Yep, it's getting hot!

Since our last writing, we came from the West River near Galesville (south of where this map starts) to the Rocky River and then Fairlee Creek yesterday, and today to the C&D Canal (take a look at the container ship in the upper Chesapeake!).

Now we’re in the Anchorage Basin at Chesapeake City (MD) on the C&D (Chesapeake and Delaware) Canal, and there’s plenty of traffic on Memorial Day weekend. The Basin at suppertime is pretty quiet so far, with 8 cruising sailboats and 5 trawlers, and a few go-fast boats anchored and more arriving; it’s the area west of us around the free docks and the marina that has music and boats with loud engines buzzing around, hopefully quieting down later tonight. But in an area known for revelry, possibly not! It is good prep for what it may be like traveling on the water on weekends in heavily populated areas. Although I’m (Kathie) not usually a fan of outdoor music in marina areas, it’s pleasant to watch the scene and hear the goings-on from our aft deck (back porch).

Suddenly, it’s gotten warm. We’ve taken four week-long trips on the Chesapeake in past years with our friends Dave and Sandi, when we had our trailerable Hunter 19 and they had their MacGregor 26; at this time of year, the temperatures have ranged the 50s to the 90s. Thankfully we’re heading north!

Yesterday (5/24) our niece Annie met us at the Maryland Yacht Club on the Rocky River just off the Patapsco River that leads to Baltimore; trying to make time, we couldn’t go all the way into Baltimore and she was kind enough to drive down. On 5/23 I had reviewed cruising guides and figured out where we could tie off the boat, within reasonable driving distance for Annie; we received gracious permission to tie up at the Maryland Yacht Club.

While waiting at MYC for Annie who was stuck in traffic, we had a great visit with Mike P, MYC Rear Commodore, who had tips about Baltimore plus local knowledge (non-boaters: info about water conditions, especially obstructions and other troublesome issues like currents), and news of the 99^th Opening of MYC and 60^th Queen of the Chesapeake coronation on the first weekend in June. We’d love to come back for those events at MYC in another year!

We had lunch with Annie on the Winnie W and heard about her family’s trip to Peru (*hiking* at altitude; the ladies trained to do this), and of course, talked about music and life in general. She has a summer job at a sushi and fish restaurant, and was kind to compliment me on my tuna macaroni salad (talk about taking coals to Newcastle). Wouldn’t it be great to know how to make sushi! She is a rising senior in conservatory, and shows every indication of a great career with wind instruments, especially clarinet.

We then (still 5/24) crossed to the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay to visit our friends Gaye and Denny (see photo) at their Bay house just off Fairlee Creek near Chestertown. We met in the British Virgin Islands several years ago, and although we’ve seen each other in various places, hadn’t been able to coordinate a visit with Winnie. Plus, we’d never been to their Bay house, which is as much “home” to their entire family as the homestead where Abby and Nathan were raised; it’s a terrific place, wish we could’ve stayed longer.

Today (5/25), we walked from the marina to their house which is in a rural area with fields and dirt roads. Hank had a great time; he has a great talent for living in the moment. We went shopping for fresh fruits and vegetables and milk, plus some staples and hardware items. We’re not in danger of running out, just replenishing my system of ship’s stores and Doug is refining the dinghy hoist. Plus I am evolving a laundry system and other household maintenance. It’s fun but all this does keep me surprisingly busy. I even got both the boat and Hank washed while we were in the marina.

This afternoon we came up the Chesapeake to the Elk River and the C&D Canal, hoping to find a space at the free docks at Chesapeake City. There was one possibility of “rafting up” (two boats tied side-by-side) which didn’t work out, but now listening to the volume of boat motors and music coming from that direction, we are glad to be anchored in this cluster of boats in the Basin.

So tomorrow morning we will complete our transit of the C&D canal and then continue to the Delaware Bay very early, to take advantage of a favorable current going down the Delaware Bay. Plus we are supposed to have winds from the west with calm seas so if luck holds, we’ll have a smooth trip. It will feel good to get this big body of water behind us. And starting with the Jersey shore, we’ll slow down and smell the roses. We’ll keep you posted- thanks for following our blog!

Kathie and Doug