Chesapeake Bay to Cape May NJ

Colorado Cat sailing up the Chesapeake

Since our destination is the Erie Canal, and we had spent previous summers on the Chesapeake Bay, we left Salt Pond Marina on May 21st planning to cruise everyday until we reached Atlantic City before Memorial Day weekend. Our first day was a bit uncomfortable as the weather gods were not happy that morning...I think they woke up on the wrong side of the bed!! However, by one, the winds had died down and the waves were something less than the 3-4's we had experienced all morning long. Trust me when I say that we were elated when we caught our turn off the Chesapeake to go into the Solomon's, our first stop on our way to AC. It was about a 90 mile trip for the day.

We anchored out for the nite in a protected cove along with several other boats. While anchoring, we received a call from friends we had met last summer in Columbus MS. Gayle and Marcie were in a marina just behind us and had seen us come in. After dropping the dinghy, Steve and Steve motored over to say "hi" before taking Sidney for a walk. Because we were all exhausted from the long hard day, we hit the sack early for some well deserved sleep. I know Steve was looking at the inside of his eyelids before his head even hit the pillows!

Lighthouse marking our departure from the Delaware Bay to Cape May NJ

Rising early has become routine. Before we were barely awake, our traveling companions were ready to hit the road. Next stop...Chesapeake City, MD. It is about 90 mi from the Solomon's and thankfully, the waters were flat and the sky was clear (a sign our "cruising angels" had interceded with the weather gods for us). Cruising up the Chesapeake, we passed several places we had been in previous years. A very loud noise caught our attention cruising by Annapolis, home of the Naval Academy...seems the jets we were watching were the Blue Angels. Even though only two of the jets were in the air, it was a sight to behold. They were the featured attraction for the Memorial Day celebration in Annapolis and were practicing their maneuvers. Fortunately Steve was at the helm and I could keep my eye on the jets. They are truly a spectacular sight.

Bridge marking entrance to Chesapeake City MD

Chesapeake City is a small, quaint, old town on the C&D Canal. The canal allows transit between the Chesapeake Bay on its north end and the Delaware Bay. Used by commercial and recreational boats, the canal was dug to allow large transport ships access to Baltimore from the ocean without having to navigate all the way up the Chesapeake Bay. The canal is also used by the navy and other commercial carriers. Fortunately, we have never transited the canal when there has been a huge ship to deal with. While there is plenty of room, it is somewhat intimidating to have this behemoth seemingly coming straight at you!

Anyway, we again anchored in a small protected cove just to the right after passing under the bridge. In times past, we have stayed for a few days because there are numerous shops in town complemented by a wonderful home-made ice cream store. However, we were on a mission and it was up again early the next day to make our way to Cape May NJ. We left bright and early to finish transiting the C&D Canal east to Delaware Bay then down to Cape May NJ.

Nuclear Power Plant on Delaware Bay

This plant is about 1/2 the distance from the C&D Canal to where we turned east to pick up the canal into Cape May. As with many "important" installations these days, there is a security barrier extending about 500 yards out from the plant through which we dared not go. But, it is always amazing to see these plants with their billowing smokestacks knowing that if more were built, we could rely less on oil for some of our energy needs...another day for that discussion! The Delaware Bay can kick up her heels from time to time as it has a wide mouth emptying directly into the Atlantic Ocean. With winds from the east to southwest quadrant, it can be a very unpleasant ride. Coming down, we had good winds and the tide was running out so we fairly surfed our way down the bay. The comfortable ride changed however as we headed east at the lighthouse to connect up with the Cape May canal (this little canal was dug to allow safe passage for recreational boats between the Atlantic and Delaware Bay without having to encounter difficult weather and sea conditions around the tip of New Jersey). But, we made it safely and cruised slowly through the canal soaking up all the surrounding activity. The Coast Guard has a major training facility here from which our son, Peter, graduated back in the mid-90's. Our intent was to anchor out for the night just north of Cape May up the ICW. After checking out our first spot and deeming it not acceptable, we headed on up a bit further to Sunset Lake. While a bit dicey getting into, it proved to be a wonderful spot to spend the nite before we started heading north towards AC..

Sunrise on Sunset Lake, NY

And what a spectacular spot it was. We dropped anchor, got the dinghy down, took Sidney to shore and were able to take a long walk on the beach looking out at the Atlantic Ocean. Another spectacular sight. I think I must have been a fish in a previous life because I just love the ocean. It was calm this nite thus very calming for me. If we weren't so tired and the dog hungry for his dinner, I could have sat there and watched the sun go down, but..... After all was said and done, we dropped into bed for a well deserved nite of slumber. The morning brought a beautiful sunrise which was savored on the back deck with my cup of decaf coffee. By the time the sun was well up, it was time to weigh anchor and head north up the ICW to Atlantic City NJ, our intended stop for the Memorial Day weekend.

In our next edition, we'll share our trip from Cape May to Atlantic City then to the NY Harbor and on up to Waterford NY. And thank you for sharing with us.