Last night in the cave was the hottest night that we have had. There was no breeze blowing in our neat little cove and the air that our fan provided was hot air. Our breakfast had a couple of exciting embellishments; the blob blue berry muffins had a bunch of real blue berries and we had a cup of yogurt. The main course included eggs, bacon, and V-8 juice.
After breakfast, I took another skinny dip and Janine showered on deck with the sun shower. The water is becoming saltier as we travel south so the dips are not as cleansing as they were further up. I was able to rinse off the salt water with the sun shower this time. After the hot night, it really felt good.
We tinkered around the boat until about 8:30 before heading out. As we were leaving our cove inlet, I was impressed by the number of watermen who were already out working their lines. I was motoring along when I noticed one of the end floats that they use suddenly jerk and come under our boat. I had caught his line with my centerboard. The waterman came over and as I am apologizing profusely, he calmly says that it happens with all of these lines out here, one can’t tell when the line runs from the float and it’s no big deal! Luckily the line came free on its own and no damage was done. I asked him if he was a commercial waterman or catching crabs for his own use and he stated that he was a commercial.
The bay was like glass so there is not much to tell about the next four hours of the trip. At one point it appeared that the wind was coming up so we raised the sails only to have the flop aimlessly in the minimal breeze.
Tilghman Island Bascule Bridge
As we were leaving
We rounded Tilghman Point and headed south for Tilghman Island. It jets out into the Choptank River and forms the Upper Bay of the Choptank. The Island is separated by Knapps Narrows, which forms a convenient shortcut into the Choptank. It is also home to a sizable waterman fleet which lines the narrows on either side. The road onto the Island crosses the Narrows by way of a drawbridge (bascule) that opens upon demand 24 hours a day. This bridge replaced the original one in 1998 and was built to the specifications of the original one with modern upgrades to make it more functional. The old bridge was moved to St. Micheals Maritime Museum in 1999. We blew our brass trumpet for opening but he must not have heard us (or assumed that no one actually uses a brass trumpet for a horn). We called him on the radio and he quickly opened the bridge for us.
Bell Buoy Near Tilghman Island
We stopped at the Knapp Narrows Marina to pick up some ice and water. Their setup is not at all like the really nice marinas that cater to the big yachts in the more affluent villages. This one had the essentials but not much more. They did have a really nice office and offered that we could use it for our internet connection and I must say, the air conditioning was really refreshing.
Back on the boat, we began a 10 mile trek across the Upper Bay of the Choptank River. We were heading for an anchorage in Sawmill Cove on the La Trappe Creek which flows into the Choptank River. The cruising guide says that this creek and cove are amongst the loveliest on the bay. The trip across the Upper Bay was long and hot. The water was glassy all of the way and the temp was reported to have a heat index of 110.
We pulled into Sawmill Cove and agree it is a really nice place. There are several homes near but they don’t detract from the beauty. I quickly pulled Dink aside after we dropped anchor and we donned our swimming suits in preparation for a cooling swim. We found a sandy beach and pulled ashore, crawled out into bath water temp water almost too hot to bathe in. The bottom was not sand but an oozy mud but we were desperate for something other than the oppressing heat of the air so we waded out into deeper water and did find a bit of comfort there.
Sawmill Cove Swimming Hole (or hot bath)
Back in the boat, we prepared a shrimp scampi dinner. The wine was Gnarley Head, the sardines in mustard sauce were Beach Cliff, and the cheese was Tillamook. After dinner, we baked a blob apple caramel cake and while it was cooling, we took the Dink for a ride around the beautiful cove. The ospreys were nesting in several locations around the cove and we saw a neat encounter when one osprey attacked a flying great blue heron. The heron squacked loudly but continued on her way seemingly uninjured.
Back at the boat, we smeared cream cheese icing on the cake and dug in. A great bedtime snack. And then there was bed!
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