5/3-5/4/2012

Thursday -  the marina offers coffee, donuts and conversation in the boaters lounge everyday.  Jerry is up there bright and early talking to other boaters and a few locals about our cruise and where we are going.  We had planned to leave today, but the word is the Chesapeake is not looking good so decide to wait it out until tomorrow.   I joined Jerry sitting on the couch.  A older gentleman came in, he knew a few of the folks, and sat down beside me.  We chatted.  He lost his wife to cancer a few years back.  After she died, he bought a sailboat.  Said she was afraid of water so he waited until she was gone to do this.  Had never sailed so bought the boat in Florida and hired a captain to teach him and help sail the boat back to Deltaville.  At one point, he asked me to guess how old he is.  Geez, I didn't have a clue but suspected he was in his 70s since he told me he had retired in 1987.  I guessed 70.  He said thank you, he was 82.  I listened and he talked for probably 30 more minutes.  Later, we ran into him at West Marine.  As we were leaving, he asked if I had an older sister.  What a sweet man.

The new battery charger was on the list to get installed.  Required pulling wires and being in the engine room.  Jerry worked most of the afternoon and evening on it and once it was installed and tested, it appears the old charger got fried in the process.   Crap.

Jerry contacted Carolyn's aunt that he hadn't seen in probably 30 years.  Pat and Mary Jo live on the Potomac, just around the corner from St. Marys City.  We plan to stop by to see them.

Friday-   today was a cool day on the Chesapeake. We left Deltaville around 10:30 after filling up the water tank and headed out the channel.

 Passed a tow pulling a barge rather than pushing it.  Evidently on big bodies of water like the Chesapeake, the wave action is too great.  Pulling seems to work.

Winds were light from the south (behind us) and the ride was pretty good. A few waves crossing the mouth of the Rappahannck River then we were at the mouth of the Potomac.  Hazy

We crossed into Maryland at Smith Point at the mouth of the Potomac.  Another beautiful caisson lighthouse, they used the same plans as that of Wolf Trap Light, the only difference being one is red and this one is white.

This area was reported to be temperamental because of the currents on the river and bay contrasting.  Not today.  The water gods were shining on us. That was the smoothest part of the trip until we got to the St Marys River then it was glassy smooth. 

We saw these contraptions from a distance.  As we got closer, Jerry surmised these were fish traps.  Come to find out these were traps for Menhaden, a fish processed in Reedville, VA for omega-3 fish oil,  protein-rich specialty fishmeal and organic fish solubles.  We were going to stop in Reedville but were warned that if the winds were out of the south, it was a miserably smelly place to be, and the winds were out of the south, so we continued on.

I understand that the fish swim into the trap and hit the net.  They swim along the net until they get to a pool which captures them.  Something like that. 





What made it so cool for me was that this was my old stomping grounds when I was stationed at Pax River Naval Air Station in the 60s, a few years ago..  Many of the places I had been on land I now had a chance to see from the water. My first time on a sail boat I launched from our anchorage at St Marys City. My lessons were pull this then push that and I was off on my own for a 12 mile run down the St Marys and up the Potomac to Pat & MaryJo's at Valley Lee VA. about 12miles.  The only way to learn. 

The brick structure is the 1st state house of Maryland

We also passed Webster Field an old aux airstrip where we did some testing, snatching 15ft radar reflective darts with an F8 Crusader jet passing by at about 150mph dragging a grappling hook on 40foot of log chain. ( much like tow planes snatch banners today).

 Secondly we are only 3 miles from where I learned to fly. Soloed in an Aeronca Champ ($6/hr)  Park Hall Airport, now gone,  I would fly up the river to get to the airport to avoid the Patuxent River control zone which extended over Park Hall a little.  I still have a problem associating distances traveled and time vs going by plane..  Today's trip 53 miles took us 6 hr 30 min, 25 minutes in the Mooney.  Big difference..also ten times the fuel. But.. who's complaining.. The Mooney doesn't have a queen sized bed and a fridge full of beer and wine...  

Our destination is Horseshoe Bend on the St. Mary's.  We arrive about 5:00pm.  A sailboat is trying to get anchored so we hold up settling in.  They seem to be having problems getting their anchor to hold.  They move to a couple of other places, we just settle in and drop the anchor.  Jerry gets the dinghy down and we row over to the sailboat to chat for a few minutes.  Then row to the St. Mary's College Sailing Center.  There are a few folks still around, but most have left. 

A group of boys had been jumping off the dock chasing a Frisbee.  I was really surprised to see them in the water so I checked out the temps with our infrared thermometer, 69F.  Warmer than I thought. The waters coming up the river were about 60-62F.   These boys were in closer to sunset so no sun.  It had to be cold but they still seemed to enjoy.





And finally, a beautiful sunset over St. Mary's River.