* Kent Island / Annapolis / Baltimore, MD *
– 107 miles traveled –
Our travels continued to three more ports since last writing, Kent Island, Annapolis, and Baltimore, MD, and we were joined by family for a visit. All new places and memories for our crew.
The first mate was drawn to Kent Island after reading there were miles and miles of bike trails, 28 miles to be exact. Problem is they don’t lead anywhere.
The island is on the East Coast of Chesapeake Bay, and we stayed in the Narrows between the mainland and island. This was home for the wicked current with the waters squeezing between the island and the mainland.
Piney Narrows Yacht Haven, a beautiful boat-a-minium marina is where we docked in a well-appointed covered slip for three nights. The marina is all privately owned slips, almost all covered slips, and beautiful grounds. They do not skimp here. The area around the marina has seen better days. The island is divided by a major highway, Maryland 18, that runs through center of the island connecting east to west and crossing over the Chesapeake with a five mile bridge. It is the only road that crosses the Chesapeake through its 200 mile span and very busy. The bike trails run to the north of the highway where the marina is located and there are only 3 places to cross over the highway. None of them are bike friendly. The “town” is all south of the highway. The trails were awesome, but an awesome trail to nowhere.
Sitting at the marina office, we watched the wind and current play havoc with many boaters’ approach to the fuel dock, entrance to the marina, and those approaching and waiting for the draw bridge.
One boat we watched turned into a bittersweet reunion by happenstance. We noticed the cutest yellow lab peeking out from the fly bridge of his boat. Not paying much attention to the crew, he held our attention as they exited the marina and pulled up to the fuel dock. After a few minutes, we both realized we knew the boat!
We had traveled with them during our first leg, and their lab was a buddy of Remy’s. Remy and Guinness ran together at Joe Wheeler in Alabama, Clearwater Beach, and Fort Myers. We also kept Guinness a few days while his parents dealt with an emergency, sweet, sweet pup.
We walked down to talk with them and immediately noticed this pup was not Guinness, but Parker. Guinness passed away a few months before Remy. They too went home for a year to deal with health and family issues and Guinness passed at home. So happy to see them, but such a bittersweet moment to realize both our beloved pups were no longer with us. Wet smooches and hugs from Parker were just what we all needed.
The first mate didn’t feel the best at this stop, and so we didn’t do a whole lot. We rode 20 miles one day on our trusty bikes and braved an overpass to eat at Chic-fil-a, our first fast food since our celebratory hotdog in Georgia!
Keeping an eye on the weather, we left a day early to cross the bay to Annapolis. We were meeting up with our kids so had our first scheduled stop of our trip and thus a couple more days at Kent Island than needed. Seas were building, we didn’t want to force travel on a less than stellar day. Enjoying a very pleasant cruise across the Bay with waves a foot or less, winds from the north at 5-7 mph, were certainly better than the 2-3 foot waves and 15-17 mph winds the following day. The most exhilarating part of the day was leaving with the wicked current and the shallow water. While that can be stressful, we also take great pride in accomplishing the adverse sea conditions and encounters.
After making our way through the very narrow, shallow channel with crazy current it was a stress free cruise across the bay until it was time to dock.
We stopped for fuel and received our docking assignment at the Annapolis Yacht Basin. Mama never said it would be easy. The Yacht Basin is an old facility with very narrow fairways and some giant boats. These were the first big yachts with large crews we had encountered since South Florida. We motored down a very skinny fairway, needed to make a couple of 90 degree turns, spin the boat with very little room without hitting a couple of pilings and aft of a boat bigger than Now or Never who was sticking out 10’ into the very narrow fairway. This was a test. The older couple on the large boat were staring us down, all Tasha could say to them was this wasn’t our idea! So glad the winds were calm. The captain slid the bow 3” from one piling and the stern about 2’ from the piling, straightened the Now or Never out and backed her in. No room to spare, no room for error, a perfect landing. All done while the Annapolis Yacht Club was less than 100’ away with a full balcony at lunch watching. The captain saw one man take his phone out and start videoing, like if we screwed up it would be all over YouTube in a blink of an eye!
The Yacht Basin was the perfect location in Annapolis for us, across the harbor from the Naval Academy, a couple of blocks from the State House, and near Main Street, the hub of activity.
We had one day to scope out the area and prepare before kids Nick and Lauren joined us. We set up camp and took off on foot. Wow! What a first impression. Bustling, quaint, historic, lots of outside waterfront dining, and what a neat riverfront. After walking the area, we settled in to our first pub and raised a glass with a celebratory drink, a custom we do at each new port. Celebrating one more adventure and one more day without sinking (after our Albemarle collision we don’t take that for granted). We then moved to the Iron Rooster a recommendation from our dock hand. We had a very engaging bartender and asked about what we needed to do/see in Annapolis and were told eat crab and take a boat tour of the harbor. We can check off the boat tour, so we ate crab – crab hash. Delicious!
Having returned before sunset, the Yacht Club was bustling with great activity. At sunset, all rose from the balcony, we followed suit from the aft deck of Now or Never facing the flagpole for Reveille and Retreat and the lowering of the colors ceremony with a bugle serenading us. We joined in each night we were there for this great ceremony.
Breakfast is a favorite of the captains and if he can get Tasha moving in the morning, she will go along. Annapolis is full of breakfast spots within close proximity of the yacht basin. Making our way to Chick and Ruth’s Delly on Main Street, we found ourselves in a bustling city diner. Narrow building one side small booths the other counter and griddle. Hotel rooms upstairs, check in at the lunch counter. A back staircase led to more seating in a mezzanine setting, and the chaos of a great diner. We enjoyed the diner with a big menu of order by numbers and breakfast, lunch, and dinner available all day. We visited three times.
Thank goodness Tasha was along and we didn’t get there too early. We would have missed the pledge of allegiance. At 8:30 am, a staff member took the microphone, requested everyone rise and recite the pledge of allegiance. Led with vigor, the whole restaurant rose, placed their hand on their hearts and recited our nations pledge looking at the flag hung high above the counter. A proud American moment. One every place should take part in.
Rain had started while we were eating and as it started to dwindle, we walked the streets to the Capital, the Governors House, St. Johns College, and as close as we could get to the Naval Academy without entering.
We reveled in the ceremonial culture; the military town life just might be for us. We love the respect, honor, dignity, and love of country. Too much of that is missing in our world today. Traditions we hold in high esteem.
We readied the boat for company. Nick and Lauren would be our first guests of the second start of our journey.
They started their own amazing journey ten years ago when they wed to visit and tour all the state capitals. We were gifted an adventure with them and toured Denver, CO with them four years ago. What a great time! But unbeknownst to us, I swear, we visited over the weekend of April 20th! Four-twenty! The four-twenty festival was in full force as Colorado has a huge celebration as one of the first states to legalize recreational marijuana. The place was smokin’!
Annapolis would be our second visit with them and here we were just blocks from the Capital! An easy walk, all uphill, found us visiting the 18th century state house (1735), once the Capital of the United States from November 1783 to August 1784. It was America’s first peacetime capitol and the oldest state house in America still in continuous use.
On display is George Washington’s personal copy of the speech he gave resigning his commission as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army in the Old Senate chamber on December 23, 1783. Considered by historians to be the fourth most important document in American history. Check, #18 of State House visits for Nick and Lauren.
Heading toward the Naval Academy we started to see Midshipmen everywhere. We learned a day of liberty had been granted due to the Mids football team tangling with Notre Dame in Ireland the following day.
Having no clue what to expect, we were in awe. Steeped in military history, the campus along the Severn River is a historic, beautiful campus. Forty-five hundred young men and women attend the Naval Academy pledging five years of service post degree to our country through either the Navy or Marines. About 30% are commissioned second lieutenants Marines upon graduation, while the remaining 70% choosing the Navy are commissioned ensigns.
The Naval Academy started as the Naval School in 1845 on the current site with 10 acres upon an Army Base with a class of 50 midshipman and seven professors. In 1850 the Naval School became the United States Naval Academy requiring studies of four years while earning a Bachelor of Science and summers assignments on ships. Having expanded over the years it is now a 338 acre campus. Granite buildings replaced the original wooden structures of Fort Severn. Women were first accepted in 1976 and make up about 20% of first students.
Suprisingly, once through the metal detectors and showing of an id, we were able to walk about the campus freely. We opted for a guided tour and learned a great deal. We toured the natatorium and found midshipmen in the pool working out on their day of liberty. Part of graduation from the Naval Academy includes the ability to swim 1500 meters fully clothed sans shoes and walking off the high dive platform of 33 feet. These milestones are life sustaining measures should their ship be under attack and go down.
A visit to the US Naval Academy Museum the following day further educated us on the history, battles, and ships of the Navy.
Nick, Lauren, and Tasha were eager to dive into some great Maryland crab. So many places, so many choices. Crab balls, crab cakes, crab dip, crab hash, crab mac & cheese, deviled crab soup, crab legs, crab bisque, crab rolls, crab stuffing, crab salad, and just crab.
Crab . . . it’s what we wanted for dinner! Our favorite meal was across the drawbridge in Eastport at the Boatyard Bar & Grill. We had heard that this may be the place for crab. We heard correctly!
Feasting on the most scrumptious crab cakes (all crab meat, no fill) and crab and artichoke dip, we had an incredible meal, a favorite. All the better sharing this wonderful experience with our kids. It was a good thing the restaurant was a mile away; we needed the after dinner walk.
Our family gathering came to an end all too soon. Annapolis is a must stop on the loop and should be on everyone’s list to visit at some point in their life. Small town, big personality, and Naval pride make it our kind of town.
We said farewell to Nick and Lauren and had one day to prepare for our voyage to Baltimore to catch up with fellow loopers we had met at Lady’s Island/Beaufort in May. We secured a slip for a week as we had extra time to spare between our family visit and a MTOA (Marine Trawler Owners Association) rendezvous we would be attending near Baltimore.
As we cruised toward Baltimore Harbor, the Now or Never slid under the Francis Scott Key Bridge. In 1814 Francis Scott Key watched a night-time battle between Great Britain and America, part of the war of 1812, that took place in Baltimore at Fort McHenry. Soldiers raised a huge American flag to celebrate the crucial victory. The sight of those “broad stripes and bright stars, inspired the poem that led to the national anthem, The Star Spangled Banner. A large flag is still flown at Fort McHenry in the same place where those words were inspired from. We love the Star Spangled Banner display at the Smithsonian.
We heeded warning and stayed hyper alert, stayed by the waterside, and were home by dark. All things our parents warned us about in life. With that in mind, we still had a nice visit to Baltimore and found it to be a fun port with lots to do.
The week flew by, happy hour – dinners with loopers, an Orioles game at the famous Camden Yards, miles, and miles of biking along the promenade that covers the whole harbor, music on the docks, a marina cookout, a night of bull riding on the docks, and new friends. Though we are way out of synch with the looper pack (they are all winding their way down Lake Michigan to go through the Chicago locks when they open from repair October 1) we continue to meet many loopers who are out our synch like us, as well as meet up with boaters that we have met before along our travels. It’s been great to share in friendship and our travels on the water.
The Orioles game with looper friends Ronda and Bob aboard Hawkins Landing was our first sporting event on the loop. The Orioles won against the White Sox 9-3. It has been a while since we have been to a ball game, times have changed as this one put us back $2 bills and we had no beer!
The Natty Boh guy was everywhere. National Bohemian Beer, or Natty Boh originated in Baltimore sells 90% of their product in the Baltimore area and has a funny little guy mascot that appears everywhere! The one eyed, handled bar mustache Mr. Boh has been a recognizable icon since his introduction in 1936. For a time, the president of the brewery also owned the Orioles and was served at Memorial Stadium and became the “official” beer of Baltimore in the late 1960’s. Natty Boh is responsible for the way we purchase beer today, the first brewery to package beer in 6 packs in the 1940’s. We have enjoyed looking for Mr. Boh all over the area. The captain has made this his regional beer of choice.
The promenade runs over 10 miles along the waterfront. We wound along through the harbor witnessing so much of the city. The waterfront is bustling with development and activity. Lots of things to see in Baltimore Harbor.
Trash is an issue in the harbor and there are several Mr. Trash Wheels and the Baltimore trash skimmer boats that cruise the harbor picking up trash. There are multiple boats running at all hours. This is the first place we have seen these, sad that the harbor is this dirty, water and trash.
Our marina through one heck of a party for Labor Day. Breakfast on Saturday as the do every Saturday in the boater’s lounge and then a BBQ cookout with a live band for the holiday. The food was delicious and the band great. And they served Natty Boh!
The weekend finished with a second night of live music and bull riding. The captain and the first mate did not partake in the bull riding but sure enjoyed watching others partake in the festivities.
We met more pop up puppies, Luke, From Texas, a young, spirited Brittany Spaniel and we enjoyed an evening with his parents. Lily, a Chesapeake Bay Retriever from Baltimore we met in Annapolis.
And just like that our Baltimore week was over. We’ll be moving on to Pasadena, MD, and the Maryland Yacht Club for the MTOA rendezvous. Hoping you all had a great Labor Day weekend, it’s hard to believe summer is over and we’re moving into fall, especially with the mid 90’s temperature this week. Stay cool!
Cheers! David, Tasha,
& Remy forever in our hearts!
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Thanks, once again for the wonderful travelogue. So much fun seeing the ports through your eyes. ❤️
Annapolis was certainly a favorite – so much history in our great country!
Wish i could take the time to check some of these places like yall did, were alway on a schedule and unless we get lucky we often missout because of our short stays
It’s been wonderful to take our time and have no schedule. I highly recommend it!