Skip to main content

May 28. Day 56 On to Oxford MD. 12.8 Nm. Total 1363 miles

 Last night took drone shots of our anchorage on St Michael’s.





Today we are going on a short run further up the Choptank River to the Tred Avon River and an  anchorage near Oxford,MD.  

The creeks we traveled to return the Choptank River are filled with crabbing boats that either drag their baskets on the side of the boat or using small nets to dip into the water.  When the baskets fill, they are hauled up and picked through with the small crabs returned to the water.

Oxford was established in 1683 as a port town that thrived through the Revolutionary War. Like St Michael’s, the town was built on shipbuilding, sail making, farming tobacco and vegetables, crabbing and oystering.  You can still watch the Oxford-Bellevue Ferry pick-up or discharge it’s passengers as it has for over 300 years.

Oxford’s famous resident, Robert Morris built a house here in 1710, which has been incorporated into the Robert Morris Inn.  His son Robert Morris Jr was considered one the chief financiers for the Revolutionary War.






Entering the harbor you pass a number of marinas.  We got anchored and settled, just as we were getting ready to leave a young couple in a motorboat approached us asking about the Great Loop.  They had dreams of doing the Loop and asked us all kinds of questions.  We invited them aboard to see the boat.

Afterwards we launched the dinghy and headed for the Capsize restaurant.  There we had a seafood lunch that was delicious.  There was so much food that I will use the leftovers for dinner!  We were told by the locals that the ice cream shop next to the restaurant was a must do, so after our walk around town, we will indulge.  Never pass up good ice cream!

During our walk, we visited the Robert Morris Inn 




and homes of sea captains dating from 1770- 1898, all with white picket fences.





Watched the Oxford-Bellevue ferry in operation


And wandered through the Cutts and Case Shipyard where they refurbish old wooden boats.




If you look closely thru the glass and expand the picture you will see the beautifully restored Foto.




Having finished our tour of Oxford we indulged in sharing ice cream.  


Then Bill took some more drone shots.  He is actually getting pretty good at controlling the drone and getting some excellent shots.




Popular posts from this blog

June 4-5. Day 63-64. On to Cape May New Jersey. 53.4nm. Total 1534 miles.

 Left Delaware City at 5:35am to be able to take advantage of the strong currents going with us while traversing Delaware River and Delaware Bay. The Delaware River goes south about 15 miles and flows into the Delaware Bay. As we travel south, New Jersey is to the east and Delaware is to our west. We are traveling just outside the shipping channel and are really moving at 10.9 knots.  That is three knots faster than we normally travel, as the outgoing tides are pushing us along.  Nice to have Mother Nature helps us save on fuel.  The Delaware River is about 8 miles wide so there is plenty of room for the freighters and the pleasure boats.  So far, we have not encountered any commercial traffic, but there is a large freighter behind us that will eventually pass us as they travel at 14 knots. The Delaware Bay proper varies from 23-29 miles wide and 26 miles long.  There are five lighthouses on the Delaware marking the shipping channel.  We went by Ship J...
Read more

Reflections on the Great Loop -

 Over the 5 and half months last year and the almost 7 months this year for a total of 351 days, we travelled 6348 miles, through two countries 19 states, traversed over 200 locks to find large cities, small towns, farmland, and vast natural waterways and bays. Our route took us through sites of the Revolutionary War, War of 1812 and Civil War, as well as the history of  how America grew along her waterways.  Beginning with canoes, rafts and barges people and goods moved through these waters.  The sailing sloops and steamships changed these rivers, requiring locks and canals to be built to facilitate travel and commerce.   Today it is amazing how much commerce moves through these waters.   We developed a healthy respect for the freighter and tow captains and lock masters and harbor masters that keep the system working. We have lasting impressions of early morning sunrises, beautiful sunsets, and moonlit bays,  the hospitality in all the towns...
Read more

April 2 2022. We cast off our lines!

 Day 1. April 2 We cast off our lines at 9:00am on out Great Loop adventure.  Our friends, Phil and Aggie helped record our departure.   The weather was overcast as we traveled out our canal and into Tampa Bay.  As we approached the Skyway bridge a dolphin twice leaped completely out of the water, playing in our bow wake.  An omen of good fortune for our adventure! As we ended our Tampa Bay crossing, the sun began to peek out and as we traversed past Longboat Key/Bradenton and entered Sarasota we had ourselves a sunny day.  We traveled 34.4 nautical miles in four hours and anchored behind Otter Key, a mangrove Island near Lido Key in Sarasota.  There we joined another boat from St Petersburg, FL.  The owners were for many years sailors from the Caribbean down to Panama.  What adventures they shared! The anchorage sports lots of manatees, dolphin and of course, the osprey who lords over Otter Key. Once settled properly, we took a nap,  Wi...
Read more