Expect the Unexpected

When a few days go by between blog posts I am sometimes a bit overwhelmed with information and I don't know quite where to begin...what to include and what to leave out...I don't want it to be boring, but I don't want to forget a thing either!

This has been a busy week. We visited Deltaville and Solomons Island...both places held a few surprises for us...The battle of the bilge and other events of hysterical signifigance...anyone who has ever owned a boat knows, you must expect the unexpected...

The cruise to Deltaville was pleasant. The eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay was like a pond on Monday. Once docked we booked a mechanic for the following morning to do a routine oil change, filters and such...it took a little longer than expected and there were a few more maintenence items than we planned on and so an extra day in Deltaville was inevitable. The cruise to Solomons Island on Wednesday wasn't as nice as Monday's trip...The 1'-2' seas predicted on all websites turned out to be a tad underestimated as we dealt with 4'-6' waves most of the way there. We were tired and wet and after a hot shower the last thing we expected was another maintenance issue...this was when we realized all that bouncing around probably busted the shower bilge...hmmm...water on board, not a good thing...Again we located a mechanic. Bad news: another delay. Good news: another delay. (Sometimes things just have to happen to make you slow down, even when you're on a trip like this.)

We stayed the extra day in Solomons and would recommend a stop at this idyllic island for anyone cruising the Chesapeake. We ate our very first blue crab dinner at Kingfishers, it was fabulous! We still like our stone crabs at home better, but it was fun none the less.

There are so many Ospreys in this area. Somebody told me there are more nesting Osprey in the Chesapeake Bay than any other place on Earth. I believe it. I think every daymarker has a nest with 2 or 3 babies. The lighthouses are so interesting here, too. Many are built either on islands or in the water off-shore marking shoals...and most are not your typical cylinder shaped (see pictures). Imagine the life of a lighthouse keeper? That light had to burn, regardless of the weather, day and night. Many lived in the lighthouses with their families, raised chickens, goats, grew vegetables...I think it would get lonely.

-Leaving Solomons Island on Thursday, the sun was shining, the weather report cleared us for an easy cruise...a light chop greeted us when we reached the bay and we were glad to be moving on. Out of nowhere, just minutes before entering the Severn River a storm kicked up. We phoned ahead and asked the dockmaster how things looked and he assured us the storm was to our east and would likely go around us...we felt otherwise and thank goodness Chip decided we should go below and steer from the cabin rather than the flybridge. We listened as nervous boaters radioed the Coast Guard for assistance...we heard reports of 60 mph gusts and we knew we were in the middle of it. No sooner did it hit and it was over...one of our eisenglass windows blew out...this was by far our most perilous brush with Mother Nature so far.

We're fine now...trying to find another mechanic...the dinghy motor would not start today and the eisenglass needs to be repaired...ah the joy of owning a boat...expect the unexpected...and truthfully, once you've got that down it really IS a joy...or at least it is hysterical!