PORTSMOUTH, VA TO ANNAPOLIS, MD

PORTSMOUTH, VA TO ANNAPOLIS, MD

JULY 21-23, 2017

The distance from Portsmouth to Annapolis is 140 miles up the Chesapeake Bay.  We had one stop to make at Solomon Is, which is about 100 nm from Portsmouth enroute to Annapolis.  We departed North Landing at 0645 hrs on the July 19^th.  The wind was light but we managed to motor sail to the Great Wilcomico River and dropped anchor at 1936 hrs at Sandy Pt in 16 ft water depth with 90 ft chain out: 37-49.444 N; 76-18.626 W.  It was a long day and we covered about 60 miles. This is a quiet anchorage with good protection from S-NW winds but exposed to the North and East.

The following morning on July 22^nd, we heaved up anchor and got underway for Solomon Is.: about 40 miles distant.  It was a beautiful day on the Chesapeake but not much wind so we had to motor sail.  We arrived at Spring Cove Marina on Soloman Is. at 1545 hrs.  There was a thunderstorm approaching but, fortunately, it passed us on by.  Spring Cove Marina is up a winding creek and very well protected but expensive for transients.  Their charge is $2.50 per ft of boat length: $100 for a 40 ft boat.

We spent a pleasant evening with Bob and Anne, owners of a Valiant 40 named Baloo.  Bob is a superb craftsman and has made that Valiant 40 a boat to be admired.  Engine installation, fuel tank installation, DC refrigeration system installation, steering system rebuild, he has put all of this in by himself.  The work is meticulous and a thing of mechanical beauty to behold.

The following morning at 0800 hrs, we departed Spring Cove Marina for Annapolis, MD. about 40 miles distant.  We started off with a very pleasant W wind 12-15 kts but, as the morning progressed, it died out and we had to resort to motor sailing.  At 1430 hrs in the afternoon, we got hit with one of the most violent thunderstorms we have encountered so far.  The winds were in excess 50+ kts with blinding rain; the seas built up quickly to 5 ft.  There was a Car Carrier Ship on my stern and blowing the danger signal.  The wind was so strong that it heeled the Valiant 40 to the stbd. side and almost put the lee rail in the water.  The Car Carrier Ship passed me, about 600 ft off, on my port side.  Once I had the ship out of the way, it was just a matter of choosing the most favorable angle to take on the wind and seas.  Other than the ship, there was never any time that the Valiant 40 wasn’t able to handle the existing conditions.  It was just unnerving to have so much wind and rain pelting us.  Our foul weather gear was no longer waterproof so we were soaked.  Fortunately, these thunderstorms don’t last too long and, this one, started to abate in about 20 minutes.  In the entire six years of the circumnavigation, we never encountered winds that strong.  That includes being hove-to off the East African coast in a short lived SW Buster.

At 1730 hrs, we dropped anchor at the South Anchorage of Annapolis in 15 ft water depth with 90 ft of chain out:  38-58.532 N; 76-28.359 W.  I would have continued on into the harbor to pick up a mooring but we had a rain squall coming so we anchored.  In the early morning hours of July 24^th another very strong thunderstorm hit us at the anchorage.  I saw the lightning and decided to pay out another 50 ft of chain.  Just as we finished the wind and rain hit us.  I guess the wind was at least 40 kts but it only lasted about thirty minutes.  When we heaved anchor and moved to the Annapolis Harbor Mooring field, we were informed that the thunderstorm had spawned a tornado just one mile north of us.  We picked up Mooring #5 at at 1030 hrs on July 24^th: 38-58.513 N; 76-29.005 W   These moorings are strong and safe under most conditions.  The charge is $35 per day but include showers, laundry and toilets at the Harbor Masters Office.