Chesapeake Cruising

Waiting the extra day in Portsmouth paid off as we left the dock with a sunny sky and light winds. Cruising through the Elizabeth River for a few miles to enter the mouth of Cheasapeake Bay brought us back by this aircraft carrrier and stealth vessel in dry dock again ... a better picture with the sun out. We had seen another one of these stealth vessels in Mobile, AL.

This cruise ship was docked in downtown Norfolk.

We continued to see many military ships.

and of course, container ships being unloaded.

But the grand finale was this group of over 25 huge military vessels all moored in a row. It took 3 photos to get them all (and I "stitched" them together with my photo program for a panorama) ... I had to shoot into the sun, so it's not the greatest picture, but we thought it was pretty impressive.

We've had two cruise days on the Chesapeake with blue skies, light winds and smooth water. We couldn't ask for better conditions, so decided to put on some miles. We cruise several miles off shore and the rivers and creeks that have the marinas and anchorages are over 6 miles off the channel, so it makes for long days. Today we passed the 5 mile wide mouth of the Potomac River ... Smith Lighthouse is 2.5 miles off the southern shore.

The Chesapeake is huge for all kinds of recreational boating, but it's so big that you can cruise all day and see few other boats. Last night we stayed at the marina where the "Waterway Guide" has its corporate headquarters (Deltaville, VA). There was nothing corporate about the lovely family owned marina that the Dozier Family runs along with publishing their great crusing guides. Tonight we are anchored at Solomans Island, MD off the Patuxent River, where there are 17 marinas on one creek off the river. The Navy's active testing ground for new military aircraft (Patuxent Naval Air Station) is just across the river. Several fighter jets along with other interesting looking planes flew over as we came up the river.

I've added a 30 second video to show you just how calm the Bay has been for us ... enjoy !!!