| N38 19.8 W76 27.5
Solomons Island is a wonderful harbor just inside the mouth of the Patuxent River. Back Creek, St John Creek and Mill Creek all converge here and all are navigable for a ways up river carrying 10-12 feet almost to shore. We sailed across from the eastern shore first trying to cut through from the Tangier Sound at Kedges Strait. While the charts showed water we ran aground half way across and had to back peddle. I guess that's why it is called Kedges. After returning to the sound we sailed on northward until Hooper Strait and then got back out into the Chesapeake across from the Potomac. Around 19:00 we arrived at Solomons entrance and motored on up to a cozy little bay on Mill Creek and dropped the anchor off some docks and out of the channel.
The next morning we went over to Zahniser's Marina and got a pump out and caught a buoy. My patch with muffler tape and Marine Tex only worked for three of the holes in the exhaust pipe - the largest still leaks a bit. Tomorrow we will discuss options and costs with the mechanic there.
The bouy is just off the Maritime Museum and on the 2nd and 4th Sundays of the summer months they race remote controlled skipjacks in the cove there. In the picture to the left, there is one of them just under the old Drum Point Light House. Also docked at the museum is the oldest licensed passenger boat still running - the 1899 bugeye Wm B. Tennison. There were many boatyards here in the past that specialized in building the skipjack and bugeye - both used by oystermen on the bay. They were the sailing version of the deadrise we saw in Deltaville.
The town is pretty small - one main road that runs for a mile and a half lined with little shops converted from homes. Lots of sailors and boats here - many more than we have seen anywhere else on the Bay.
We met a vey nice sailing couple from Oxford moored on the buoy next to us. John and Fran had just come down the day before us. They invited us to celebrate Fran's birthday at dinner. We had a delightful time - maybe too much fun since everyone was pretty slow moving the next morning. Hanging out at the pool we spent some time chatting with Patricia and Don. They spend half the year here and the other in San Miguel de Allende. Don gave us some great pointers about going through the Panana Canal.
After discussions with Billy and Jim at Zahnisers we decided to replace the old standpipe exhaust system with a fiberglass mixing pot - a bit more modern solution. So we will be here a few more days getting stuff fabricated and installed.
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