Thurs May 27: Swan Creek to Chesapeake City anchorage

 In which we are thankful for Gratitude ...

On our way out of Swan Creek we noticed that the area/town is called Gratitude.  We could all use a visit there more often, don't you think?  

 

And on that note, a shout out to one of the loyal readers we are grateful for - it's her birthday!!!  Here is a boat name just for you, Kim.  

Happy Birthday, Kim!!

Our route today took us up to the top of the Chesapeake Bay, where the sides of MD squeeze together.  This put us into the main shipping channel, where the big car carriers and others play.   I told Rick we needed to put on our Big Boat Pants and step up our game.

 

In fact we are expecting quite a crush of traffic (of cruisers, not barges) as we get further along.  Remember, all the frustrated 2019 and 2020 loopers, plus the 2021 loopers, are out - and the Memorial Day traffic. On the boating tracker app, NEBO, we can see those around us:

 

The symbol is a 'looper' symbol - we are the middle one.

 

As soon as we got out into the main body of water, cruiser KayDee (see, the boat behind us) saw us and sent us a message on Nebo, to say hello.  We got so excited, like Sally Fields at the Oscars!  'Ooooooo - someone wants us to be on their dodgeball team'!!!  They are also headed to Chesapeake City - THE stop at the top of the Bay.  It's the staging ground to enter the C & D Canal, and our friends, Lynn and Carolyn from cruiser Meander, are there waiting for us.  Our path this week will lead us across the C & D to Delaware City, where we will wait for the go-ahead to jump to Cape May, down the Delaware River.  This is a tricky passage, due to current and the unusually wide opening to the ocean at Cape May, leading to big wave action.  It's best to do this with company, so we are happy Meander is waiting for us. (Also - we have their oranges, so they have to wait for us or risk scurvy).

Here we are, leaving the the Bay to Chesapeake City.

 

Here is the C & D canal we will be going through soon - after we leave C. City.

It's was a long day (6 hours of cruising), so we were pretty groggy halfway through - until we were JOLTED awake by HUGE booms.  It turns out that the Aberdeen Cruising Ground on the western shore of MD was 'hot', and  a LOT of our tax dollars were being put to work by the military - those deep, resounding explosions that you feel more than you hear.

Almost to the turn I noticed the engine was making a weird noise.  I was really worried Rick was going to jump overboard if I brought a problem to his attention so soon after all the 'preventative' maintenance.  It turned out to be the roar of the infamous cicadas, overlying the engine noise.  You just can't describe such a noise!

 A right turn, a big bridge - and we were into C City and hoping for a spot on the free dock (there are only 3).  There was only one space left, so Rick jumped into the driver seat (I don't dock when there are other boats close by) and we made it look like a piece of cake.  Even though I had to jump from the bow of the boat to the dock to get us tied up.  It would not have looked good if I had broken my leg, so I am glad that didn't happen. 

We are tied up right at the mouth of the canal, so we can see the barge traffic. At least that means we don't have to worry about depth.  The canal is dredged to at least 50'!

Just as we settle in this flashy $$$ boat decides to dock between us and another boat.  Because they have a $$$ boat they have rotating engines, drive with a joy stick and can just move sideways.  We are not bitter AT ALL. I do realize that it's bad manners to dislike someone, without meeting them, because they have a yacht.

We met Lynn and Carolyn, and our new friends, Mark and Karen from KayDee, at the local restaurant for dinner.  It was great to be able to hug Lynn/Caro - the last time we saw them last Aug we couldn't even see half their faces behind their masks, much less get into their personal space...

Lynn/Caro are across from me - in their 80s and totally our role models for active aging.

I had a Pickle Pizza!  I didn't even know that was a thing - it was great.  Rick was skeptical, but then he ate most of it...

Wow - it was prom time!  A scene from 'the time before'! No one in MD is wearing masks anymore because they are 'optional'.

For this small town this is the local version of cruising main street!  The cool guys get their small boats out and cruise loudly up and down the canal before dark.

The town is absolutely hopping.  Pandemic?!  What pandemic...

We can stay on the free dock for 24-hours - but we can't make the jump to Cape May until Tues, due to weather.  We will see what adventure awaits in the meantime...