Washington DC

    We spent three nights in Washington DC. What a zoo! But a fun zoo. Like New York City, there was a constant cacophony of sirens, music, and planes, trains, and helicopters - especially helicopters! - but unlike NYC there were very few wakes, despite the ferries and tour boats.

Helicopters were on constant surveillance. 

    We went ashore every day, and walked several miles through the National Mall, through the Smithsonian American and Natural History museums, and just along the river front itself. Everyone was very friendly; from the concierge and dock people at the marina to the staff at the grocery store who excitedly discussed what I should make for dinner tonight (we decided on parmesan chicken with broccoli and rice) - everyone we encountered offered smiles and conversation.

District Wharf at Sunset

The riverfront was fun, with its variety of foods and drinks - they even have a fire pit where they sell bags of s’more fixings so you can roast marshmallows! 

Marshmallows and a good fire- what more do you need?

    Strolling through the many exhibits in the museums and along the mall is always thought provoking and a little humbling. We found our way to the Elipse - now infamous as a gathering spot for the Jan 6 2020 attack on the Capitol - and we peeked through the fencing at the White House. Near there, local law enforcement from the Secret Service to the Washington DC police stood next to Halloween-decorated trucks and handed out candy to costumed children on a street blocked off for the festivities. Everyone everywhere seemed to be having a good time. 

Halloween presented by local law enforcement.

FDR- Words to live by in the 20th & 21st Century

     Yesterday (Sat Oct 29) our good friend Erica brought her family down to the marina to share lunch and enjoy a river tour on the Willie Dawes. We had a nice few hours cruising the area and catching up with each other. This morning we dropped the mooring and began our journey back down the Potomac.

Our friend Erica

Up the Potomac River to Washington DC

         We had planned to cross the Chesapeake and find a nice anchorage in the Pawtuxant River, but the day was so still and the water was so calm, we went ahead and pushed on to the Potomac River.  It was a lovely crossing, and we saw pelicans for the first time.  

Pelicans

The tide was with us in the Potomac and we extended our day a little further to reach Herring Creek just before sunset.  It has a narrow but scenic inlet into a little basin which we had all to ourselves.  Very quiet, very still.  

Herring Creek Inlet

We had a second day of calm water before the NW winds were forecasted to blow 15-18 with gusts, so on Wednesday (Oct 26) we again planned for a long day’s cruise.  It was overcast much of the day, and not particularly warm, but the river was glassy and the cruise was almost boring.  Until we reached our planned destination - a small shallow inlet that on the chart looked like a good place to anchor.  In reality, the point was covered with quonset huts and seriously intimidating lookout towers and big signs in the water declaring “DANGER! UNEXPLODED ORDINANCE! KEEP OUT!”  The next usable anchorage was a little over ten miles up river, so we resigned ourselves to a supper underway and pushed on.  The tide was still with us, which helped us get to Potomac Creek on the Virginia side just after dark.  Very long day for us.

Potomac Creek Inlet, Sunset

Thursday morning, Dan suggested that we just go on up to Washington DC today, since we had done so well the previous two days, instead of the original plan of a shorter cruise day.  Coincidentally it was my birthday and this new plan would mean being able to go out to dinner.  Yay!  We set off just after sunrise.  

This day the water was not calm and the winds were not still, but it was sunny!  It was blowing a steady 20 knots NW and gusting up to 25 and there were whitecaps - all of it right on the nose.  We stayed at the inside helm while waves sprayed over the bow to splatter on the windows.  I was ready for Dan to say we should turn back, but he was pretty sure things would get calmer the further up river we got, and he was right.  It also helped that the river snaked back and forth.

As we neared Washington DC, Dan contacted the CO of the local Coast Guard Station.  She is the daughter of one of his friends from his days at the USCGA.  She arranged for us to temporarily tie up at their military marina dock and was there to greet us when we arrived.  We got a personal tour of the one of their boats and the facility itself.  She even posed for a picture with us.

Lt. Cmdr. Cate Giguere

Then we moved on up river to Washington DC.  Seven years ago we were able to anchor here, and utilized the Capitol Yacht Club for dinghy, shower, and laundry facilities.  There is no anchoring allowed now, and the entire area has been built up.  The District Wharf Marina has taken over everything except where the Yacht Club and the other smaller marinas further up river still have docks.  The entire riverfront is filled with bars, restaurants, performance venues, hotels, and office buildings.  (None of that was here seven years ago!) We goggled and marveled at the businesses and all the choices and finally settled on a Mexican restaurant for dinner.  We’ll be here for the weekend, so we’ll have plenty of time to explore.  

One of the riverfront wharves.

St. Michaels to Hudson Creek

       We spent two nights in St. Michaels.  When we got there the town was alive with noise of sirens, music, and people.  We did not go ashore, but we heard the next day there were street parties and food and wine tastings offered and all the shops were open.  Of course, when we were ashore (Sunday Oct 23) many places were closed and everything was quiet.  We seem to always arrive after the festivities.  But we like it quiet, so we don’t really mind.  St. Michaels is a little bit like our home town Camden, with a similar array of shops and art galleries, and restaurants, and for the locals, groceries, the post office and places of worship are all right in town as well. 
            We browsed a couple antique stores, window-shopped the boutiques, and settled down for lunch at at Corah’s, where the menu boasted “craft food.”  They also offered a nice selection of hot drinks like spiced rum-apple cider and hot chocolate or coffee augmented by different liquors.  We indulged in both the craft food and the drinks to celebrate our 35th anniversary.  

Happy Anniversary!

Christ Church, St. Michaels

    It began a steady rain when we got back to the boat.  All the others cruisers had departed and we felt free to let out a little more scope to deal with the predicted winds, and we hunkered down for the night. 

We almost stayed another night, as the winds hadn’t settled down much, but we decided to raise anchor and see if we couldn’t move on, figuring if it was too rough, we could always turn back.  It was a little rough, but not too bad, and as we cruised past one potential anchorage after another, we managed to move out of the Eastern Bay and into the  Chesapeake, down and around Tilghman Island.  We found a really nice quiet anchorage in the Little Choptank River, in Hudson Creek.  The scenery was reminiscent of the Carolinas - a few large plantation-like mansions shuttered for the season, and lowlands dotted with trees that didn’t offer much lee protection.  This was probably the darkest night sky we’d have for awhile, but it was overcast and we never saw the stars.  

Hudson Creek

Fairlee Creek to Rock Hall

        We went from the Sassafras River down to Fairlee Creek where we had a lovely protected anchorage in a very small basin.  It’s a tricky entrance, well-marked, but still daunting as it involved two right angle turns one after the other about twenty feet from a beach where people are standing with cameras at the ready in case you run aground.  There’s also quite a current there and you have to power right through it or you will find yourself on the beach.  But inside, it’s calm and pretty.  The anchorage is only eighteen miles from Rock Hall, so we thought we’d have an easy day of it on Wednesday, Oct 19.   

Fairlee Creek

Well.  We got underway about nine-thirty and threaded the little inlet - this time sans audience - and out into Chespeake Bay.  The wind was blowing from the Southwest and gusty, and it was against the current in the Bay, setting up a steep chop.  After taking spray over the bow several times and watching the anchor bounce around in the rollers, we turned around and headed back to calm and quiet Fairlee Creek.  We puttered and cleaned and tried again about three in the afternoon.  The wind was still strong but now it was with the current, so it wasn’t as choppy and we decided to go ahead and push on for Rock Hall.  

Seven years ago, this is the town where our cat Tommie jumped ship and went exploring for two weeks.  The entire town was helping us look for her (and they continued to look for her even after we got her back) and we have very fond memories of the people there.  This time, though, we were paranoid about making sure Tommie stayed aboard, and she might have felt the same way, as she didn’t make much of a fuss to get out of the cabin.  

We had a great time with my cousins Denny and Laura, who couldn’t have been more hospitable. 

We also had some time to explore the area a little, meet with other cruisers, and we ate out a lot.  We spent some time in the local marine salvage store where Dan found exactly what he was looking for - a chair and pedestal to create a taller helm that would keep him out of the sun - as well as a few things he didn't know he needed. 

Dan's new helm seat

The entire area is beautiful, and so friendly; Rock Hall will always have a special place in our hearts.  

Today (Oct 22) we bid the town goodbye and headed down the Bay through Kent Narrows.  It’s the weekend, and it was a gorgeous day, so there was a lot of activity out on Chesapeake Bay.  We decided to put in for the night in Fogg Cove in St. Michael’s, where the Chesapeake Marine Museum is located.  It was busy here when we anchored, but many of the boats left before sunset and now the only sound comes from the church in town that rings on the quarter hour.  The forecast is for some northerly winds and maybe some rain tomorrow, so we’ll probably hang out here and explore the town tomorrow.  It’ll be our 34th anniversary.  I’ve already scoped out a cupcake place and a winery to visit.  

Tribute to the Watermen of Rock Hall

  

St Michael's

Chesapeake City and into the Rivers of the Chesapeake

       We got up before dawn on Saturday Oct 15 to make the best use of the tide both in the Cape May Canal and Delaware Bay.  It would be a long day to get up the Bay and into the C & D Canal, and we had contingency plans ready in case we wanted to break up the journey.  It was a misty morning, and very quiet as we made our way to and through the canal.  

Entering the Cape May Canal

We were one of the first boats to leave the USCG anchorage, but most of the other boats are faster and it was no surprise when they began passing us in the Bay itself.  The day turned out to be quite lovely - when the sun rose it was clear and fairly calm, and the tide gave us a fair push for much of the day.  We arrived at the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal about one-forty-five in the afternoon.

Entering the C & D Canal

        

    It’s a long canal.  Many boats break it up with a stop in Chesapeake City, a very small harbor of refuge with a small town fronted by a marina and a free dock.  We didn’t think we’d have a chance at the free dock - far too many boats had already declared their intention to stop here - but we did head in to scope out anchorage.  Many boats were already anchored, and the little place was jumping with a party atmosphere, with live music on the dock ‘cheered on’ by the very loud idling of a cigaret boat or two.  We actually found a spot for Willie amongst the other boats and set the hook.  Many of them cleared out early in the morning to catch a favorable tide, but we opted to hang back for the next one mid-afternoon.

Sunrise in Chesapeake City

We went ashore to explore the very charming small town of Chesapeake City.  The town is very old, with generational inhabitants going way back into the late 1700s/early 1800s when the it was called Bohemia and lived off the river trade of boats passing by.  In 1942 a boat struck the bridge spanning the canal, and forever changed the future of the town.  A new bridge was eventually built (1949, delayed by World War II) which no longer required a bridge tender to open it for boat traffic.  Chesapeake City remains underneath the new bridge, more or less frozen in time.  We learned a great deal just walking around and reading the many plaques in front of circa 1800 houses.  We wanted to visit the C & D Canal Museum, but it was closed.  

We left about two-thirty Sunday afternoon and cruised a short way out and around into the Bohemia River for a quiet night.  We have a few days to explore before we’re expected in Rock Hall, where my cousin Denny and his wife Laura will host us for a few days.  Today (Oct 17) we exchanged the Bohemia River for the Sassafras River, cruising all the way to Fredericktown and anchoring in a protected little basin in anticipation of some strong winds tonight and tomorrow.  There is no end to the rivers and creeks of the Chesapeake begging to be explored.  

NJICW

        A lot of cruiser forums do their best to dissuade people from traveling inside NJ.  It’s true your boat can’t be too tall and it can’t be too deep and you do have to pay attention as the markers for the channel may not agree with your chart.  It twists and turns, and you can’t (or shouldn’t) go very fast.  Here the tide is only four or five feet, but it matters, especially if it’s windy, as the wind coming from the right direction might blow the water two feet lower.  Many cruisers find it too nerve-wracking.  It’s the kind of excitement we prefer, though, and we’d rather spend six hours paying close attention to our surroundings than six hours pounding and rolling through four foot waves and six second swells.  

We made our way from Tom’s River down to Atlantic City and decided to keep going rather than anchor in Brigantine.  It was four o’clock in the afternoon and the first bascule bridge we came to didn’t look operational and wasn’t answering our hails for an opening.  As we sat deliberating what to do, the barge that was directly in the channel under the bridge moved off to the side.  Whether to get out of our way or because they were done for the day, we don’t know, but emboldened by their move and the fact that the tide was pretty low, we decided to see if we could get under it.  The clearance was 25 feet.  We’re about 23 feet tall.  It looked very close, but we did it, to the applause of fisherman watching from the other side.  

That was the only bridge issue we had.  The others either had plenty of clearance or immediately answered our hail and opened for us.  That night we anchored in Ventnor City, a great little basin in which we were the only transient boat.  

We were advised to take the next leg to Cape May at mid-tide rising, and as luck would have it, that was the tide waiting for us the next morning.  We had a very nice cruise to Sunset Lake.  Sunset Lake is in the Wildwood/Wildwood Crest suburbs of Cape May, and we arrived to find it all but closed down for the season.  Block after block of hotels, shops, restaurants, and amusements were all shuttered and the beach was virtually empty save for a group of men kite-riding back and forth.  (Think kite-surfing, only the kite pulls a three-wheeled vehicle on land instead.)  We spent two and a half days anchored there as a storm blew through and we went ashore every day.  We walked the beach.  We walked the town. We found an open restaurant for dinner.  We found the grocery store.  Often we were the only people on the sidewalk or the road.  I can’t imagine what it must be like in the summer with all those hotels booked.  

Friday afternoon we raised anchor and went the last four miles down to Cape May, to anchor in front of the Coast Guard base alone with about twenty other boats who were all preparing to go up Delaware Bay on Saturday.  The USCG’s rallying cries as recruits and cadets marched brought back a lot of memories of the USCG Academy for Dan.  We heard them well into the evening and they were up and at it well before dawn the next morning.  

A Trip Around Staten Island and on to New Jersey

       We left Liberty Anchorage just after breakfast and made our way down to the Kill Van Kull river between Bayonne New Jersey and Staten Island.  We weren’t planning to go farther than Great Kills Harbor on Staten Island, so we thought we’d take our time and circumnavigate the island before anchoring for the night.  

Some of the maritime workings behind Staten Island

This is where all the maritime industry is located.  Tugs boats, dry docks, barges, container ports are all in a constant state of busy-ness back here, out of sight from New York Harbor.  Here too are remnants of old steel boats rusting away, ancient dry docks made of wood rotting quietly, and pilings poking up here and there - all testament that this area has always been where the action is.  

Eventually we came around the island to the Atlantic side and made our way into Great Kills Harbor.  Seven years ago when we were here, the effects of Super Storm Sandy were still evident - boats sunk on their moorings, wrecked on the shoreline.  We were dismayed to see that some of them are still here, still marked by their moorings.  

We went ashore for the first time in over a week, and took a long walk to an Italian grocery store for fresh supplies.  Fresh was the key word here - they even had a butcher shop and a fish market.  I stocked up on veggies and fruits, we loaded our handcart and headed back to the boat for the night.

This morning (Monday, Oct 10) we headed down the coast to New Jersey.  We tossed around the question - should we go inside or not?  New Jersey has its own ICW, but it’s known to be quite shallow.  We’ve done part of it before, but our motor-sailer drew a foot less than this Willie Dawes.  After a lot of consideration and some consultation, we decided to go for it.  We arrived at the Manasquan inlet about 1:30 pm and pushed against the current, along with several other boats, around the corner and into the Point Pleasant canal.  On the passage down the coast we’d become radio friends with another trawler - Off Watch - who also decided to come into the NJICW.  

Manasquan Inlet.  Crazy, right?

It is shallow.  It’s important to follow the channel buoys when they deviate from your chart.  We like it because it’s much calmer, much more interesting than being outside, and it’s a lot easier to find an anchorage when you want to stop.  We entered Barnegat Bay around 4:00 pm and chose to go up the Tom’s River to Cocktail Cove for the night.  We’re the only boat here.  This cove is home to a fleet of A-cats, wooden cat boats, and Dan was excited to see them, but they are all hauled for the season and all that is here besides us are moorings.  Another beautiful sunset, another quiet anchorage. 

Cocktail Cove

A Night in New York City

       Yesterday the temperature in Port Jefferson was 75.  Today the numbers reversed.  It was 57 as we made our way through Throg’s Neck, Hell’s Gate and into the East River.  At least it was sunny.  

The Manhattan skyline is visible from at least fifteen miles away - it’s always a thrill to see the familiar shapes of the famous buildings get closer and closer until suddenly you’re traveling right through the City and seeing them all right there in front of you.  We’ve been through here four times now - three times heading West, once heading East - and it’s the same wonder ever time.  This time we decided to use the anchorage behind the Statue of Liberty and we headed there, avoiding ferry boats and tour boats and weekend revelers on jetskis and fishing boats.  

The anchorage is rolly with all the constant activity, as well as noisy.  It’s not just the constant boat traffic; there was a steady stream of helicopters taking people up for sightseeing tours from above and we could hear sirens the occasional burst of music or people from various loudspeakers.  I kept saying “oh this will all die down once it’s dark” but I forgot this is the city that never sleeps.  I will say it was fun to do once, but I’m ok with bypassing that anchorage next time.  We did see awesome views of the skyline at sunset and when the full moon was rising.  

Sailing Toward the Sun

        We left Scotch House Cove on Thursday, very excited to be moving again.  It was still grey and overcast with a light misty rain, the leftovers of Ian’s last hurrah: a string of thunderstorms that had descended upon us the night before.  We didn’t mind, the wind and seas were calm enough for us to drop the mooring, raise the anchor, and go.  As we headed into Buzzards Bay we were joined by other boats departing their safe havens in Onset Harbor and Fairhaven/New Bedford, everyone obviously eager to hit the road again after so many days  holed up.

The further we headed west, the clearer the sky until it was full sun (right in our faces).  Dan, mindful of his recent dermatology visit, was prepared to shield his skin.  We had a very nice, but very long cruise - all the way to Fisher Island.  We had to time our cruise through The Race, a confusing confluence of currents, which necessitated both the long day on Thursday and the very early start on Friday.  

No sun allowed on Dan's face!

We were up before dawn, but we weren’t the first cruiser out of the harbor on Fisher Island.  We made big plans - another long day, we thought, and tomorrow, Hells Gate and New York City!

Sunrise over Fisher Island

        But mother nature threw us a wind-against-current situation as we cruised Long Island Sound, and we have had our fill of lumpy seas, so we headed for Port Jefferson instead.  This is our first time here.  Well protected from all sides, Port Jefferson offers a beautiful anchorage against shoreside parks of sand dunes and marshes.  Two white swans met us in the channel.  It’s warm and sunny, quiet and pretty.  

Port Jefferson

Pajama Days (Oct 1 - Oct 5)

        We’ve been in Scotch House Cove for six days now, since Friday Sept 30th.  The NE wind blew a steady 25 knots for several days, with gusts over 35 and today it’s noticeably down to 18 knots, with occasional gusts in the 20s.  Still from the NE.  On the morning of Oct 1st we set out an anchor to take some of the load off the mooring.  Not two hours later a nearby sailboat ran right over it as they headed out of the harbor.  It was a hit and run - they refused to acknowledge their error via the radio when Dan repeatedly hailed them, simply saying “you’re fine, your anchor is holding” and nothing more - but it’s possible they sustained some damage, as they came back a few hours later with an assist from Tow Boat US.  Yesterday they were towed out of the harbor.  Our rode seems to be fine, our anchor is still holding. 

Moored & Anchored

That was our biggest excitement during our stay here.  Apart from watching the wind churn the waves through this mooring field, we’ve spent our days doing a little boat work between reading, napping, and playing games on our phones.  Dan replaced a radio, ran the water maker, and did a little re-organizing of supplies.  I did some light cleaning and re-stocked what I call the ‘day cupboard’ from deep storage.  And we baked, because there’s nothing as nice as fresh baked brownies or apple pie, with the added bonus of heating up the main cabin.  

New (to us) radio.

Tomorrow the weather should have calmed down enough for us to venture out of here and at least into Buzzard’s Bay.  We have several destinations in mind, depending on how quiet the seas are.  We might even see the sun!  It’s good to have a reason to get out of our pjs.  

The last of the pie, with a slice of cheese on top.