Quaint Oxford Maryland
Eight members of The Sailing Club enjoyed a Classic Chesapeake Cruise in September. Our goal was to do as much sailing as possible – while enjoying iconic Chesapeake destinations. I think we succeeded. We visited both the Eastern and Western shores of the Chesapeake, the busy maritime port of Annapolis and the peacefully bucolic Oxford. We sailed, motor-sailed, and motored – and always had fun! We made new sailing friends and deepened existing friendships.
Wednesday, September 16th
All Crew and Skippers arrived at Haven Harbor Marina in Rock Hall, MD in the afternoon. After Skippers and First Mates checked out our boats, we boarded and stowed our gear before heading to the Flying Decoy for supper. We had two boats: Cool Breeze, a 44.5 ft Catalina, and Southern Cross, a 38 ft Benneteau.
Thursday, September 17th
View of Annapolis Harbor from Carrols Creek Restaurant
We left Rock Hall at 10:15 a.m. And we left carefully - because some of the buoys we know well had been either moved – or fully removed. So – slow was the name of the game! The wind was from the south at about 15 knots. We had a beautiful sail down to Green Can 3 – the much-heeded marker for avoiding shoals in the area. Southern Cross tacked about six times to round the buoy – and we did it flawlessly. It felt spectacular! After rounding Green 3, we sailed into the Bay. Of course, as is always the case, at least for me, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge was dead head-to-wind. We decided to motor-sail rather than spend hours trying to get under the bridge. But even the motor-sailing was lovely. Skipper Gary gave First Mate Anne Marie and Crew Maryann sailing lessons while underway, and we enjoyed watching other boats going by. So it was still good!
We arrived at the Annapolis mooring field at around 3:00 p.m. Gary gave a great lesson on how to pick up a mooring ball. It was a magnificent night with an incredibly brilliant sky. We listened to the U.S. Naval Academy Plebes play football and lacrosse and to the music coming from the Academy. And since it’s Annapolis, there were Lasers, Optimists, and racing boats parading by us. Cool Breeze enjoyed dinner on the waterfront restaurant Carrols Creek - transiting by Water Taxi - and the Southern Cross crew ate on board and enjoyed the Annapolis ambiance.
Friday, September 18th
Both Cool Breeze and Southern Cross left Annapolis by 9:00 a.m. and started our southern sail to Dunn Cove. Our Skippers decided not to transit through the Knapps Narrows, but to go around Tilghman Island. A longer – but ultimately safer - route. Bonus for the Sail 250 sailors among us: the U.S. Coast Guard Eagle, a tall ship prominent in June’s Baltimore celebration, was anchored in the Bay outside of Annapolis. It was great to see her again! The wind was from the north and it was light. So we tried the always tricky wing-on-wing point of sail. After several attempts, we trimmed it perfectly and we sailed wing-on-wing for at least an hour - passing Tully Point and down the Bay to the Thomas Point lighthouse. Eventually, we moved to a port beam reach and stayed on that point of sail for the rest of the day – passing Eastern Bay and Poplar Island. No tacks. Just the wind behind pushing us along until we reached the tip of Tilghman Island. Then our motor went on for the first time that day so we could navigate to Dunn Cove. Southern Cross rafted up with Cool Breeze – always controlled chaos! – and we were alone in this beautiful cove. It truly is what cruising is about. The sunset was beautiful. Several of us dove into the water and had an evening swim. Later, we had our traditional joint appetizer dinner on Cool Breeze.
Saturday, September 19th
We left Dunn Cove around 10:30 a.m. We tried to sail for a while, but there was very little wind – so we motored to Safe Harbor Marina in lovely Oxford and were snug in our slips by 2:00 p.m. The evening was spent onboard with a long game of Farkle.
Sunday, September 20th
This was our “lay-over” day in beautiful Oxford. We took showers. (Heaven!) Some of us took an audio walking tour of Oxford, some of us visited the Oxford Museum, and some went to the The Water’s Edge Museum - dedicated to Black life and culture on Maryland’s Easter Shore. Skipper Gary visited Oxford’s Tred Avon Yacht Club. Rumor has it that The Sailing Club’s’ burgee is now flying high in their riverfront Clubhouse. We had a delightful seafood dinner at the only open restaurant in town - Docs Sunset Grill.
Monday, September 21st
We left Monday morning at 7:30 a.m. It was a beautiful, atmospheric day with diffused light behind the clouds. We raised our sails immediately upon leaving Safe Harbor. We sailed down the Tred Avon on 3 tacks – all of them gibes. We sailed for about three hours – through the Choptank River and around the bottom of Tilghman Island. When we reached the Bay and headed north towards Annapolis, we were once again directly head-to-wind with a long journey ahead. So we did what any experienced cruising sailor would do - we turned on our motor! We once again moored in Annapolis. On Southern Cross, Skipper Gary showed the easiest way to do a double loop on a mooring ball.
Tuesday, September 22nd
On Tuesday, we left Annapolis at 8:30 in the morning. It was raining with heavy wind of 15-20 knots. Rock Hall was directly head-to-wind, so it took us three hours motoring to get back to Harbor Haven Then the dreary task - just being honest here! - of unloading the boat and driving home. But the sailing, exploration and friendship is what I will remember.
Anne Marie Kelly - Trip Leader
