4th of July in Baltimore

Leeds Creek is only a short two mile dinghy ride across the Miles River from the St. Michaels harbor but it seems like a world away.  The harbor is ringed by waterfront seafood restaurants and marinas hosting all manner of vessels, from the well-worn workboats of the crabbers to trawlers and luxury yachts to the American Cruise Line’s American Glory.  Leeds Creek, on the other hand, is home to osprey and great blue heron and a few ostentatious mini-mansions peeking out from behind the wooded shoreline.  While we enjoyed the amenities of St. Michaels – happy hour at Characters Café, wine tasting at St. Michaels Winery, and the ease of provisioning at the local Acme Supermarket – we certainly appreciated the serenity of Leeds Creek from which we could watch the Wednesday night sailboat races and gaze at the star-studded evening sky.  The lights of Norfolk and Portsmouth obscure the night sky so it was a real treat to observe the dazzling array of stars and constellations here; the Big Dipper and Cassiopeia (aka Lazy W) were clearly visible overhead.  The occasional splashes of leaping fish slapping the water were the only sounds in the night.

After five days (yes, 5 days!) in Leeds Creek it was time to move on.  We somewhat reluctantly pulled up anchor and were underway at 5:45AM on July 2^nd bound for Baltimore.  The sun was just clearing the treetops but the watermen were already hard at work.

We arrived at Kent Narrows near high tide and had trouble contacting the bridge tender for the bascule bridge on the VHF.  We strained to locate the telephone number on the bridge house; we finally reached the sleepy-sounding tender and he let us through the bridge at the 7:30 opening.  The Narrows is a well-marked channel but the north end is very, very narrow and very, very shallow.  Frank expertly guided us through the passage as I snapped this osprey couple tending their new family atop the day marker.
 

What better place to spend the 4^th of July holiday weekend than Baltimore!  After all, this is the place where Francis Scott Key penned the words to The Star Spangled Banner during the War of 1812.  There is even a very unique buoy in the harbor just past the Key Memorial bridge marking the spot where Key watched the British bombardment of Fort McHenry on the night of September 13, 1814. At dawn he was able to see the American flag still fluttering above the fort and he was inspired to write a poem describing his experience.  This poem was later adopted as our national anthem.  The red, white and blue buoy is the only one of its kind and has been put in place by the United States Coast Guard each boating season since 1972.  It is removed each fall to protect it from ice damage and for refurbishment for the next year.

Shortly after passing the Francis Scott Key buoy we found the Anchorage Marina and were tied up to the outer dock by 11:30.  We took care of several chores and shopped at the nearby Safeway in anticipation of the arrival of our son and grandson, Brian and Cameron.  The marina is located outside the Inner Harbor and the guys were unwittingly faced with a 25-minute walk in the heat and humidity from their parking spot to the boat!

Next morning Cameron convinced Grandpa that it would be more fun to take the dinghy to the Inner Harbor than to hop aboard the water taxi.  The Wiegand guys are big fellas and with all of us aboard the dinghy we were just under her posted weight limit capacity.  We bravely made our way through the Inner Harbor avoiding the Urban Pirates aboard Fearless who threatened to blast us with their mighty water cannons.  The dinghy dock near the USS Constellation was full so we found docking space near the Seadog speed boats.

Since Cameron played  baseball this season we thought a tour of Orioles Park at Camden Yards would be a nice way to spend an afternoon in Baltimore.  Our tour guide regaled the adults with historical facts about the history and renovation of the B&O Warehouse, sports trivia and anecdotes while ushering us through the many behind-the-scenes areas that few fans get to see – VIP lounges and club level suites, media rooms, and the scoreboard control room – before finally arriving at the Orioles dugout.  By now, Cameron had tired of the long talkathon tour (the adults thought it was great) but he perked up when the tour guide recruited his assistance in passing out post cards and key chains.  Ice cream at the Inner Harbor was his well-earned reward!

Anyone who has spent any time on the Chesapeake Bay knows that the blue crab rules!  Its likeness is embroidered on T-shirts and aprons, painted on mugs and Christmas ornaments, displayed on packaging for everything from spices to teas.  We even saw bags of little chocolates labeled crab poop!  This sign in a shop in Harborplace caught our eye.

Across Boston Street from the Anchorage Marina is a very nice shopping center with several eateries.  We all agreed that pizza sounded like a good dinner choice and Pasticcio Italian Kitchen was the place to go.  We were amazed to meet Beth and Jonathan Cho having dinner there!  We knew they lived somewhere in Baltimore but what were the odds that of all the restaurants in this city we would all be dining in Pasticcio’s!!!  We had not seen Beth and Jonathan since their 2009 wedding in Connecticut but Frank and Beth’s dad (Rich Wills) are good friends from college days and always keep in touch with each other.

Sadly, it was almost time for Brian and Cameron to head back home to northern Virginia.  They hailed a cab on Boston Street for a ride back to the Inner Harbor where they had parked their car.  And the Captain and the Admiral walked the dock back to Lazy W and both agreed that, even though the visit was short, it was great to see the guys!