After Fort Monroe, we headed north and were officially in the Chesapeake Bay! This lower part of the Bay is wide, so we hugged the eastern shore, headed toward Deltaville, VA. We had two visitors coming from Seattle, Frankie and Zander, the 8 and 10 year old sons of our good friends Chris and Carl.They flew across the country together, ready for adventure. The marina in Deltaville at had a pool and was near an excellent Maritime Museum, so the first couple of days were spent hanging out and having fun.
After Deltaville, on July 20th, we sailed across the eastern bay to Tangier Island, a small one mile by three mile historic site where working waterman harvest and sell softshell crab to markets around the world. The island is fairly isolated so the other distinction is the unique Elizabethan accent that most of the residents have. It was lilting and a bit hypnotizing to listen to when talking with the locals. We stayed a Parks Marina – owned by 84 year old Milton Parks, a Tangier Island native. Visiting with Milton was worth the stop alone. The kids enjoyed fishing from the docks and playing with the kitties that were everywhere on shore. The weather was still exceptionally hot, so staying cool was a challenge but the kids did great, considering. Another disappointment was that Reed lost his beloved cast net in the current and deep water. We will surely pick up another one soon.
Dinner was a special treat, eating at the historic “Hilda Crocketts” family style restaurant. With crab cakes, clam fritters, corn pudding, potato salad, apple sauce and much more, it was like a Thanksgiving meal in the middle of July! After, we met up with Raptor and Dabulamanzi for some fun at the park, including a game of dodgeball with some of the local kids, an ice cream treat and then a spectacular sunset.
From Tangier was a trip back across the bay to Solomons, MD. We picked up a mooring ball and stayed for three nights, with the kids hanging out at the marina pool for most of the days and then having picnics on the lawn with games of corn hole and tag in the evenings. One evening we even had an early birthday party for Reed – really just an excuse to have cupcakes! The weather had cooled down enough to use the oven on the boat. We met another great family, who we traveled with for a boisterous day sail to a beautiful anchorage across the bay, in Hudson Creek. Perfect for a quick swim and peaceful evening at anchor. The bay narrows quite a bit this far north, so crossing to other anchorages is not a big deal.
Finally, on July 25th, we pulled into Galesville, MD, to get ready for Zander and Frankie’s departure the following day. Their visit had flown by, with lots of fun but plenty of things left on the list for a follow-up visit sometime soon.
After Deltaville, on July 20th, we sailed across the eastern bay to Tangier Island, a small one mile by three mile historic site where working waterman harvest and sell softshell crab to markets around the world. The island is fairly isolated so the other distinction is the unique Elizabethan accent that most of the residents have. It was lilting and a bit hypnotizing to listen to when talking with the locals. We stayed a Parks Marina – owned by 84 year old Milton Parks, a Tangier Island native. Visiting with Milton was worth the stop alone. The kids enjoyed fishing from the docks and playing with the kitties that were everywhere on shore. The weather was still exceptionally hot, so staying cool was a challenge but the kids did great, considering. Another disappointment was that Reed lost his beloved cast net in the current and deep water. We will surely pick up another one soon.
Dinner was a special treat, eating at the historic “Hilda Crocketts” family style restaurant. With crab cakes, clam fritters, corn pudding, potato salad, apple sauce and much more, it was like a Thanksgiving meal in the middle of July! After, we met up with Raptor and Dabulamanzi for some fun at the park, including a game of dodgeball with some of the local kids, an ice cream treat and then a spectacular sunset.
From Tangier was a trip back across the bay to Solomons, MD. We picked up a mooring ball and stayed for three nights, with the kids hanging out at the marina pool for most of the days and then having picnics on the lawn with games of corn hole and tag in the evenings. One evening we even had an early birthday party for Reed – really just an excuse to have cupcakes! The weather had cooled down enough to use the oven on the boat. We met another great family, who we traveled with for a boisterous day sail to a beautiful anchorage across the bay, in Hudson Creek. Perfect for a quick swim and peaceful evening at anchor. The bay narrows quite a bit this far north, so crossing to other anchorages is not a big deal.
Finally, on July 25th, we pulled into Galesville, MD, to get ready for Zander and Frankie’s departure the following day. Their visit had flown by, with lots of fun but plenty of things left on the list for a follow-up visit sometime soon.