{"id":218,"date":"2012-10-08T04:10:05","date_gmt":"2012-10-08T08:10:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/?p=218"},"modified":"2015-07-12T14:12:12","modified_gmt":"2015-07-12T18:12:12","slug":"annapolis-a-cruising-guide","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/2012\/10\/annapolis-a-cruising-guide\/","title":{"rendered":"Annapolis – A Cruising Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"

First Published in Chesapeake Bay Magazine, 1989 \u0004\u000e \u0004\u000e \u0004\u000e \u0004\u000e \u0004\u000e \u0004\u000e \u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

\u0004\u000e\u001bCruising Guide to Annapolis <\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u0004\u000e\u0003by \u0004\u000e\bTom Dove<\/span><\/p>\n

National Geographic magazine called it “Camelot on the \u0004\u000eSevern” while, in a spurt of hyperbole, a sign at the entrance to \u0004\u000eAnnapolis proclaims it “Sailing capital of the world.” That may not \u0004\u000ebe far from the truth and this town has plenty to offer \u0004\u000e\u0012powerboaters, too.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

Annapolis (38 deg 59 min North, 76 deg 29 min West) has been \u0004\u000ethe boater’s supply center on the Bay for decades and the 1960s \u0004\u000esaw a rapid growth of sailing here combined with the restoration \u0004\u000eof the historic downtown district. The result is a lively small city \u0004\u000ewith everything a cruising crew could want: marinas, chandleries, \u0004\u000erestaurants, entertainment, fascinating architecture, colonial \u0004\u000e!history and protected anchorages.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

For all but the most hardy, the boating season starts in \u0004\u000eAnnapolis about mid-March and continues through mid-November. \u0004\u000eSpring and fall are wonderful for sailing with steady breezes and \u0004\u000e\u0016moderate temperatures.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

Winter comes in December, January and February and \u0004\u000emidwinter temperatures may go below freezing for several weeks – \u0004\u000eoccasionally down near zero. Some snowfall is common, too, \u0004\u000emaking this a bit too far north to choose as an ice-free winter \u0004\u000eport.\u00a0Determined racers sail whenever the water is not too hard.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

July and August are hot here with temperatures in the 90s, \u0004\u000ehigh humidity and prevailing southerly winds from 5-12 knots. \u0004\u000eThe summer days may be punctuated by strong, brief\u0004\u000e thunderstorms with winds up to 60 knots. I have even dodged a \u0004\u000e\u0019waterspout in Back Creek. \u0004\u000e\u0001<\/span><\/p>\n

\u0001Approach and anchorages<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

The entrance to the \u0001\u0001Severn River\u0001\u00a0and Annapolis is about as easy as you could wish. The tall radio towers on \u0001\u0001Greenbury Point\u0001\u00a0that mark the north shore of the river are visible for at least 20 miles by day or night.<\/span><\/p>\n

Don’t cut inside buoy #77 off \u0001Tolly Point\u0001\u00a0at the south – the shoal extends as far out as the chart \u0004\u000e\u0006shows.\u0004\u000e Pleasure craft have plenty of water depth outside the main channel into the river except at \u0001\u0001Horn Point\u0001, between the entrances to \u0001\u0001Back Creek\u0001\u00a0and \u0001Spa Creek\u0001. The sign on the post \u0004\u000ethere says “Danger – Shoal” and if you get close enough to read it \u0004\u000e\u001eyou will probably run aground.\u0004\u000e These two creeks plus Chesapeake Harbour are the places you will probably go to anchor or take a slip. \u0001\u0001Carr’s Creek\u0001\u00a0near the radio towers and \u0001\u0001College Creek\u0001\u00a0beside the Naval Academy are \u0004\u000e\u0015closed to navigation.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

If you have a fast dinghy and want more solitude than the \u0004\u000ecenter of the town offers, you may go through the bridges and up \u0004\u000ethe Severn a couple of miles to anchor in one of the lovely \u0004\u000eprotected creeks on the south shore. If your Bay cruise is marked \u0004\u000eby rough weather or if you have a little time to explore, the upper \u0004\u000eSevern with its high banks is beautiful, a bit like the Hudson in \u0004\u000eNew York or the Sassafras on the northern Chesapeake. It has \u0004\u000ebeen designated a Scenic River by Congress.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

Except during maximum crowd season (the boat shows in \u0004\u000eOctober and Commissioning Week in early June, for example), Spa \u0004\u000eCreek offers the best anchorages and marinas with easy access to \u0004\u000edowntown. You can pick up a municipal mooring in the harbor, \u0004\u000etake a slip at City Dock or one of the nearby marinas or proceed \u0004\u000eupstream through the Eastport drawbridge beside the Annapolis \u0004\u000e\u000bYacht Club.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

The best option is to take a mooring or a slip for the duration \u0004\u000eof your stay. Anchoring space is at a premium and there is an \u0004\u000eamazing concentration of boats on these two creeks, making traffic heavy. Call the \u0001\u0001Annapolis Harbormaster\u0001\u00a0on Channel 16 if you \u0004\u000epick up one of the city’s 19 moorings in the marked area near City \u0004\u000eDock. The size limit for moorings is 45 feet and everything is on a \u0004\u000e\u001ffirst come, first served basis.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

There are several ways to get to town from your boat. There \u0004\u000eis a dinghy dock at the end of City Dock, right in the middle of everything, or a call on Channel 68 to the \u0001water taxi\u0001<\/span>
\n will get you \u0004\u000etransportation to points on Spa Creek, Back Creek and Chesapeake Harbour.<\/span><\/p>\n

Back Creek is in \u0001\u0001Eastport\u0001, farther from the center of the city, \u0004\u000eand you will have about a half-mile walk from marinas on its \u0004\u000enorth side to reach the City Dock. If you stay in a marina on the south side of Back Creek, you \u0004\u000ewill need a land or water taxi or a dinghy. You can dinghy across \u0004\u000ethe creek to the public landing at the end of Sixth Street and walk \u0004\u000e\u0013to town from there.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

Chesapeake Harbour is still farther out from town. A taxi or \u0004\u000efast dinghy is the only transportation solution here.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u0001Practical matters<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\u0001Banks\u00a0are located near City Dock that can handle any normal \u0004\u000etransaction, including foreign currency exchange. \u0001Washington, D.C.\u0001, with any government office or foreign embassy you may need, is 35 miles to the west and you will need \u0004\u000ea car to get there. Drive to the New Carrollton Metro station on \u0004\u000eUS 50 and take the Metrorail system into Washington instead of \u0004\u000e\u0014driving all the way.<\/span><\/p>\n

Commuter buses\u0001\u00a0run to \u0001\u0001Baltimore\u0001 from the Naval \u0004\u000eAcademy stadium on the edge of town.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u0001Pharmacy, hardware and boat supply stores\u0001\u00a0are \u0004\u000edowntown but you will have to go to Eastport for a supermarket. \u0004\u000eIt is located in a shopping center on Bay Ridge Avenue close to the \u0004\u000e\u001anorth shore of Back Creek. There are \u0001\u0001showers\u0001\u00a0at the harbormaster’s building on City \u0004\u000e Dock and at each of the marinas. The\u00a0\u0001telephone area code\u0001\u00a0is 301.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u0004<\/span>
\n \u0001Interesting things<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Anyone with the slightest interest in history will be \u0004\u000estimulated by Annapolis. Start with information and brochures available at the \u0001\u0001Old Treasury Building\u0001, a tiny brick structure on \u0004\u000ethe grounds of the State House. Use the literature to guide you on \u0004a walking tour around the historic district, but start with the State House\u0001.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

The State House is the oldest state seat of government still in \u0004\u000euse in the country and the old Senate chamber is maintained just \u0004\u000eas it looked when Washington resigned his commission here. If it \u0004\u000eseems you have seen the place before, maybe with Alan Alda or \u0004\u000esome other star in it, that’s because Hollywood uses it for interior \u0004\u000escenes that are supposed to be in the U.S. Capitol in Washington.<\/span><\/p>\n

Of course, the \u0001\u0001Naval Academy\u0001\u00a0is worth at least half a day of exploration. Be sure to visit the \u0001\u0001chapel\u0001\u00a0and the \u0001\u0001Robert Crown `\u0004\u000e\u0014Sailing Center\u0001.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

Shoppers in the family will be entertained for hours with the \u0004\u000eassortment of small places within easy walking of the waterfront. \u0004\u000eEstablishments here tend to be upscale, with nice boutiques and \u0005\u000e\u001bclothing stores abundant. If some in your crew crave a mall, they can take the bus to \u0001Annapolis Mall\u0001\u00a0in Parole, about five miles from City Dock. It’s a \u0004\u000ebig place, with most of the familiar store chains you have back \u0004\u000e\u0005home.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

Annapolis was a center of culture in colonial times and that \u0004\u000etradition has been revived with a high standard of performance \u0004\u000equality. Well-known jazz musicians appear here often and many \u0004\u000elocal establishments feature entertainment. The \u0001\u0001Colonial Players\u0001\u00a0is an excellent local theater troupe that has been performing in town for many years and the \u0001\u0001Annapolis \u0004\u000eSymphony, Opera, Choral Society, Chamber Hall Singers, Arundel Vocal Arts Society\u0001<\/span>
\n and several instrumental chamber \u0004\u000egroups attest to the interest in music in this little city.<\/span><\/p>\n

If you are interested in the visual arts, the \u0001\u0001Maryland Federation of Art\u0001\u00a0on State Circle and many galleries scattered \u0004\u000eabout the historic district display work from realistic to abstract to \u0004\u000efantasy. Many fine photographers work here, too.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

For a “busman’s holiday” you might take a harbor tour on the\u00a0\u0001Harbor Queen\u0001\u00a0or a day trip to St. Michaels on the \u0001Annapolitan\u0001. The Wednesday evening harbour tour includes a \u0004\u000enarrated guide to the Annapolis Yacht Club races as they are in \u0004\u000e progress.\u0004\u000e<\/span><\/p>\n

Annapolis has about everything a boat fanatic could wish for. \u0004\u000e\u001cLots of them even live here.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u0004\u001c\u000f— The End —<\/span><\/p>\n

NOTE: I have deleted reviews of the marinas and restaurants along the waterfront, as they have completely changed since I wrote this article.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n ","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

First Published in Chesapeake Bay Magazine, 1989 \u0004\u000e \u0004\u000e \u0004\u000e \u0004\u000e \u0004\u000e \u0004\u000e \u0004\u000e \u0004\u000e\u001bCruising Guide to Annapolis \u0004\u000e\u0003by \u0004\u000e\bTom Dove National Geographic magazine called it “Camelot on the \u0004\u000eSevern” while, in a spurt of hyperbole, a sign at the entrance to \u0004\u000eAnnapolis proclaims it “Sailing capital of the world.” That may not \u0004\u000ebe far Read More …<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,1],"tags":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=218"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":637,"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/218\/revisions\/637"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=218"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=218"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tomdove.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=218"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}