Mill Creek 1 Solomons Maryland

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.

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.

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.

This fellow was following us for a while today

He's bigger than he looked at a distance

Barge throwing a huge wake

Ploughing through the water

Military restricted area off of the Chesapeake
south of Solomon Islands

Military action above us

Two ships passing

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.

View entering the Patuxent River

Everyone has a dock and a boat here

Our view of shore at Mill Creek 1

The homeowners on Mill Creek 1 have a beautiful view

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.