Annapolis

As we sailed into historic Annapolis, I was excited by being there. I was one day early.

The very next day, my next charter guests were due; John and Louise. When they arrived, we got them all settled in and had a drink, as we discussed the coming weeks sailing.

The next morning, we set out to provision the boat and later in the afternoon, took a tour of Annapolis. There is a phenomanal little canal in Annapolis called "Show Off Alley" which runs right into the center of town to a set of traffic lights. Along both sides of this canal are outdoor cafes and restaurants where everyone sits and watches the boats come and go. Hence, the name. Naturally, we had to take this route at leat twice. Now we're ready to go first thing in the morning.

We sailed out of Annapolis and into the Cheseapeake Bay at the same time the naval academy was preparing for a race.

Naturally, the wind died completely and we watched with some humour as the fleet of racing boats desperately tried to avoid one another as the wind collapsed their sails.

Of course, no wind was not much fun for us either, so we motored to the historic port of St. Michaels. We dropped anchor and all climbed into the dinghy, where we wandered through the town and had soft shell crab.

St. Michaels is a typical sleepy little tourist town, mostly visited by Yachtsmen and Cruisers, and boat people. I use the term 'boat people' rather derogatorially as there are three breeds of sailors. The boat people are the campers of the bunch. Usually underfunded.

The sunset was a spectacular red.The heat was causing the whole sky to turn Crimson Red.