Chesapeake Bay

Bruce Herrington

Bruce Herrington

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Are there any words of wisdom/warning on making a southward trip through the Chesapeake Bay, from Baltimore to Norfolk?

If all goes well during the survey this weekend, we'll begin the trip to Manteo on June 1st.

Just looking for "local" knowledge about C.B. because I have not navigated it before. We have a 3-day timeline, but that could change for a variety of reasons.

Is 100 miles a day doable?

Appreciate any advice, as always.
 
Bruce,

The Bay has many shallow areas but if you follow the markers you'll have no problem. Getting from Baltimore to the Bay will be the most frustrating part, mainly due to the long No Wake Zone. As for doing 100 miles, that depends on you and your boat but generally speaking, there is nothing about traversing the Bay that should cause you any delays other than weather. With the temps and humidity predited this weekend you should keep an eye out for sudden squalls which normally run from the west. Regular Bay boaters always have a plan and a protected place to run to when a sudden storm pops up. There are a lot of such "gunk holes" and harbors all along both shores.

Enjoy and have a safe trip!
 
It all depends on the boat... At 20kts you can do it in one day but it would be a shame not to take at least 3 and stop along the way

My favorite stops, but there are so many, are Annapolis, St Michael, Solomons. There are many nice anchorages as well. Tangier is supposed to be worth a stop but somewhat limited due to draft

As Mike said watch for thunderstorms poping up, obviously nowadays with smart phones you can get current data. As any large body of water the bay can get choppy, especially the bottom 10 or 15 miles as well as the stretch at the mouth of the potomac

Navigation is easy, everything is well marked. Use Active Captain to plan your trip and find anchorages, marinas, etc
 
I really would be a shame to not take a few days and make a few stops. 100/miles a day is certainly possible. At our 16 or so knots we make the 70 mile run from just south of Baltimore to Solomons a few times a year. That's about 4 hours for us. It's best to do your traveling in the morning to avoid afternoon storms.

I've got friends who run the shipping channels. I do not. If the chart says there's enough water, I go in as straight of a line as possible. Southerly breezes will stir the bay up, especially the most southern part. Take note of the bombing ranges north of the Patuxent River. The Navy does use them from time to time. Also note the safety range around the LNG terminal also near the Patuxent. Stay out of the safety zone or be yelled at! If you see a tanker coming towards the terminal, stay as clear of that as possible as well.

I agree with Pascal's favorites list. There's plenty more, but with limited time those are the main ones.
 
The plan is to stay in the channel, making 8 - 10 knots, with a first night's stop at Solomon.

Excellent suggestions, guys.

Kurt, Phil scheduled sea trial and survey to begin today, finish tomorrow.

Thanks again, everyone.
 
I wholeheartedly agree with Mike, Pascal and Kurt...they know the Bay as well as anyone. The only thing to add is, when you're outside the main channel be on the lookout for crab pots...you're in Blue Crab country. Depending on the time of day, the floats can be difficult to see.
 
Ditto the "visit" list. I'd add Herrington Harbor South as a nice marina to visit if you need one there (although its not that much of a cruise from Baltimore). Not much else in the area though. If you run through the bomb range keep your radio on CH16 so the U.S. Navy can reach you when necessary. Don't ask me how I learned that little lesson!
 
Bruce,

I'm glad to hear you're using Phil. I think you'll be pleased with his performance. It's been years since I used him. Mention I'm the guy who bought the powercat he surveyed on a lake in Georgia back in 2004 and he should remember. Good luck with the survey!

Yes, what Mark said, watch out for crab pots. The only place you really should stick to the channel is near Bodkin Creek (there's an unmarked old lighthouse foundation somewhere around there that people lose props and shafts on). But other than that, I leave the channels for the ships. 20 feet of water is 20 feet of water. But if uncomfortable with that, you can also run just outside of the channel markers. In the middle of the bay those channels are for ships, not like smaller channels going into creeks and such.
 
Watching for crab pots will be the eagle-eyed admiral's top priority. [^]

Mike, if you told me that you and the U.S. Navy knew each other on a first-name basis, I'd believe it. :)

Herrington Harbor? Sounds good! I wondered what channel should be monitored. 16 it is.
 
I probably wouldn't do Baltimore Solomoms on the first day with a new boat... Keep it short on the first day, and St michaels is really worth a stop

Not sure what size boat but your fuel burn difference between 8 and 10 kts will be anywhere between 30 and 90% depending on actual size... Figure out your hull speed (sq root of LWL x 1.3) and stick to it

Also, watch for fuel prices they vary a lot. Try to make Norfolk and refuel there, it s usually the cheapest on the east coast. I like tidewater, great service, they ll refuel you even late and there is a fun bar/restaurant with live band on location

Disclaimer... I may sound like i know the bay but my knowledge is limited to a couple of transit every year!
 
Pascal, based on the formula, the hull speed is 7.8 knots. Did not know that.

The boat is 36' with twin 7.4 Crusaders. I have no idea about fuel consumption, just figured slower was better. With 350 gallons, it should reach Norfolk ok, right?
 
Yes I you stay around 7.5 kts you will save a lot of fuel but push to 9 or 10 and will end up but in a lot more, and I don't mean just more flow but more per mile. Generally speaking, if you go 20% above hull speed, your fuel flow will around 50% higher.

Without knowing the specifics of the boat, I d guess 30 to 35 GPH fully on plane with tabs around 18 to 20 kts. So yes, even on plane you should have enough to make Norfolk but I d be reluctant to take a chance. The last place you want to run out of fuel is the very busy Norfolk ship channel :).
 
I agree with you about fuel; I'd rather go short on food than fuel.

Crossing the Norfolk ship channel does create a little anxiety.. hopefully, this trip will have a happy ending.
 
With southerly winds and ebbing tide, it can get a bit rough off the mouth of the Potomac river. Next weekend the ebb is in the afternoon and can run at up to 1 knot, so can make a difference to speed over the ground as well.
There are some parts of the bay where there is not much in the way of shelter. From Solomons to the Potomac there is very little shelter on either shore. South of the Rappahanock there is nothing on the eastern shore till you get to Cape Charles. A run from Solomons to Cape Charles would be about 9 to 10 hours at your planned cruising speed. There are a few marinas off Mobjack bay which would be about the same distance.
For a good overnight stop from Solomons (about 6 hours) I would suggest Chesapeake Boat Basin at Kilmarnock. This is at the head of Indian Creek off Fleets Bay. Very well protected and the transit docks are floating piers.
http://www.chesapeakeboatbasin.com/
A one mile bike ride into town, where there are some very good restaurants with reasonable prices. Some will even come to collect you and take you back to the boat after.
I would suggest having a look at active captain. The information on marinas and anchorages on the Chesapeake is good.
 
I think I've missed what type of boat you're running, Bruce, but if it's a planing hull you may or may not find hull speed to be very comfortable... depending on sea states, etc. Otherwise, hull speed makes for a pleasant trip.

If you can make time, I'd suggest a stopover in Annapolis -- after your first chort run to get familiar with the boat -- then Solomons, then some of those other place. Deale (Herrington Harbor North) isn't bad either, but that's not a long hop and Deale isn't huge either.

If your radio will do it, suggest you monitor both 13 and 16, even add 09 if you can. The tugs will use 13 and they'll NOT usually be in the deep water channel. If you run just outside the deep water channel, you won't have to worry too much about crab pots... nor tugs, nor ships.

-Chris
 
Good luck on your survey first thing make sure you have boat insurance, also get sea tow or boat us for towing insurance. Get charts and have someone to go with you that has some boating knowledge. It is like 175 mile trip at 9 knots or 10.35 mph it is going to be 17 hour trip. Let say you burn about 20 gallons an hour you will go threw 340 gallons. But if you run about 22 mph your trip will be done around 8 hours and your trip should be around 30 gallons an hour 240 gallons of fuel. I would think you would check every thing out before you make your trip get fuel before you leave and 1/2 way down you shoud be fine. If it is rough I would stop and get fuel more often.
 
Bruce - Is your boat a 36 foot hull, or 36 foot "waterline" length? If the boat is called a "36", depending on hull shape, your waterline length might be something around 29 or 30'. That puts your hull speed at about 7 knots.
 
I brought my sailboat down from Rock Hall to the lower Potomac in one day and it was about 100 miles.
Baltimore to Solomons is a good run and easily doable. I wouldn't go any less distance than that unless you have lots of time and want to make more stops. When I made my run, I wanted to make it in one day and not sail at night. I decided if I could make it to the turn to go up river to Solomons by 3:30 in the afternoon, (I left at 6 am), I'd keep going. We made it by a little after 3 so we kept going and pulled into our marina around 7:30 that evening about 15 miles up the Potomac.
As far as local knowledge, all you need is your chart book and you will be fine.
 
Check the sch. for Opsail 2012,,,I think the party is at Hampton/Norfolk around June6th ? I would want to be thru there prior, since docking will be tight. I think I also saw somewhere there is a kyak race from Great Bridge south a week or so later. Your mileage is no problem, but make a couple reserv. at different levels,due to time of yr.
Have done this run, and had to pull up early below Potomac, due to getting beat up. We. went into Windmill Point and waiter a day. Was an easy run to Coinjock from there.
 
In addition to the crab pots you need to keep your eyes open for fish traps. There are a couple just as you turn the corner at Drum Point to enter into the Patuxent River. I think there are also a few on the eastern side of the bay if you take a stright run from the Bay Bridge to Patuxent River.

If you go to Soloman's Island make sure you watch you depths near the entrance to the harbor. Lots of people fail to notice the shallow water between Drum Point and Sandy Point.
Kurt is right about the bombing ranges, but they are all south of Pax River, not north. The only one that is commonly used is Hooper Target, which is just east of Point No Point. The only other water range is Hannibal target (an old cargo ship) which is grounded on a shoal about 10 miles east of Point Lookout, but it is almost never used anymore. If you are in the area when they go hot you will get a call. If you miss the call you will get a friednly "visit" from an aircraft.

Another stop to consider is Smith Island.

Mike
 
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