And now for the really big Sheeooow! –Ed Sullivan
From Chesapeake City we had a an easy motor sail with only the jib out, but even then there was no wind to keep it for long. The weather has been beautiful so that even if it does shower it still is very warm. More on that later. It is 48 NM so it looked like it would take two days if we wanted an easy run. We stooped at Fairlee Creek on the east side of the bay. A narrow entrance with a sharp dogleg left then along a narrow strip of beach, then a very sharp dogleg right though the narrowest channel. Even the cruising guide said it was tough and you just have to swallow and commit. Once in it was a very quiet little bay with lots of shelter.
The next morning it was that warm misty kind of morning where you want to stay in bed, but we had a destination in mind so off we go into Chesapeake Bay. Kind of gloomy, yet turning the final corner to enter the big bay, 8.5 miles away we could see the Chesapeake Bay Bridge through the mist. And then we saw it for the next two hours. Straight ahead. Arriving at the mouth of the Severn River was a breeze but coming up on Spa Creek inside Annapolis harbour, where we planned to anchor was something we had never seen on this trip before. The entrance to the creek, as well as the creek itself was jam packed with boats. It looked like a parking lot at Home Depot. Trusting our handy-dandy chart-plotter we twisted and turned around anchored yachts until I reached the spot which I had picked out on Google Earth last February at home. I knew the location as soon as I saw it. We did a circle, found a spot where we could squeeze in and dropped anchor. Thinking we may have crowded out some other boats that were there before us, we stayed around for a while. Really it wasn’t crowded as we thought since right beside us, in front and behind us and continued the rest of the day, all kinds of sail and power boats crowded in and picked a patch of clear water. It was funny to watch them jostle for position then drop anchor where they could find a spot. These guys were not 25 feet either. There were three catamarans in a triangle that were 45 ft long and 30 ft wide. I took a picture of some of them which made Chances almost hard to find. We met a few boats from Halifax, one called Sanity Check with Judy and Tony aboard, and another called Banyan with Steve and Alex.
Annapolis is a beautiful, quaint little city with great importance to the creation of the United States and the revolution to break away from the British Empire. There is no way to tell the 18th century buildings from newer ones as they are built to the same style. From the tourist map you would think it is really big but the downtown and dock area could be walked in a very short while. A casual stroll, it could be done in an afternoon. Taking some time looking at the numerous landmarks it can be done in a day.
The real attraction normally is that Annapolis is home to the Naval Training Base where officers in the navy come to learn to be officers. Kind of looks odd at first to see these 18 year olds all dressed in naval officer clothes where they don’t seem old enough to shave. The compound is open to visitors and the history inside is amazing. You can look it up on-line yourself but it truly is outstanding with the construction and architecture dating back to when it was opened in 1845. It houses the crypt of John Paul Jones, their first naval hero who led their navy in battles with English ships in the Chesapeake. When I was seven years old, my uncle gave me a small book called Men of the Sea in which there were stories and drawings of men who sailed on ships through the centuries. It was divided into small chapters and one of them was on John Paul Jones. It was a book that I may have read a hundred of times and maybe started my love of the sea. The museums they have inside are second to none as far as a collection of artifacts pertaining to their history and the sea. Did you know that almost all the astronauts that flew missions into space got their start at the Annapolis Naval Academy?
But the main attraction here this week is the “In Water Boat Sailboat show”, billed as one of the largest in the world. And to see it is to believe it. There are acres of docks all connected so that you can walk the perimeter or cut through an aisle at anytime. And best of all there was not one powerboat in the area. Some monsters were parked at marinas outside. Probably just the owners of the sailboat companies that build these boats. All the boats are in the water and over half of them I had never seen other than in sailing magazines. And most of them were in the 40 to 60 foot range with a few less and a few more than that. There were Shannons, Oysters, Island Packets, Hylas, all at a median length of 50 feet. There were the companies that we see in Toronto as well; Catalina’s, Hunters, Jeanneaus and Benetaus but these are the new models and on some, variations that we never see in Canada. My favorite of the whole was the Hylas 49 that if I had 800 big ones, I would have bought her on the spot. It was the smallest in their group but wasn’t she pretty! Deck overlaid with teak and the cabin floors done in bamboo and walnut. Chris took my picture as it will be as close as I ever will come to sitting at the wheel of one.
As well, there were distributors of everything necessary for a boat to race or cruise, in booths surrounding the dock areas. To explain it wouldn’t do it justice, you would have to see it to appreciate it; just the size of the place and the selection. Also to live up to Annapolis’ reputation of “being a sailing town with a drinking problem”, just inside the gates the Pusser’s Rum (official rum of the Navy) booth is making three sizes of Painkillers at ten o’clock in the morning! And they were doing a brisk business at all times of the day. At anytime you can slip out to grab a bite at any of the shops, coffee houses or restaurants surrounding the dock and of course show your arm band to get back in.
Annapolis is an amazing historical town which I won’t get into as you can look it up on the internet or visit yourself. The buildings have been around since the 17th century and played a big part in the revolutionary war with Britain, the war of 1812, and the American Civil war. It was the port and docks where enslaved African people were unloaded and sold. There is a statue of Alex Haley, the author of Roots and a descendant of Kunta Kinte who was the subject of the book. The statue is sitting on a low wall along the “healing path” where the slaves were auctioned off.
Because Annapolis is the seat of government for Maryland there are lots of government buildings dating back centuries. It was amazing to see that even the older homes were renovated to keep their originality. This is also the area for crab cakes sold by the lump. Our first night we lucked into eating at Chick and Ruth’s Delly, (yes, spelled delly) where they have everything crab cake and sell for shipment all over the world. It has been in business for 45 years. You have to eat there to say you were In Annapolis. The people here are go out of your way friendly. Every street that ends at the Water is a public dock where we could leave our dinghy and walk up the street to town. Whenever we did there was always were people smilinbg and talkative. Nice because they want you to know about their town so it is easy to find your way around.
The weather up until now has been so amazing. The water is surprisingly warm (68 to 70F) and get that surprise whenever we are dropping anchor or raising it. Almost like a shock in reverse, compared to the water at home in the spring and early summer. There have been very warm days with cooling at night, but in the last two days a cold front has come in and Sunday and Monday it had the feel of fall complete with rain showers. It is supposed to warm up or we are making a beeline for Florida!
For those of you who have asked, yeas there is lots of places to get diesel fuel, and water. We don’t burn a lot of diesel fuel (25 gallons) and we are nearly ready for our fourth fill-up. With water we hold 70 gallons in two tanks so there is a lot to shower with and wash dishes etc. We also carry 12 gallons of fresh water in jugs that are separate and are only for drinking and making coffee. We are able to get showers at town docks, and major places that cater to the cruisers. Whenever one is unavailable or looks too scuzzy we have our own shower on board which we use quite often. The only reason for using shore showers is to save our water. We will be moving across the Chesapeake Bay for a few days in St Michaels, to see another quaint little town with acres of Maritime museum.
Will let you know how that turns out. I will be posting pictures of Annapolis in the gallery with a little explanation of each.
Take care.