The Little Choptank River

I can't believe White Pepper spent 7 days in Annapolis. We spent 3 days at anchor in Back Creek and another 4 days back on a mooring ball in Spa Creek (in front of the Naval Academy). We made the move to wait out a slow moving extra tropical cyclone (low pressure area with lots of rain) moving up from the Carolinas. We explored Eastport and Annapolis. We visited the Naval Academy. The chapel and the crypt of John Paul Jones is quite impressive. We visited chanleries, bookshops, coffee shops and a few taverns. Eventually it was time to leave. We did leave Saturday 9-27-08 in rain squall. We would be just as miserable staying on the mooring ball as in the bay.

White Pepper motor sailed 32 n. miles south to the Little Choptank. This is a small less developed river on the Maryland eastern shore. In a gloomy dusk we slid into Hudson's Creek which is the most visited anchorage on the Choptank. We were alone in a lovely, protected cove. After our long day, Jan and I slept so late on Sunday that we stayed put listening to NFL football and doing some light chores. We could not go ashore. One of the aggravations of cruising the Chesapeake is that the shoreline is all privately owned. Cruisers and dingies are not welcome. Access to shore is almost always by way of marinas or restaurant docks. Sometimes we have to pay to tie up. It is quite a contrast to Florida, Texas or the Bahamas.

By Monday high pressure had filled in from the north. The weather is definitely getting colder. The sun is further south in the sky and the sunlight much weaker. Noon appears to be 9 am and 5 pm seems like twilight. Autumn is just around the corner. We had a spirited sail south to Solomons. There we plan to visit our new friend Joe Frost on Mill Creek.

I'll post pictures when I can get the lap top ashore somewhere.