Category Archives: Cruising Guide

Information for other cruising boats. Our experiences finding places to anchor, dealing with officials, provisions, etc.

The Wharf in Washington DC

Posted on by
Reply

continued… At this point, we were all hungry. Eric checked the map app and saw there was nothing other than snack stands in close walking distance. We continued on the loop, which became muddy and overgrown.

Near where we’d parked, the walking trail had been a little uneven, indicating that the sea wall had settled. Near the George Mason Memorial, the walking trail had actually been fenced off, with construction equipment behind the fence. A sign had said that the Tidal Basin and Potomac parks were created in the 1880s as part of a land reclamation project. The sea wall had deteriorated, and they were in the process of restoring the wall. There were quite a few geese on this side.

Continue reading →

A Little Exploring in Canton and Lunch at G&M

Posted on by
Reply

The sunrise on Wednesday, August 13, 2025 was glorious.

Even the west side of the sky lit up with color

Tuesday was a mellow day. It was hotter and more humid than Monday was, and the sky was ominously grey. We did chores around the boat in the morning and early afternoon. In the later afternoon, a family that we’d met at the Latino Festival came by for a visit.

Continue reading →

Welcome to Baltimore, Maryland

Posted on by
Reply

continued… By midnight, the wind had picked up and there was a small bit of wind chop, but other than that, all was the same as last reported for the rest of the night. This was the sunrise on Sunday, August 10, 2025, as were approaching the Chesapeake Bay Bridge.

And here was the view as we went under the bridge.

We approached the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which was on the outskirts of Baltimore, at around 0930. We were shocked to see that it hadn’t been rebuilt yet after it was destroyed a year and a half ago when it was struck by a cargo ship that was leaving Baltimore. This 2-minute video explains what caused the power failure that led to the crash — it was such a tiny thing! It was a stark reminder to us about how fragile boat systems can be.

Continue reading →

Adios Norfolk!

Posted on by
Reply

Saturday, August 9 — Directly northeast of us, just across the bridge, was a place called Cova Brewing Co & Coffee House that we’ve been meaning to go to since we arrived. We were told they sold only coffee and beer, though sometimes they’d let a food truck onto the property so people could buy food while they hung out.

Seating was outdoors, with a large grassy area, lots of tables, and even a fire pit. In the evenings, it was packed with families.

Continue reading →

Ocean View Beach, Norfolk, Virginia

Posted on by
1

Saturday, August 2, 2025 — we had a quiet morning onboard. For lunch, we went to a Japanese restaurant called Fuji Hana Sushi, which was attached to the Magnuson Hotel. It was good value for the money and was run by a nice Japanese family.

Even though we were a short walk from Ocean View beach, we hadn’t gone yet. We’d heard that the beach was popular with families with young children as the waves were usually small. First of all, it was in the bay, so the waves coming in from the ocean weren’t usually as big as the waves on the Virginia Beach oceanfront. And there were breakers, which kept the waves from hitting the shore.

Since we were carrying gear, we drove over to one of the marinas on the north side of Little Creek, where we met up with the family on a boat named Blue Heeler that we’d met at the Latino Music Festival. From their marina, we made the short walk north to the beach.

The marina was behind an assisted living facility
Continue reading →