Delaware Bay to Annapolis

September 24, 1991.

Breakfast finished and the dishes stored, we begin motoring towards The Delaware Bay. Within minutes, we are confronted with our first fixed bridge, a height of fifty -five feet clearance. The mast on Blue Grace is fifty-four feet, so we circled the bridge and went below to check the tide tables. If we are at low ride, we should have about three feet of clearance. Sure enough, low tide, and off we went, carefully watching the bottom of the bridge , like we would be able to do something about it if we did hit it anyway.

As we enter the Delaware Bay, the winds are inconsistent and after an hour of attempting to sail, we decide to motor.

We began our deviation towards Cohansey Cove for the evening and as we cut through the shallow waters, our eyes were on the depth guage constantly. 10 feet, 8.5 then 7.5.

Blue Grace drew 6'2" and we slowly manoeuvered our way through the shoals that formed at the entrance to the cove. 6.6, 6.5, 6.7, 6.9, 7.2, 8.5, 7.2, and then. suddenly, 12 feet, 16 feet, 24 feet then 66 feet.

Through. As we entered this cove, the depth was startling. We could almost touch land on the inside, but as we came in...caution was the key.

According to my logs, I slept like a baby on this night and awoke the next morning late and prepared a big breakfast before weighing anchor. We had a 2 or 3 hour motor and sail towards the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal.

We entered the canal and stopped along the way for a shower, lunch and a quick fill-up of our water and fuel tanks,

The entrance to the Chesapeake Bay is supposed to be one of the most beautiful entrances to a bay anywhere in the world, as long as you are not entering on a day when visibility is being restricted and the rain is beginning to fall.

Nonetheless, our views were enough so that the rumours could be confirmed true and that we were indeed, at last, into the Chesapeake Bay. The colours were beginning to change the leaves to their brightly burning autumn colours and we revelled in the limited views we were being treated to.

The kind of sight that is soft with the wetness of moisture filling the air.

As we entered the bay, we began to plot our course for the Sassafrass River and motored on, with the rain getting harder and fog beginning to roll in.

With the fog getting thicker by the minute and Blue Grace heading down an unknown river, I got on the radio to call for some help. A cruiser in the vicinity came back who was about two miles in front of us and talked us through the winding river, which had shoals of less than six feet in places. As we rounded what they and the charts described as the last bend before a comfortable anchorage, we still could not see any boats and Patrick decided to stand at the bow on watch as we slowly eased forward. The depth was shifting quickly.

"Boat", came the cry from the bow, and suddenly, we could see other boats and shoreline. We steered our way to a position we felt comfortable with and dropped anchor, and happily, went below to get out of our wet clothes.

The next morning found us in a pretty little bay surrounded by boats, and we made our way up on deck and lifted anchor, heading off towards Annapolis. It rained the entire way.