No voyage home is complete without visiting places of the heart. While the Chesapeake provided much in the way of new aquaintences, delicious food, laughter, family, somber moments, and beauty, it took a visit to old stomping grounds to make the circle be unbroken. A trip up the Connecticut River and an overnight in Stonington gave a chance for Brio's captain to touch the past and reconnect with special times. Gillette Castle sits high above the Connecticut River. It was b

On Tuesday, October 21, we deemed the weather to be fair for our open-ocean leg up the New Jersey coast to Manhattan, up the East River, through Hell Gate and on to Long Island Sound. Of course, that meant a trip past the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island and a view of the southern end of Manhattan. All iconic testimonies to our great nation's source and purpose of being. Next comes our final leg home through Long Island Sound and Fisher's Island Sound, Rhode Island Sound and

Cape May is many things. A lighthouse, a fire tower, a summer retreat, a playground, a broad white sandy beach. It is also a Victorian-aged community. Here are a few reminders of such a glorious past. These are a house painter's dream come true. Imagine the labor involved in painting this trim! Notice the porch ceilings above and below. And the last "embellishment." Now, let's go to the beach! Just the day to sunbath. And appreciate the local vegetation. Some of which yo

Saturday, October 18th dawned quiet and peaceful in Havre de Grace. Weather can be fickle and sometimes you have to seize opportunities when they are presented. So it was today. Originally, we planned to take our time getting to Cape May because the next weather window for making our run to New York City didn't open until Monday or, more likely, Tuesday, the 21st. But today gave us an opportunity to change our slow-poke plans. We had planned to stop at a marina on the Ch

Be grateful Lafayette didn't name this harbor after himself. The Marquis's full name was about 8 names long! The Marquis knew that wouldn't fly, even though he thought the Harbor was lovely. So, it was, and is. So it is Havre de Grace. The Lighthouse on the Waterfront This iconic lighthouse is a beacon to travelers coming up Chesapeake Bay. The entrance to Havre de Grace is shallow and today it is made passable with frequent dredging. The Lighthouse provided a useful be

Georgetown, Maryland is located on the Sassafras River, perhaps six miles from the Chesapeake. Two villages are located across from each other, Frederictown and Georgetown, just shy of a low bridge across the River. In the War of 1812, the British came up the River. Their ships received musket fire from the shores. Once at the towns, they shelled and burned the towns to the ground. In fairness to the British, Georgetown served as an important supply base during the Revol

In a setting of autumn peace and quiet, there was an impressive project going on in one corner of the yard. We met the owner of this early 1930s German training sail boat built in Belgium to avoid the World War I restrictions on German rearmament. Panther was one of four such craft, each with a cat name, Leopard, Lion, Tiger and Panther. These served to introduce the recruits to seamanship for the developing German Navy. Panther was brought back from Venezuela after a pos

Brio has entered some harbors with narrow passages and some with shallow stretches. Some have involved tight turns and hold-your-breath stints. But to have all of these combined was a true blessing provided by coming into Fairlee Creek just past low tide. We took comfort that the tide was rising and would lift us off any grounding. We also experienced navigation glitches. The screens that helped us see where we were on the charts stopped working. Fortunately, Charlie ha

Rock Hall is a hole-in-the-wall harbor on the Eastern Shore, about on the same latitude as Baltimore. According to legend, Washington and Jefferson would spend the night here going up to Philadelphia or returning from the same during the 1770s through 1790s. Travel up and down the Chesapeake was so much easier than travel over land. There was no US Route 1 or I-95! The Underground Railroad took advantage of this as well. The southern part of the Chesapeake where Jefferson

Rounding Bodkin Point north of Gibson Island, Brio quickly joined the commercial traffic entering Baltimore Harbor. The channel is narrow enough and close enough to the Harbor that there's no separation zone established to keep the incoming and outgoing traffic separate. Brio's on her toes, focused on what's ahead, but constantly checking for any boats coming in from her port, starboard or astern. Baltimore Harbor is 6 to 8 miles inland from the Bay and provides a sheltere

Since we left Kent Narrows so early, we would arrive before mid-afternoon in Baltimore where our next marina would be. Where to go to have lunch? What a lovely problem to have! Immediately to the west of Kent Island the Magothy River on the western shore. It is just south of the Patapsco River which leads to Baltimore. We had read that it was beautiful. As we entered the Magothy through a narrow slot, the River opened to a lovely bay, protected from the northeast wind th

Between Chestertown and Baltimore lies an island called Kent. It is possible to cut through the Island via a dredged channel in a narrow part of the Island, hence Kent Narrows. What Brio did not fully appreciate was just how skinny the waters could become with the Harvest Moon and a north wind. There is a tortuous dog-leg of a channel leading from the cut through the Island out to open water. There's even a sign as one approaches Kent Island from the norththat says, "Dang

Brio took advantage of a fair northwest wind to travel east up the Chester River to Chestertown. This village is located on the Chester River and it was established in 1706 as the local seat of government of Great Britain. It served as the Royal Port of Entry and was the export center for local agricultural products (initially tobacco, then wheat) and seafood. In the 1800s, steamboats plied the River to provide for trade with the rest of the country. Today, the town thriv

Brio continued to explore the area south of Annapolis. After the Rhode River, Brio cautiously crept into Shady Side, a hole-in-the-wall harbor. It is fascinating that a harbor so close to Annapolis is as tired and run down as Shady Side. The Bath House (Attached out Back) There are several small marinas around Shady Side. We opted for Leatherbury. They had a slip that could accommodate Brio and the person on the phone was friendly. Take a look at the dock where Brio was

Immediately south of Annapolis are a couple of rivers that lead to beautiful coves. Off the West River is the Rhode River. Back in a more remote part of the Rhode lies anchorages that are surrounded by a Smithsonian preserve. These banks are notable for the absence of buildings and the ever-present Chesapeake dock. But it was the moon that commanded our attention. This was the Harvest Moon and it was at its perigee, its closest to the Earth. It was magnificent in the eve

That's Italian for two. The family part of this past weekend started with dinner at Acqua al Due, an Italian restaurant favored by cousin Bill and Renee. It is housed in a former PNC Bank branch and drinks started in the old vault in the basement. No worries; it was delicious all around. Amore This is the placemat from the restaurant, a whimsical testimony to the power of food and wine. The restaurant has two locations: Annapolis and Florence. Jeff's grandson was with us

Brio has made it to Annapolis. She's been traveling for almost a month now. Annapolis represents a waypoint for the cruise. There is a crew change here. We say "Good-bye!" to Jeff, who flies home today (October 5th) to Colorado. We will miss him. It also represents a high point in terms of activity. We enjoyed an incredible tour of the Naval Academy, led by Jeff's grandson who only just graduated this past spring. This afternoon, we will go to the Annapolis Power Boat

St. Michael's is a sister town to Cambridge and Oxford on the Eastern Shore. It is no less charming with its small side streets and an abundance of stores. The big attraction for us is the Chesapeake Bay Marine Museum, located on a point of land jutting out into the harbor. As we go north from Cambridge to Oxford to St. Michael's, each town seems a little more quaint and precious and wealthy. If the proximity to the urban life has any influence, then St. Michael's is the

Across the Bay and a bit north lies the Choptank River and La Trappe Creek and the Tred Avon River. This area is part of the very special Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake. None other than James Michener immortalized this area in his famous book, Chesapeake. Whereas the areas to the south, including Crisfield, Onancock and Cape Charles highlight the economic challenges of insufficient critical capital investment and vitality, the towns of Cambridge and Oxford show much great

Much has been written recently about sanctuary cities and states. But these are highly political and we're not interested in politics here. In our last post, we wrote about the church in Crisfield as providing sanctuary for its neighbors in a time of threatening flood waters. Now we write about "hurricane holes" as being sanctuaries from rising waters and storm-force winds as nor'easters and hurricanes track up the Bay towards us. In this circumstance, we sought refuge in