TUESDAY 7 JUNE 2016
Journey: Triple L Estate – Hidden Harbour, Solomons – Lighthouse, Solomons Island – Patuxent River – Triple L Estate
I looked at the weather radar forecast, telling Matt and Lori – “If we are going out by boat for dinner, then we need to go so we are at our destination by around 5:30.” I originally proposed going to Hidden Harbour, but as we tied up I noticed a sign out front announcing, ‘Closed on Tuesdays.’ Well, crud. I proposed giving Lighthouse another try since the Boyz enjoyed it so much. Matt seemed to like that idea.
As we pulled up to their pier the sky turned darker and darker. I pointed out that you could see rain in the not too far distance. We had just sat down at a table when the rain began. A heavy downpour. A center console boat came roaring into the dock area, pulling in front of our boat. Yes, it might be raining but we don’t appreciate your coming in so hot that you rock the crap out of our boat. No wake is no wake no matter what the weather.
Shortly after this we saw the Sultana, from Chestertown, coming in – also in the heavy rain – to dock at Waterman’s Wharf. I wondered what the special occasion may be for a visit from Sultana. Matt did a web search and said the Kalmar Nyckel was also scheduled to arrive in Solomons. Yea!
By the time we finished eating, the storm had passed leaving behind a beautiful blue sky. Perfect timing on our part. A nice looking cruising boat pulled in as we prepared for departure. As Matt and I admired it, I did point out, no matter how nice it looked it still had duct tape holding it together.
After dinner I wanted to cruise up past Spring Cove Marina to see if we could locate Coastal Spirits across the creek from the marina. We did find Coastal Spirits undergoing a cleaning. If we had seen either Buzz or Carol on board we would have stopped. We continued on up the creek in order to show Matt his boss’ house.
As we headed towards home, we swung by Waterman’s Wharf in order to get a closer look at Sultana.
I then wanted to cruise out towards the Bay for a closer look at what I thought was Dee of St. Mary’s. Upon closer inspection we discovered it wasn’t the Dee and instead was the Gazela out of Philadelphia. EXCELLENT! I’ve never seen this vessel before. Way cool. With the Dee of St. Mary’s, Sultana, and Gazela here, and Kalmar Nyckel scheduled to arrive, I figured something must be happening. A tall ship regatta?
After circling around Gazela a few times we headed up river for home.
Time: 4:50 pm – 7:45 pm
Conditions: chance of storms, lots of cloud activity, short storm
Passengers: Capt KandL, Matt
Vessel: ‘Gurlz Gotta Eat’