Norfolk to Cape Charles
At 8:15, we pulled boat lines from the dock at Top Rack Marina and are headed north. Being docked so far from everything and no churches nearby, we decided to leave early and begin exploring the Bay. Our marina was south of Norfolk and Portsmouth, so this morning, we are enjoying a cruise through Norfolk’s busy harbor full of industrial buildings, tugs, cargo ships, boats, and cranes.
There are at least 20 battleships in an area off our starboard side and Navy ships moving through the harbor.
It will take Dream Chaser three hours to cross the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay to reach Cape Charles. Chesapeake Bay has an East and Western shore, and some of the towns are the oldest in America. The eastern shore is more rural, quiet and different from the mainland. The names of the rivers and bays bear witness to the Native Americans that lived along Chesapeake Bay, such as Rappahannock, Patuxent, and Susquehanna. We will be watching the weather and our schedule and destinations will be determined accordingly.
The Shanty Restaurant was at the end of our dock and people were gathering for dinner. It was a beautiful evening, and we were happy eating grilled swordfish, salad, and bean soup aboard Dream Chaser. The evening was full of planning and setting up a rough schedule. With predicted bad weather coming into the area, we planned to be docked by Wednesday night, and rent a car to travel other areas. It was an early lights out.
This is the view of the marina off Dream Chaser's stern.
The map above shows our route from Cape Charles to Onancock and then to Tangier Island
Monday, May 12, 2014
Cape Charles to Onocaock and Tangier island
At 7:15 am, we departed from the Cape Charles City Docks and made our way into the shimmering Chesapeake. It’s sunny, not a cloud in the sky, and temps are headed towards the 80‘s. What could be better? After a quick bowl of oatmeal, we continued working on our schedule for exploring the Chesapeake Bay. This is a daunting task, as it takes years to cover the area, so we will need to be VERY selective as to where we go.
During our four hour trip to Onancock, VA, we are dodging crab pots, waving at crews on crabbing boats, and calling marinas regarding dockage.
Onancock (oh-NAN-cock) is a gem in the Chesapeake Bay and one of our favorite spots. This charming, historic port town was established by the English in 1680. We entered the mouth of the Onancock River and followed the red and green markers as they wound us back to the city docks. Along the way, we passed beautiful homes- some quite grand! Osprey sat in their nests atop the day markers and were not happy to have us pass by so closely!
Charlie, the harbormaster, met us at the dock, assisted in tie up, and made us feel so welcome. Charlie grew up in Onancock and after being away for 40 years in the corporate world, he has returned and wants to do what he can for his town. He does a tremendous job! We received a “boater’s bag” with great information on the town and a map. While registering Dream Chaser, we met Mayor Russell Jones and Reed Ennis, a sailboat man in town.
Lots of great things are happening in Onancock and more are in the planning to make it even more inviting to the boating community.
Monday seems to be the “day off” for many of the business owners, but we found a number of great shops that were open. First stop was Market Street Antiques which was an interesting building filled with a unique mix of antiques and gifts. We made a stop at the Corner Bakery and the BANK Coffee House which was the original town bank. Notice the picture, below, of the door and entrance to the vault. "A balanced diet is a cookie in each hand!"
With iced coffee in hand, we continued our
exploration of this quaint historic part of town.
The Roseland, a classic old-time movie theater
built in 1950, shows movies every weekend
and hosts an international film festival. Mary
found a great boutique and several other great
shops in this quaint town.
a very successful merchant in his time. This restored 1803 Federal-style home houses the Historical Society and provides a glimpse into the rich history of the area. So many shops, galleries, and restaurants...and so little time-so back to the boat.
While we were exploring town,
John and Sue, fellow loopers, joined
Dream Chaser at the city dock. They
were on Thanks Dad, a 39’ Mainship
with their crew: Louie, Cocoa, and Scuttles.
This is Louie-just look at that face!
Before we left, we needed some
provisions, so Charlie drove us to
the Food Lion on the edge of town.
Thanks again, Charlie!
Onancock is on our list of
“Places to return to!”
As we were following the channel out to the bay, we met two looper boats and were hailed by the captain of Mazel Tug, a 37’ Nordic Tug. Nice to finally see some loopers along the way.
By 3:30 pm, we were on our way to Tangier Island where we will dock for the night. The afternoon has brought an increase in wind and waves (2-3 ft.), and we are again back in BIG water.
Tangier Island is like sailing back in time where there is a strong British heritage and the islanders speak in a sing-song Elizabethan twang. Captain John Smith visited and named the island in 1608. People came from Cornwall England in the 1700‘s,
and 95% of the houses belong to permanent residents. The people have managed a living and lifestyle from the waters around them. The land has quite a history...This island was the base of operations for the British fleet during the War of 1812. Church camp meetings had been held here for 47 years. Reverend Thomas told the British at one of these meetings that they were wrong to attack Baltimore, and that they would be defeated and history proved him correct. Many escaped slaves landed here before being relocated to Nova Scotia, Bermuda, or Trinidad.
It was a rolling ride on Dream Chaser to Tangier Island, and we were careful to follow the day markers into the harbor. We had been warned that there was a dredger in the channel and stay to the side with the green markers. It was a tight squeeze between the dredger and the green marker, but we made it and it was so shallow that Dream Chaser slid over the mud in the bottom of the channel.
Good thing they are dredging!
Parks Marina, the only marina on the island, was our destination for tonight. A Catamaran took the T dock, so we ended up on a 5 ft. finger dock which made getting on and off the boat a process of crawling off the bow and jumping onto the dock. With the tide rising, the gap from the boat to the dock only became larger.
He was so kind as to drive us around the little
island on his golf cart. The roads are narrow
and reminiscent of roads on the islands in the
Abacos, Bahamas. There are only a handful
of small cars, an ambulance, and a fire truck;
most people walk, ride bikes, or drive golf
carts. The people all seem very happy, kids
run freely, and cats roam anywhere they want.
We learned a lot during our personal tour...
The island is 25% smaller that it was
70 years ago.
“If you don’t go to heaven,
you go to Cape Charles”.“The people on Tangier Island honor Sunday.
You don’t work on Sunday. Even the
drunks honor Sunday. We are a
religious community.”
The rockfish have destroyed the crabs,
not over-fishing.
The island has 10 wells, they are
1100 ft. deep.
There are a lot of cats on the island.
When Mrs. Parks was alive they
had 50. Mr. Parks trimmed it down
to 32 then 10, but now he’s back up
to 14 cats.
The retired vets from the mainland come
over and neuter the cats. You can
tell if the cat’s neutered by a notch on
the right ear.
Mr. Parks dropped us off near the downtown section which consisted of two restaurants, a gift shop, and the ice cream store another 300 ft. down the road. We stopped in at Lorraine’s Seafood Restaurant and divided a dinner of crab cakes, sweet potato fries, and a baked potato. The staff was very friendly and the food was great!
When we returned to the boat, we performed acrobatic moves to get back in due to the tide rising. It was an early bedtime with no way off the boat!
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Tangier island, VA to St. Michael, MD
The only sound through the night was the creak of the old wooden dock poles rubbing against Dream Chaser as she shifted from the changes in the tide. From 4-4:30 am, there was a flurry of activity, and we were rocked by the waves of the crabbing boats as they chugged past us and out into the bay.
Today, Dream Chaser is pointed north with our destination St. Michael, MD. It’s a gorgeous day with brilliant sun, cloudless sky, temps in the 70’s, almost no waves, and water in every direction for miles. This is our view off the port side-smooth waters!
Steve had gone down below to takea nap, and about 30 min. later we
entered the crab pot fields. It’s a bit
weird as the depths here are 36-45 ft.
and normally crab pots are in around
11 ft. of water. Interesting lighthouses
along the way.
At 11 am, we are passing Midddle
Hooper Island to the east, and we
are now seeing land on both sides.
The crab pots are still scattered
along as we motor up the bay.
About two hours south of Tilghman Island, we passed a sailboat and were hailed by a fellow looper, Andy, in ShiverMeTimbers, a 40’ Endeavor. Conversation ran from hometowns and tonight’s anchorage to destinations and his plan to do a half loop placing him in Tampa this winter. Wow, loopers are friendly-or perhaps, after being in a sailboat by yourself for six hours and staring at the water, you LOOK for people to talk to!
About 4:30 pm, we pulled up to the dock at Higgins Yacht Yard in St. Michael and tied Dream Chaser securely to the big poles at the dock. The current and wind were fairly strong and there were boats nearby, so we had to move quickly.
First thing we noticed were the large the replicas of Christopher Columbus’ ships, the Nina and Pinta, which are docked at the waterfront of the museum. We had toured them in Beaufort, SC, and they travel around as an exhibit.
Small homes and bed & breakfasts were located near the water- quaint and inviting with shutters at the windows and flowers gracing the yards.
St. Michaels calls itself the
“Heart and Soul of Chesapeake Bay”,
and we have to agree.
In the mid 1600’s, this area was a trading post for tobacco, farmers, and trappers. In 1677, an episcopal parish was founded, and in 1778, deeded lots were available and St. Mary’s Square was created. The historic section of town is spread along Talbot Street which runs parallel to the harbor. As we followed the red brick sidewalks downtown, we walked by the boutiques, antique shops, galleries, restaurants, and stopped at the market. Most of the shops had closed at 5 pm, but we continued down Talbot Street and saw many of the beautiful colonial, federal, and Victorian homes. We could easily spend two more days in this historic town, but we need to dock in Baltimore tomorrow before predicted bad weather arrives.
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
St. Michaels to Baltimore, MD
We are up early and woke to a erie view of the harbor. The Columbus ships are docked about 1,000 ft. off our starboard side, and misty fog hangs in the harbor like a blanket. It’s not hard to imagine this scene many years ago with steamboats, old log canoes, and watermen’s deadrises.
But just in case our imagination is lacking... we are headed to the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, open at 9 am, to learn more. We need to depart from St. Michael by noon for Baltimore, so our morning will go quickly.
The Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum consists of 12 waterfront buildings over 18 acres of true learning and well done exhibits. Founded in 1965, it’s mission is to share stories of the Bay and the people who have shaped their lives around it. They have done a beautiful job! There is a working boatyard, waterman’s wharf, floating fleet of boats, boat rides, heirloom garden, and the interior of a crab picking plant. The Bay yields 23 million lbs. of crab a year. We learned about oystering, crabbing, migrating birds, steamboat building, and the Bay’s role in War of 1812.
Great time in the boat house-asking questions.
This picture conveys the reason for why Mary isn't into sailing! Wow!
Ever heard about the Merikens? African Americans slaves in the Chesapeake Bay area desired freedom, so a large group of them ran off and fought for the British during the War of 1812. After the war, these people needed a home. The British took up to 5,000 people to Trinidad, gave them land, and communities were developed where they could be free. This group has a long legacy of religious dedication (baptist faith), hard work, and sacrifice. The descendants of these people are the Merikens.
This lighthouse was automated soon
after Navy pilots strafed it (targeted it)
for target practice, not realizing that
there were still Coast Guardsmen there.
Above is an article and picture of the Hooper Strait Lighthouse.
After climbing the 1879 Hooper Strait Lighthouse (moved here from the Bay) and interacting with people building wooden boats, we returned to Dream Chaser.
What a wonderful museum and charming town! We want to return, someday.
The Crab Claw Restaurant was the only place we did not experienced that was on our schedule. Because, we spent our time at the museum instead of eating crab cakes at the Crab Claw, we had bean soup on board and kept our departure time at noon.
Notice the life boat at the back of this cargo ship. Would you choose to be flung out into the ocean in that or just go down with the ship?
Dream Chaser was docked by 6 pm just south of Baltimore. Due to predicted storms and possibly high waves, we will continue exploring the area by car.
Thursday, May 15, 2014
Today, we started our touring in a rental car, and spent the day in Annapolis which is the capital of Maryland. Did you know that the Maryland State House served as our Nation’s capital from 1783-1784? We had already visited the Naval Academy on a previous trip, so headed down the narrow brick paved streets to explore the town.
Annapolis has 160 designated historic buildings of various styles and periods of architectural in the historic district. These structures have colored markers which identify the style and period- for example, a purple marker signifies Victorian from 1869- 1901.
The exhibit, “Freedom Bound” at the Historic Annapolis Museum provided great insight into the resistance to servitude and slavery in the Chesapeake Bay area. Very good!
Downtown Annapolis has dozens of 5 ft. tall and 250 pound painted ceramic chicken sculptures around town. Similar to the New York Cow Parade, “Hatching the Arts” is an attempt by the town council to draw attention to art. The chickens will roost for a year and then be auctioned off for charity.
While Steve ran errands and took care of some business, Mary shopped the boutiques and businesses along Main St. We were both happy.:)
Mary met Barkley along the way. What a happy dog!
More to come...the storm!
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