Unable to head to the Calvert Cliffs on our land visit, we were soon passing the wonders of nature’s hand carved out along the water. The cliffs emerged millions of years ago and tower over almost 30 miles of the Chesapeake Bay shoreline. It may have been in our favor not having time to make it to the cliffs as we read later that they were closed indefinitely due to erosion and cave-ins along the beach.
Today was thankfully a super calm day on the water. I was able to hang out on the bow in the sun for an hour or two while the Captain drove and he caught up on phone calls. When it was his time to relax, I turned on some tunes and navigated us toward St. Michaels across the bay. St. Michaels was a colonial town known for ship building and oystering as well as supporting the tobacco growing industry back in the day. Anchoring on the Eastern Bay off Navy Point, we settled in for a quiet night just around sunset as cruisers honked their horns to signify the end of another great day on the water.
It was raining when we woke up so I made some breakfast and we went ashore around 10:30. St. Michaels was an idyllic waterfront community both picturesque and quaint with many shops and restaurants complimented by a vast variety of boats scattered about the harbor and in the marinas. I had been on the lookout for crabs all along the Chesapeake and heard this was the best place where I could satisfy my desire to smash the crustaceans with a mallet. We walked everywhere that afternoon and, to my dismay, we found no restaurants which had crab on the menu…Covid had once again thrown a wrench in my plans. We were by no way deterred and headed over to St. Michaels Bistro for Happy Hour and split some appetizers while toasting to our adventures. Most of the establishments had outdoor seating areas set up on the property so we ordered a flight at East Coast Brewing and then had a wine slushie at St. Michaels Winery before going to tour the Classic Motor Museum located in the Mill District. I had been dragging my feet getting there all afternoon as looking at cars was not on the top of my list of activities, but the Captain put in a rare request that had nothing to do with consignment stores so I was willing to comply. In the end, I am glad we spent the time to tour the exhibits of the non-profit museum. We were given a private tour of the Exhibit Barn as the gentleman who was our guide gave us a glimpse into the history behind the classic cars, trucks, motorcycles and even a vintage fire truck on loan inside.
It was dark already by the time we arrived at St. Michaels Marina for dinner at The Crab and Steak House…I figured we couldn’t go wrong since crab was in the name. And, although I was disappointed by not being able to indulge in a bucket of crabs in this 1830s renovated oyster shed, the grilled flounder I ordered was delicious and Duane was equally happy with his shrimp platter. Walking along the waterfront under the moonlight we arrived at the dinghy dock and took a leisurely ride back to the boat.
It was almost the Captain’s birthday and we planned to be in New Jersey to celebrate with friends as the summer was winding down. The weather was changing unfavorably next week potentially making our trip across the Delaware Bay in the next few days not a pleasant ride, so we decided to stick to our schedule and head out the next afternoon. Unable to have brunch at Awful Arthur’s, we stopped by the side door to order their famous Bloody Mary’s to go and meander along the streets lined with historic homes and buildings.
It was sunny and humid as we rode out on the Chesapeake Bay that afternoon crossing back over to head into Annapolis Harbor. Container ships were plentiful all along the route as were the sailboats out enjoying a gorgeous afternoon. We hooked up to a mooring in the harbor and went ashore leaving the dinghy along the wall off 4th Street. We were hoping to see Chuck and Maggie on Timbuctoo as they were getting repair work and painting done in the area, but their boat was hauled out too far down the river for us to travel to on our bikes. We did make plans to meet Wayne, who Duane had been speaking to on the Trojan forum, for dinner at the Boatyard Bar and Grill. Sitting at a high top table outside on the deck, the boys discussed their boats and I enjoyed a tuna burger and listened to the band. Heading back to the boat early in the evening, we planned on getting up early to be able to explore all of Annapolis in the one full day we were in town.
We didn’t really have a set itinerary and I was heading toward anything that stuck out along the skyline. Our first sighting was St. Anne’s Episcopal Church in Church Circle. This was the first church in Annapolis founded in 1692. Wars and fires destroyed most of the historic structure, but, in 1858, the current church was constructed utilizing a portion of the original tower which stands prominent over the landscape today.
The Government House, which has been the primary home to the governor for the last 145 years, is said to be the heart of the state’s history with magnificent furnishings, paintings and artifacts that depict the social and political life of the past and present. It is here where dignitaries are entertained walking through the historic halls filled with art collections and portraits which piece together the significant roles ultimately responsible for the shaping of Maryland. The Maryland State House is across the street and included in the U.S. National Register of Historic places as the oldest U.S. state capitol still being occupied by the government for legislative practices. It also has the notable distinction of being topped with the largest wooden dome in the country constructed without the use of nails.
In Old Town Annapolis there was a stretch of homes dubbed “Rainbow Row.” Just like Charleston, these townhouses lined Main Street in a variety of pastel colors. Unlike Charleston, the colonial homes had quaint front porches and were less of a tourist attraction. The rest of the historic district was a mix of shops and restaurants along cobblestone streets with state buildings scattered about. We walked over to the US Naval Academy after a late lunch to find out it was temporary closed to visitors due to the pandemic. The US Naval Academy is the second oldest United States service academy in the country and occupies the land of former Fort Severn. The cadets were scheduled to have the customary mid-day formation and we had been hoping to see some pomp and circumstance.
A visit to the Chart House for Happy Hour was on the Captain’s must do stops that afternoon and, since the Naval Academy visit fell through, there was no time like the present. After, we decided to take Baby Belle on a spin around the harbor for sunset before we tied her back up along the waterfront and went to dinner at Mason’s Lobster Roll…for, you guessed it…lobster rolls. Though small in size, the capital city proved to be a definite highlight along the Chesapeake.
Letting the mooring loose in the morning, we drove out onto the Severn River and hit the convergence with the Chesapeake Bay soon after. The bay was slightly choppy, but nothing notable to stress about, except for the biting flies which had found us again. We were anchored in Fairlee Creek in Rock Hall early that afternoon. We could hear explosions in the distance from the military exercises being conducted at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds which were slightly north of our location. Taking the dinghy to the beach we took off our separate ways to collect oyster shells and sort through the abundance of driftwood. Duane would have been ecstatic if he could have filled Baby Belle to the brim with everything he gathered and just left me at the beach, but I reasoned with him to choose his best pieces as we still had about a month before we were home. One month…it was so surreal to think our trip was almost complete. Heading back to the boat about 20 pounds heavier, we left the driftwood outside to dry in the sun. I opened a chilled bottle of wine and set out to make some dinner as we unwound the rest of the evening on the bow enjoying the solitude of the anchorage.
There was a stronger current getting out of Fairlee Creek in the morning and we used both engines to push through. Navigating to Turkey Point and onto the Elk River, a tidal tributary of the Chesapeake Bay, we continued on Maryland’s Eastern shore toward Chesapeake City. It was a beautiful sunny day and we anchored outside the Chesapeake Inn in Engineer’s Cove and were preparing to drop the dinghy when we noticed two boats getting ready to depart the City Dock. The Captain was scrambling to start the engines to get over there and tie up before another boat came along that he almost didn’t wait for me to get the anchor up. There was a small fee to tie up for the night and it was much more preferable and convenient to be at the dock when spending the day on shore. This was our last stop in Maryland and we wanted to make the most of the few hours we had left in the Chesapeake. We walked over to pay the fee and the gentleman inside seemed taken aback that we would even think about entering the office. Through the closed door with a mask on, he asked us to put our money in an envelope that was in the mail box and slide it under the door. We have met people up and down the coast dealing with the virus, but this was a little much. The Victorian town was abundant with colorful homes and buildings all along Main Street and Bohemia Avenue which seemed to be where all the action was. Restored 18th and 19th century homes, bed and breakfasts and boutiques gave the historic village its charm and we were soon enamoured with the area.
One of our fellow Loopers lived in the area and was the Harbor Host. Foster took time out of his day to stop by the boat and chat about his experience on the Loop, living on his boat and about the highlights of the small town. Foster was a extremely personable guy and left us with much food for thought as we were on the tail end of our travels. We always enjoy reading his two cents on the forum and we were happy to have been able to put a face to the witty comments.
Here is where my day got exponentially better…passing by the Tap Room I saw a sign outside which read “All You Can Eat Crabs.” I couldn’t hold in my excitement as I ran in to inquire about the special and was assured I would be given a mallet and a bib. Duane saw my face when I returned outside and he knew this is where we will be spending the next few hours at least. Needless to say, I was in my glory. In 2 1/2 hours I was able to smash and eat 26 delectable crabs seasoned perfectly with Old Bay and take some to go for dinner tomorrow. He thought the whole process was too much work and just watched as I plowed through the endless mound. Emerging from the restaurant around 8:30, we had enough time to grab a drink at the Tiki Bar and hear the last two songs from the band. The trip to Chesapeake City had definitely ended on a high note.
We had to leave the dock just after sunrise to take advantage of the favorable current on the Delaware River. It was an exceptionally calm day and 20 minutes into the trip we crossed the border into Delaware. The 14 mile stretch of the Chesapeake and Delaware (C&D) Canal had a controlling depth of 35 feet and was 450 feet wide. We passed under 6 bridges along the canal and in two hours we were turning onto the Delaware Bay at Reedy Point and moving on to the Delaware River. The only notable landmark along the way, besides a few barges in the distance, was the Domes Salem Nuclear Power Plant. Not my thing, the Captain explained the control systems of the plant and what kept it online as I sort of listened and calculated the remaining distance to our destination. Our time in Delaware was short lived as we were being pushed a whopping 10 mph and soon crossed the border into New Jersey. The current was changing against us by mid-day so we would not be able to make it into Cape May before dark and choose to anchor in Cohansey Cove. It was only around noon so I took a book to the bow and sat in the sun pretending I was on the beach. Two hours later our quiet anchorage suddenly turned rough and bouncy as the current changed and I had to crank up the chain so we could re-anchor further up inside the cove.
The night was uneventful as we busied ourselves with small projects. I made dinner and changed the sheets on the bed as the Captain was working on the air conditioner leak. It is the simple times like these we are both going to miss once we returned home to the real world. Besides my navigating us from place to place and the Captain keeping us afloat, we had not much to worry about and just relished the extraordinary opportunity we have been given.
