We're b-a-a-a-a-c-k!

A sunny day at Baltimore’s Anchorage Marina

The first Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race (GCBSR) was held in October 1990 and is now a yearly event.  Because of their speed, schooners were ideal for coastal sailing and became one of the favorite commercial watercraft in the United States and Canada in the latter half of the eighteenth century and the first half of the nineteenth century.  Cargo-hauling schooners regularly sailed the Chesapeake Bay and the faster the schooner the better the price it fetched for its services.  Today the GCBSR serves as a reminder of the trade rivalry which once existed between the ports of Baltimore and Norfolk.

In 1988 Captain Lane Briggs and his Norfolk Rebel, a sail-powered schooner-rigged tugboat, challenged the newly launched schooner Pride of Baltimore II to a race from Baltimore to Norfolk.  The challenge was accepted and in October 1990 the first GCBSR was born with seven competitors.  While cargo-hauling schooners are a thing of the past, there are many schooners in use today as privately owned cruising vessels, state-sponsored goodwill ships, charter vessels and floating classrooms.  As many as 56 schooners have registered to compete in a single race!  All proceeds are donated to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation for use in its youth education programs aimed at saving the bay.

While Lazy W was docked in Baltimore’s Anchorage Marina on Monday, October 11^th, the first of the competing schooners were arriving at the docks of the neighboring Baltimore Marine Center.  We soon discovered that on Tuesday Canton’s O’Donnell Square would be hosting “Sail Around the Square,” a party to benefit the GCBSR.  We had frequented many of the fine establishments in Fell’s Point and along Canton’s Boston Street, but O’Donnell Square?? We just had to check this party out!  So off we went to JD’s Smokehouse to register for the poker run.  There were ten bars/pubs participating and each had a designated dealer handing out a playing card in a sealed envelope.  The best five-card hands to arrive back and be opened at JD’s by 8:30PM would receive one of three prizes.  

Neither of us ended the evening with anything even close to a winning poker hand but we thoroughly enjoyed meeting the host of characters hanging out at Looney’s Pub, Nacho Mama’s, Fins, Mama’s on the Half Shell, Speak Easy, Claddagh Pub, Portside, Te Amo!, and Sauté.  Ten pubs in one night!  Whew...

The rain arrived just in time to dampen the Wednesday afternoon Parade of Sail.  The hearty schooner crews left their slips in Canton, unfurled their sails and paraded up to the Inner Harbor and back. 

The weather had not improved much by Thursday morning when the schooners castoff for the starting line of the race, 21 miles south near the Bay Bridge and Annapolis.  We waited at Anchorage Marina for the fog to lift before starting Lazy W’s engines only to find that she really did not want to leave her slip in Baltimore!  Frank spent a few hours in the engine room coaxing her port engine back to life and, despite the delay, we arrived at the Bay Bridge in time to see all the schooners milling around waiting for their 1:30PM start. 

Schooner Sultana approaching the Bay Bridge

Schooner at the Bay Bridge

A dreary day for the start of the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race

We continued south on the bay another fourteen miles to the Rhode River.  Shortly after dropping the anchor the sun came out and we enjoyed the rest of the afternoon anchored among a few sailboats.

What a difference in weather!

The following morning we made the forty-four mile run south to Solomons and up the Mill Creek to a beautiful anchorage at Brooks Cove.  Just before turning up Mill Creek we noticed that the schooner Sultana was docked at one of the marinas and we wondered what had happened to keep her from finishing the GCBSR.  Only later did we learn that of the almost forty schooners that registered to compete in the GCBSR, only fifteen managed to finish the race in the allotted time.  It is hard to sail south in a southerly wind!

The autumn view at Brooks Cove from Lazy W

This anchorage afforded us great protection from the gusty 30 knot winds that were forecast to blow out on the bay so we hunkered down here for another day.  We launched the dinghy and took a short but choppy ride into the docks at the Calvert Marine Museum.  The friendly, hospitable staff was more than happy to share their knowledge of skates and rays, mermaid’s purses, terrapins, river otters and starfish with us on what was a slow visitor’s day at the museum. 

In addition to wonderful displays on the natural resources of the Chesapeake Bay, the Calvert Marine Museum does a wonderful job of relating the history of Solomons Island.  In 1865 Isaac Solomon purchased what was then known as Sandy Island near the mouth of the Patuxent River and proceeded to assemble an oyster fleet and to build a cannery and a shipyard.  His dream of building an oyster empire crumbled ten years later when creditors forced him to sell his island.  It was left to other entrepreneurs to turn Solomons Island into one of Maryland’s commercial hubs of boatbuilding and seafood harvesting.  It is amazing to realize the huge impact that the small oyster had on so many communities along the Chesapeake Bay!

Drum Point Light at Calvert Marine Museum

The wind on the bay had calmed down (for awhile anyway) so we pulled up anchor on Sunday morning.  Heading due east into the bright morning sun made it difficult to distinguish a crab pot marker from a floating seagull so we made our way cautiously back to the Chesapeake Bay where beautiful calm waters awaited us.  Our fifty mile cruise to Pitman Cove near Kilmarnock was smooth and uneventful.  NOAA was again forecasting winds gusting in excess of 30 knots for the remainder of the afternoon and overnight so we let out plenty of chain when we dropped anchor for the day in what we thought would be a well-protected cove.  Were we ever wrong!!

The gusty southwest winds started blowing at 9PM and our anchorage gave us little protection.  We set the anchor alarm but unfortunately it cannot be heard from inside the boat – one of those seemingly minor flaws that was to be remedied before we left Portsmouth in June. Fearing that we would drag anchor, Frank remained at the upper helm all night long vigilantly watching our position.    Luckily we did not have a repeat of our Atlantic City anchor dragging! By 8:30 in the morning there was just a slight breeze and the water was as smooth as glass.  On very little sleep, we pulled up anchor and headed to Portsmouth knowing that we would really appreciate being tied securely in our slip on ‘B’ dock that night!

As we approached Thimble Shoal the familiar naval and commercial chatter came over the VHF.  Outgoing Warship 60 requested that all traffic keep their distance; the Coast Guard informed all that they were repairing buoy 18 on the Elizabeth River.  The navy shipyard and the cranes of the marine terminals were welcome sights.

 

USCG prepares to relaunch buoy 18 on the Elizabeth River

 On Monday, October 17^th, after spending 124 days ‘at sea’ and cruising over 1,500 miles we tossed Lazy W’s lines to the smiling dockhand waiting for us at Ocean Marine Yacht Center’s slip B27.  Rod welcomed us back and filled us in on all the news.  It was good to be back home...

We love Baltimore!

We love Baltimore!  It has been almost 4 weeks since we nosed Lazy W into her slip at Anchorage Marina’s ‘C’ dock and we have thoroughly enjoyed our stay.  Any boater would appreciate the marina’s ideal location on Boston Street in Canton – a well-stocked Safeway is directly across the street as is the Coldstone Creamery; West Marine is two short blocks to the southeast.  There are plenty of small saloons and a variety of dining establishments hosting well-attended happy hours all within walking distance – we have made a concerted effort to stop in at many of them.  All the while, Natty Boh, the mascot of National Bohemian Beer, watches over us.

 Natty Boh peers down O'Donnell Street

In 1785 Captain John O’Donnell, a merchant seaman, brought his first shipload of Chinese goods to Baltimore.  He bought some land for a plantation here and named it Canton after the Chinese port that brought him wealth.  The 1800’s brought an influx of Irish and Polish immigrants who sought work in the many factories, canneries, shipyards and breweries that had sprung up in the area.  What were once factories are now condominiums, apartments, artists’ studios, offices, eateries and shops.

The old American Can Company site has been transformed into this...

...thriving retail center along Boston Street in Canton

Bo Brooks on the Canton waterfront

In 1869 this was the site of the  J.S. Young Licorice Factory.  A smokestack built in 1883, converted into a working lighthouse, serves as a landmark and namesake for Lighthouse Point, a small shopping center on Boston Street anchored by Baltimore Marine Center and Bo Brooks Restaurant.  On football game days, Bo Brooks serves 50¢ Yeunglings and cheap oysters with a great water view!

The ‘Friday After Five’ promotion at the National Aquarium features deeply discounted $8 admission tickets, so one rainy Friday we boarded an MTA bus in Canton for the ride to the Inner Harbor.  What should have been a ten or fifteen minute ride turned into an hour-and-a-half odyssey as the bus literally inched its way along the congested, rain-soaked streets. Yet we remained undeterred as we sloshed our way from the bus stop on Market Place toward the Pratt Street aquarium entrance.  The rainy weather actually worked to our advantage as it kept the crowds at bay allowing us to leisurely peruse the exhibits within both aquarium pavilions.

 Australian freshwater crocodile relaxes at the National Aquarium

Upside down jellies at the Jellies Invasion exhibit at the National Aquarium

Tuesday’s are Ollie’s Night at Oriole Park at Camden Yards – upper reserve seats for just $9.  So off we went (with 22,000 other fans) to watch the Orioles take on the Boston Red Sox.  While the game did not mean much to the AL East last-place Orioles, the Red Sox were in a wild-card dead heat with the Tampa Bay Rays who were simultaneously playing the New York Yankees.  As a result, there were plenty of vocal Boston fans in attendance.  The game turned out to be the most exciting baseball game I have ever attended.  The outcome was held in the balance until the very last out in the ninth inning.  The Orioles, fighters until the end, left the game-tying run on second base as Adam Jones grounded out.  Red Sox 8 – Orioles 7.  And since the Rays beat the Yankees, the wild card race was still undetermined!  But the following evening the Orioles proved to be the spoilers as they beat the Red Sox (4-3) in another down-to-the-wire finish!  It was all The Baltimore Sun could write about the next day, and the next, and the next...

Frank at Oriole Park at Camden Yards

On another ‘Friday After Five’ we unexpectedly came across the USCG Eagle docked at the Inner Harbor.  While we had seen the Eagle on many other occasions at many other ports, we had never been aboard.  Cadets heartily invited all comers to take a tour and we did.

We watched the Buffalo Bills lose to the Cincinnati Bengals at Finnegan’s Wake in Canton with avid Bills fans Jim and Mary Anne Lancaster before making our way over to the tailgate party at the Ravens M&T Stadium.  A light rain and unseasonably cool temps in the 40’s – kept the crowd away.  But later on the streets around the Inner Harbor were filled with purple-shirted Ravens fans making their way to the stadium for an 8:20 kickoff.  Baltimore teams were on a winning streak: Ravens 34 – Jets 17.

The biggest tourist draw of October in Fell’s Point is the annual outdoor street festival.  The Fell’s Point Fun Festival was started 45 years ago by The Preservation Society as a way to raise funds and draw attention to Fell's Point when the area was slated for demolition due to the proposed extension of I-95 across the Inner Harbor. Had the Preservation Society not been successful in its ten year "road fight," the highway would have demolished the Federal Hill and Fell's Point communities.  Senator Barbara Mikulski played a key role in organizing these communities to rally against the roadway project and eventually both were listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Fell's Point became a National Register Historic District in 1969 and Federal Hill in 1970.

After weeks of rain, clouds and generally miserable weather that felt as if we were in Seattle instead of Baltimore, the sun came out and we made the best of it.  Long walks along the waterfront Promenade and a guided tour of Fell’s Point with an urban ranger were just the ticket for boaters cooped up on Lazy W for too long.  Our tour guide led us along the historic streets paved with thick Belgian blocks, the former ballast of the many early trans-Atlantic sailing vessels that visited the bustling waterfront piers of this maritime community.  Stories were told of the important role that the local shipbuilders and privateers played in the American Revolution and the War of 1812.  The informative stroll made us very appreciative of the Preservation Society’s successful fight to save Fell’s Point.

This mural at the corner of Fleet Street and Broadway depicts the history of Fell’s Point.  A closer look at the upper right hand corner reveals Senator Mikulski peering out over the scene.

 

While in Baltimore, we enjoyed the company of good friends Rich and Terry Wills (they offered us shelter in Connecticut during Hurricane Irene) and Stu and Carol Wikander (they offered us dockage at their Eastern Shore marina).  Lunch at BOP Pizza in Fell’s Point – great pizza baked in a wood-fired brick oven.

At BOP Pizza in Fell's Point

The Horse You Came In On Saloon

 1626 Thames Street, Fell’s Point

Rumor has it that the ghost of Edgar Allan Poe haunts the upper floors of Baltimore's The Horse You Came In On Saloon, a favorite Poe watering hole and one of the last places he was seen alive.  The saloon also purports to be Baltimore’s oldest continually operated saloon (since 1775) and the only Maryland saloon to exist before, during and after Prohibition.  Of course, we had to stop in with Stu and Carol!

Beautiful weather held out for another weekend and we decided to get a jump on the bicentennial of the War of 1812 by paying a visit to the Flag House/Star-Spangled Banner Museum and Fort McHenry.  Tours of both historic sites highlighted the pivotal role that Baltimore played in this war.

The Flag House/Star-Spangled Banner Museum is located at the home of Mary Young Pickersgill, the seamstress who sewed the 30’ X 42’ flag that flew over Fort McHenry in 1814.  Her small home was not nearly large enough for her to work on the huge flag so she sewed the pieces in her home but assembled it on the floor of the brewery across the street.  This daunting task was completed in just over six weeks!

 A full-size depiction of the flag sewn by Mary Pickersgill

on the facade of the Star-Spangled Banner Museum.

Notice that it has 15 stars and 15 stripes.

The huge flag was commissioned by Major George Armistead who wanted Fort McHenry’s flag to be large enough “that the British will have no difficulty seeing it from a distance.”  He wanted the stars to be two feet from point to point and the stripes to be two feet wide.  At that time in U.S. history there was no uniform flag code and the flag had the same number of stars and stripes as states in the union – fifteen. (It was not until 1818 that an act was passed providing for thirteen stripes and one star for each state of the union.)  Ironically, the flag was made from British bunting! 

The flag sewn by Mary Pickersgill was forever immortalized by Francis Scott Key who penned the poem, Defense of Fort Mc Henry, after witnessing the unsuccessful British assault on the fort. His relief at seeing the flag still flying over Fort McHenry after 25 hours of bombardment is evident in the words he wrote.  His poem, now known as The Star-Spangled Banner, became our national anthem in 1931.  Ironically, the poem is sung to the tune of a British drinking song of the Anacreontic Club of London, a group of wealthy men who met to celebrate music, food and drink! 

Just when we thought we had done enough sightseeing in Baltimore and were ready to head back to Portsmouth, we realized that the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race is next weekend.  Frank was involved with the volunteer committee on the Portsmouth finish line end of the race for the past two years and now the schooners are due to arrive in Baltimore by noon on Wednesday, October 12^th.  We may have to stick around and join in some of the fundraising activities scheduled in Canton for Tuesday night...