Eastern Chesapeake Bay (Crisfield, Oxford, Cambridge, St. Michaels) - June 2006
On the way out of DC, we ran into our first bad storm on our trip. We were coming down the Potomac and we heard a broadcast from the Coast Guard on the radio about a severe weather system making it's way east from Washington DC down the Potomac (exactly where we were at the time). They estimated the storm to be moving at about 25 MPH and packing winds of 35-40MPH. We switched on the radar and saw this looming mass behind us about 10 miles back. The Coasties suggested that all boats seek safe harbor, but there wasn't really anywhere we could duck into where we were so we decided to 'batten down our hatches' and ride it out. Before long it got very black behind us - looked like nighttime coming up from behind - and the air got really still - too still. Ever heard of the 'calm before the storm??' When it caught up to us, the black clouds came over the top, almost like a big black mouth swallowing us up. I looked back - and saw more white caps and rough water than I'd seen in a very long time - sort of like looking into the mouth of a sea creature about to swallow you up and seeing row upon row of big ugly and very sharp teeth. Jeremy slowed way down and held her running downwind until the storm passed over the top and spit us out the back end. We were very glad for it to be over - the wind died back down considerably - but the waves seemed to group together and form big swells off our stern for the rest of the trip down the Potomac. Fortunately, our little boat is pretty tough - so we were fine.
We spent the night in that wonderful little anchorage at St. Marys we'd found on the way up the Potomac. The next day we headed out and across the Chesapeake to Crisfield, MD - the self confessed 'Crab Capitol' of the Chesapeake. We HAD to stop in and sample the crab cakes. Very tasty, although it was a bit disconcerting eating crab under the gaze of this very large crab mounted on the top of the restaurant.
I met a fellow boating quilter at the marina in Crisfield - she was just finishing this beautiful quilt. Speaking of quilts, I've started a new one. Not sure yet how I'm going to finish it - what do you think??
Crisfield is very much a city in transition. They were a boom town in the early 1900s when oysters and crab were plentiful in the bay and there was a huge demand. The oyster population has shrunk considerably over the years, causing the area to go into a pretty severe economic decline. Many businesses and buildings along the waterfront have been closed for 25 - 30 years. Unfortunately, this has made the town ripe for the new 'saviors' of the East Coast - the condo builders. There are about 5 new condo complexes going up - many right on the waterfront. They are big and not very attractive. We saw what it did to Myrtle Beach, SC - condos everywhere. Apparently there is a a big debate in town about whether or not the condos are going to be a good thing for the town. They are providing an economic boost for now (while they are being built) - and if they sell, they will certainly provide a boost to the tax basis. I just wonder whether or not they will really sell. It will be interesting to come back in 10 or 15 years and see how the town is doing.
We left Crisfield and headed north on the bay up to the Choptank river and the towns of Oxford, Cambridge and St. Michaels. On the way up the bay we spotted a couple of fish traps. These things are not lit and between them and the crab pots are probably the best reasons for not traveling on the Chesapeake at night. A fish trap is composed of a long row of pilings (extended off to the right in the picture below) ended in a square 'fish pen' at one end. A net is run along the pilings and around the pen and the trap is positioned in an area of the bay where certain types of fish are known to run on a regular basis. The fish get funneled by the long net into the pen where they can be scooped up by the fishermen on a regular basis. Of course the sea birds in the area know what a fish trap is as well - and they always seem to be surrounded by lots of hungry sea gulls and pelicans.
We saw a couple of sailboats with their spinnakers up as we approached the Choptank river. I got some good pictures of them and were able to call them on the radio and get their email addresses so I could send them copies. That's the 'Gypsy Soul' to the right and 'Rhiannon' to the left below.
This is a picture of Oxford as we came around into the Tred Avon River toward town.
We anchored in a little cover in town. This is a sunset picture looking back toward some of the marinas in town.
We REALLY liked Oxford - its a very pretty little town that seems to be holding its own really well in this area. I met a lady (Wendy) who runs the Robert Morris Inn in town and made the mistake of asking about how the winters were here. "Well, it gets pretty cold - sometimes as low as 18 below. It's been a bit milder here the last few years, though." I was too afraid to ask what 'mild' meant. Maybe we need to just come here in the summers...
This is a picture of the Robert Morris Inn. They have - at least according to author James Michener - the best crab cakes in the Chesapeake Bay. Have to agree, they were VERY tasty. All lump crabmeat - none of that breading or shredded crabmeat that that you find in many other crab cakes. The second picture is looking out over the Tred Avon river from town.
Oxford is also the home of Cutts and Case builders and restorers for beautiful wooden boats.
The had a few old restored motorcycles in the shop as well including this Norton - which Jeremy is lusting after - and the Indian suspended from the ceiling next to a beautiful model of a wooden sailboat.
Leaving Oxford and traveling about 12 miles up the Choptank River we arrived at Oxford's sister city, Cambridge. Cambridge is a much larger city - and is actually the second largest seaport (behind Baltimore) in Maryland. The day we arrived, they were having a triathlon in town. They were just finishing up the swimming portion on the Choptank when we arrived. I have to confess - while I really admire what those guys were doing - I had no desire whatsoever to join them. While we're doing lots of walking on this trip, I haven't been doing any running. (I know, Harriet - I need to get back to it if we're going to Sydney next year!)
The first picture is of the City Hall and Fire department. The second one is a picture of one of the business district streets in Cambridge. The architecture reminded me a lot of Park Street in Alameda. The last picture is of a beautiful old stone church in town.
Skipjack sailboats were once the main way that the Chesapeake watermen (don't call them fishermen!) would work the waters. There are very few of these boats left in the bay. This one was built only a few years ago as a replica of a lost era. The most interesting thing was the length of the boom - almost as long as the mast is tall! It took several strong men to haul up the main sail on these boats. The second picture is of the carved bowsprit bearing the boat's name - the 'Nathan of Dorchester'
Cambridge has a great little 'town dock' - actually it's a seawall by the city office building. There is no charge to tie up and it doesn't look like there is any time limit for how long you can stay. We got in a bit early - but it soon filled up with 6 boats. Jeremy played 'dock master' helping folks in with their lines and also helping to shuffle the boats a bit closer so we could fit everyone in.
The last town we visited on the eastern shore was St. Michaels. We had visited this beautiful town on our sailboat, and were very much looking forward to coming back. The last time we visited, we anchored off the city near the Maritime Museum. This time, based on some recommendations from fellow cruisers, we anchored on the creek that backs into St. Michaels and came in 'through the back door.'
The walk up from the back of town took us through the residential section - where we found this house with a sign painted on the fence in German - the translation is 'Protect this house from weather and wind and don't let boring people in.' Amen to that!
We visited the Maritime Museum again, and saw them hauling this wooden fishing boat out of the water using an old marine railway. The boat is floated onto a sled in the water. The sled is attached to a heavy chain that is fed around a windlass up on land (first picture below).
We saw this beautiful old wooden cat-boat coming in while we were wandering around the museum grounds. The second picture below is of a skipjack similar to the one we saw in Cambridge. The length of the booms on these boats is amazing - in some cases they seem almost as long as the mast is tall.
The museum had a replica of the boat the John Smith used to explore the Chesapeake back in the 1600s.
This is a view of the St. Michaels harbor off the Maritime Museum where we anchored last time we were here. Lots more boats here than where we anchored this time.
Jeremy got his chance to don a Yacht Club Commodore's blue blazer. Not sure if he really fits in with the rest of the lineup, though. I think perhaps he needs a pair of white pants and a different hat??
he museum had a collection of bird decoys including several carved and painted by the Ward brothers. They called themselves 'Waterfoul Counterfeiters in Wood". They had a small shop in Crisfield which we were able to visit when we were there.
We saw several watermen doing 'trotline' crabbing while on the Choptank river. A trotline is a long weighted line that has hooks baited with either fish or chicken parts every foot or two. The line is dropped into the water - marked by a buoy on each end. The watermen work the trotline by starting at one end and pulling the line up over a roller that is position on the side of their boat (see the first picture below). Crabs will stay attached to what they are feeding on until just before they break the surface of the water. As a baited portion of the line comes up with a crab attached, the watermen scoops the crab up with a net just before it breaks the surface of the water and the crab lets go.
We saw this duck blind as we were coming out of one of the side creeks off the Choptank.
A pair of swans swimming in a creek near St. Micheals.
Updated June 30, 2006