We were awakened by the sound of halyards clanking and water lapping at
Mystic's hull. We had a bit of bay roll the entire time we are anchored on Mill Creek in the little town of Kilmarnock. We were ready to pull anchor and head back out into the Chesapeake by 8:00 after watching a beautiful sunrise. Today we will move into Maryland and leave Virginia behind.
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| Sunrise over Mill Creek, Kilmarnock Virginia |
We'd hoped to cross over to Tangier Island but decided to stay on the western shore and continue north along the bay. There is a lot to see on the eastern shore but it's a bit shallow for our five and a half foot draft. The charts indicate there are places
Mystic may not be able to navigate through.
The wind was calm but waves began to form quickly. We had no idea that there are more than 30 lighthouses still standing on the Chesapeake. Each day, we pass more of them on our route. I try to capture photos of each one we pass. Some are close to our course while others are far off in the distance.
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| Smith Point Lighthouse 1897 |
There was a lot of traffic on the water again. Weather conditions weren't too bad until we arrived at the entrance to the Patuxent River which leads up to Solomon Islands. The waves grew to five feet there. They rode up behind us and disappeared under
Mystic's stern then reappeared in front of our bow until we were looking at a five foot wall of water. Dave had to aim almost sideways to the waves on our approach to the Patuxent. He carefully surfed
Mystic inside the channel markers and up river where everything quieted.
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| This fellow was following us for a while today |
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| He's bigger than he looked at a distance |
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| Barge throwing a huge wake |
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| Ploughing through the water |
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Military restricted area off of the Chesapeake
south of Solomon Islands |
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| Military action above us |
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| Two ships passing |
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| Sailboat under spinnaker on the Chesapeake |
We traveled a good four miles from the bay up to Mill Creek where we planned to anchor for the night. We stayed at another Mill Creek last night but the two couldn't be more different. The Soloman's anchorage is up a long narrow waterway lined with a neighborhood of beautiful houses. The creek branches off into other tiny veins. Each vein had a name and safe places to anchor. We chose Mill Creek 1 and dropped our anchor in a little protected bay. Osprey sat on the navigation markers and called to one another. It is a beautiful spot. A military base is nearby and we hear a lot of loud air activity. Dave kept a close eye on our anchor for any signs of dragging. A storm with high winds was coming in and we'd have to sit through it here on the hook.
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| View entering the Patuxent River |
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| Everyone has a dock and a boat here |
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| Our view of shore at Mill Creek 1 |
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| The homeowners on Mill Creek 1 have a beautiful view |
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| Osprey on the channel marker off of Mill Creek home |
The sky turned black right at 8:00 pm, just as the forecast warned. Wind, with gusts of 20 mph, pushed
Mystic over on her side. We scrambled on deck to remove the sun awning, put our main sail cover on and drop the wind scoop. Just as we complete our work, big fat rain drops pelted our deck, chasing us below. After the front passed over us, our world turned grey and lightening, thunder and heavy rain began. We were holed up inside
Mystic where it's extremely hot. The storm finally passed and we were able to open our hatches, reinstall the sun awning and wind scoop and relax. Mill Creek 1 was the perfect spot to sit through a big storm.
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| Watching the storm approach |
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| Clouds building on radar and the creek |
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| It's getting dark |
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| It's almost upon us |
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| Storm moving over us on the anchor |
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| Front is swallowing us |
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| View of mast through the hatch during the storm |
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