Hayden had mentioned due to some stronger winds being forecast. It was very peaceful and the scenery was stunning, even seeing deer on the shore in the morning.

Local Cruisers

Our next stop was Dobbins Island which is a natural harbor and a favorite with locals to watch sunsets and walk the sand bar and island. We were there over the weekend but it was late in season and had plenty of space for us and a lovely spot for a couple of nights. After Dobbins Island we waited until Monday to try Rock Hall and the public dock for which good planning paid off in spades as it was empty when we arrived. It is a lovely harbor but a little exposed to south winds, however as there was north forecast we took great advantage. We were only there a short time when Frank & Diane from s/v Utopia dropped by to say hello as they had checked in at the marina. We invited them aboard and had a lovely chat about our respective cruising. While we were chatting another boat came in to the public dock, Clive & Hershel on s/v Sitara. We do love docks for the fact they give you a great opportunity to socialize. Well Rock Hall is a great town and has everything a cruiser needs with marine, grocery and hardware stores as well as a laundry! We tried a few local restaurants but the recommended ones were closed lunch times so visited with the other boats for cocktails.

Dobbins Island

Rock Hall town dock

Our next stop was Mill Creek as it looks very sheltered and a restaurant we know is on the banks there. It was a short motor over in light winds but easy to find good anchoring with lots of space. We took the dinghy over to Cantler’s seafood restaurant for lunch on our second day and walked some of the roads to stretch our legs. It was very peaceful and we are starting to feel a slowing of pace which is great.

Mill Creek

Mill Creek

Cantler's - really fresh crabs arriving

Next stop was Annapolis the center of sailing in these parts. This is where they host the sail and power boat shows in October each year and it’s the home of the US Naval Academy. We tried to find a spot in Spa Creek to drop the hook but alas even out of season it was busy in there, particularly with SSCA boats waiting for the Gam in a week. So we decided as the forecast was light we would anchor outside and dinghy in. We first paid a visit to s/v Oro Negro an IP420 who we had met in Booth Bay at the rendezvous. Then we visited with s/v Utopia to catch up again and exchange information on Annapolis. We then dinghied into town to take in some sites on main street and the wharf. The following day we rented bikes (yes we have our own but the dinghy ride was rough) and toured Annapolis. We stopped at the Naval Academy to do the self guided tour and by the time we got to the sailing center most of the fleet was out on the water. So we made it back to Moosetracks for lunch and to move to Mill Creek again as a thunderstorm was forecast late that day. Back in Mill Creek we settled in and relaxed knowing we had great protection and thankfully the storm was not much of an event anyway.

Annapolis

Empty mooring - for small boats

Bike Hire

Typical street in Annapolis

 

University

Naval Academy

USNA Sailing school

Annapolis Sunset

We then sailed the 15nm to the Rhode river and Camp Letts where the SSCA has the annual Annapolis Gam. As we sailed the bay we were fortunate to have the Naval Academy fleet come past us (going to other way) and got a good look at their boats and later a good look at their spinnaker handling too. We were a little early by arriving on Sunday as the Gam doesn’t start until Thursday. However we have a few boats jobs creeping up on us so we liked the idea of a large protected bay and good weather to get ahead on a few of them. boats started arriving here in Thursday and by Friday we had a crowd and for Saturday there was 70+ boats counted. We met lots of old friends like Steve and Lynn from s/v Celebration (see our links) and lots of new cruising friends like Elenore Q, Exhuberant, Rosa dos Ventos, Sans Cles, Utopia, Sitara, I Wanda, Windpower and more. We also made some new friends like the WWRC guys on Born Free who helped us fix our SSB radio. There were really far more cruisers than we could remember as we shared cruising notes with so many. It was a fabulous Gam and so great for us as we caught up with folks we have met all this year in this one place.

Camp Letts

Rhode River before the Gam

Frank & Diane arrive for Mexican Train Dominoes

Then before we knew it everything was over and it’s time to move on. We have a haul out scheduled so we have to boogie on down to Deltaville for a week to paint Moosetracks’ bottom. So not a lot of movement for us these last few weeks, which we feel is nice as we needed a little break before the hard work in the yard.

Solomon's anchorage

We hope everything is wonderful in your world.

 

Here are some local lighthouse from the Chesapeake.