St. Michaels to Rhode River

Saturday, June 20, 2015

This morning we awoke to a gorgeous, calm, and hot, day.  We took the dogs into the dinghy dock, and walked around for a little bit, before the tourists hit the festival.  There were lots of folks walking dogs.

We came back and dropped the dogs back on the boat (for their morning nap!) and went back into St. Michaels to continue our tour of the museum, gounds, vendors, and booths.  

The Maritime Museum at St. Michaels has a great display of how the old wooden boats were built, some boats set up as displays on the land, and some still afloat in the water.  They run tours of the local river on one of the old "buy" boats.  The buy boats were the crafts that purchased seafood from the smaller boats in years past.

Remember, how I mentioned the locals don't care for the geese much?  The sign says that a good shot could get a dozen geese with a single shot.  

We sampled food from a couple of vendors, and slowly made our way back to the RIB by a little after noon.

Bill Keltner, when this boat went by, I thought of you!

By one o'clock we were underway, headed for the Rhode River.  This is where I spent the first night anchored aboard the MERCY, after spending weks getting her ready to go with the help of my friends, Doug Rudolph, and Dick Ring.

Guys, I'm remembering that night with fondness as I'm anchored here almost four years later.  The temperatures are totally different (it was cold then!) and there are over a dozen other boats in this anchorage tonight, most of them sail.  

Another raiinstorm is forecast for this evening.  Flood warnings have been posted, and the wind has picked up tonight.  We went from still calm on our Chesapeake crossing to a nice breeze tonight, which could be a stiff wind if we weren't in an anchorage behind high elevation and trees.

I fondly remember the excitement of being underway on the new to me boat back then, with the fun and the help both of these dear friends brought to me.  

I hope to see Dick on Tuesday, at his marina, where I stayed on his sailboat while getting the MERCY prepped to go in the water.  

Postscript:  There was a tornado warning posted for the river we were on, and since the river is only a couple of miles long, we had our eyes and ears opened.  We were in a great spot for wind protection, and enjoyed the pouring rain through the night, giving the boat a fresh water rinse.

Solomon's, MD to St. Michael's, MD

Friday, 19 June 2015

After the frontline went through yesterday evening, all was calm.  Looking at the wind forecast, we departed around 0705 to be able to cross the Chesapeake before the winds picked up.

We came out the Patuxent River and headed north on the Chesapeake.  

These are a few of the fish traps along the shorelines.

We ducked in behind Sharps Island, where this old lighthouse is leaning ten degrees since a storm in the 70's.

By the time we were to the east of Poplar Island, the winds had picked up, and there was a small craft advisory, and we were in the lee.

We entered Eastern Bay and into the Miles River to St. Michaels, where our friends, Casey and Mary, were standing on the dock waving.  They are cruising northward from Florida on their Cape Cruiser, Dessert 1st.

St. Michaels is celebrating the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum's 50th anniversary, and this week-end is their classic wooden boat show.  There are over 100 wooden boats here, of all sizes and shapes.  

The anchorage filled up after our arrival, and we are told that by tomorrow afternoon, the anchored boats will be in here pretty thick!

We went ashore, and didn't have enough time at the museum and displays, so we plan to come back in the morning.

We ate at the Crab Claw restaurant, where we shared delicious blue crabs and fish.  

Casey and Mary came over to visit for a bit this evening, and it is always fun catching up.