From Woodbridge VA to Solomon's MD... Crab Pots, Fishing Sticks and White Caps

Well, the sun didn't come out tomorrow, but at least it isn't raining.  We're headed to Solomon's Island MD for our introduction to the Chesapeake.

We've worried a bit about the voyage into the Chesapeake, as we must cross the mouth of the Potomac which is about 12 miles across at the junction.  The waters are fairly shallow and known for being choppy.

I have finally finished the book "River Horse" by William Least Heat-Moon (see early post) and it strikes me how he managed to pilot a boat across country thinking of witty intelligent things to talk about... and then remembering them verbatim when he later writes his book:  Of course, all of his ruminations are not that profound, but he tries:

If the beginning of a river is its head, why is its end a mouth?  Why not a foot or a toe?  Or a rectum....

or, describing a similar day of bumping and crashing on their C-Dory, he writes:

It's not the jarring that wears me down-its the din, the racket.  In this fiberglass, we're riding inside a big snare drum..

and:

The C-Dory can take it.  The question is whether the crew can.

You get the picture.  I tried to listen to music but even with head phones my teeth were rattling so hard, I couldn't focus.  For some reason a song from the TV series "The Big Bang Theory" kept playing through my head.  Amid the bangs and crashes on the white caps, I was not in a profound or thoughtful mindset.  All I heard was Sheldon's lullaby:

Soft kitty, warm kitty, little ball of fur
Happy kitty, pretty kitty, 
Purr Purr Purr

When the crab pots became an obstacle course, I started distracting myself by thinking of new lyrics:

Crab pots, snag pots, don't catch on the prop
Can't see em, try to miss em,
Swerve, Swerve, Swerve

Grey skies, white caps, on our way today
Across the mouth and up the bay
Bang, crash bang

Ches-a-peake, you look so bleak
But we're here for a week,
The sun will come, we'll have some fun
Running round the bay

There was more, but I'll spare you.  I tried out a few versions and Rob went from amused to annoyed.  He had important navigating to focus on.

We were far enough from land that we couldn't make out anything interesting to look at.  And, it was so grey and misty that we weren't sure what we were seeing sometimes: is that a sailboat or an island... and what are those sticks in the water? (turns out they are fishing sticks, connected to nets.. not sure what they are fishing for.)  Later I found out that if you are in waters of 10-20ft, that's probably when you'll encounter the crab pots and nets.  So, should we have been out in the deeper waves?  Or risk running aground in the shallower waters?  We just wanted to get there the shortest way possible and get out of the churn and away from the pots. There is no reason or rhyme to the planting of these pots, not in a line or in "fields".

We arrived safe and sound at Spring Cove Marina at Soloman's Island MD and were greeted by fellow Pocket Yachters.... Look there's a Cutwater 28 next to that Ranger Tug 27!  (the Cutwater is a luxury trailerable boat I've been watching for since 2010)...

 I told Rob, "We are in TROUBLE now!"

The sun finally did come out and felt great as we met others around the pool.  There were 16 boats plus 3 couples attending without boats:  3 C-Dorys (a 22, our 23, and a 25), 10 Ranger Tugs (25-31 ft) and 3 Cutwaters (made by the same company as Ranger Tug, but a newer design).  www.cutwaterboats.com.  As far as we could determine, most lived locally; and the smallest (us) had come the farthest.

Our 23 ft C-Dory is to the right of a 25 ft Ranger Tug... we are wondering just how "towable" these big "trailerable" pocket yachts are?

Occoquan Harbour Woodbridge VA

Spring Cove Marina, Solomons MD