Impulse Cruising Again

Saturday, June 16 – 26 miles, 3.5 hours
Once again we had a gorgeous morning – sunny, cool, and calm. We drank coffee/tea in the cockpit and watched several crabbers tend their trotlines. (Long ropes with chicken necks tied along the length.) They did catch a few, but not an abundance that we saw. There are crab traps crowded into several areas near here, so the blue crabs must be running! Why didn’t I get some crab bait at the store? By 8:00 am we were headed out of Breton Bay and down the Potomac. Being Saturday, we did see more boats out and about (fishing mostly) than on all of the other days on this river combined. After a few hours we turned onto St. Mary’s River. It is a beautiful river, as are many of the rivers on the Chesapeake Bay. Lots of trees, houses here and there, and peaceful water. Bill turned into Horseshoe Bend and we pulled up to the dock at St. Mary’s College. Boats can dock here for several hours, so we ate tuna fish sandwiches and left to tour Historic St. Mary’s City. This settlement was the original capitol of Maryland, built in 1634 after Calvert chose the site, and was the starting place for Catholicism in America. Once the capitol was moved to Annapolis (a Protestant city) this village died. But through archaeological research, many buildings have been rebuilt in their original locations. The walk through the grounds is lengthy and we covered most of it – Bill isn’t happy walking long distances. We saw the original State House, an Inn, an Ordinary (tavern and lodging for “ordinary” people), the Printer House (site of the first printing press in the colonies), a Yacomico Indian hamlet, the visitor center, an old barn, a chapel (where three lead coffins were found under the floor!), and other interesting places. A short presentation about the typical garden and medicinal uses for herbs and plants taught us a few things, although we were only stumped on two of the herbs. Our last stop was the Dove, a replica ship which is floating at the dock and makes trips to special events. It is always interesting to see how men actually lived on boats back then. We stopped at the Student Center of the College as the tour book suggested, but nothing was open, so back to the boat we went. We pulled away from the dock and anchored in the spacious anchorage. Bill grilled chicken and we had dinner with a gentle breeze blowing. Pretty sunset, and then time for bed!