Best Easily-Accessible Marinas at Mouth of Chesapeake ?

[sneuman]

Am planning a Delmarva circumnavigation later this month (counterclockwise from Annapolis) and am looking for a good, accessible, marina to put in for the night before setting off on the offshore leg.

Any suggestions?

[2ndstar]

Bay Creek at Cape Charles.
Any marina in Little Creek, Norfolk.
Salt Ponds in Hampton.

_________________
Carl

[speciald@ocens.]

Little Creek is fast in and out.

[sneuman]

thanks! Little Creek looks like a good choice for us.

[sneuman]

to save another thread, are there any suggestions for Lewes/Cape Henolopen at the entrance to the Delaware Bay?

[Hud3]

You can anchor in Breakwater Harbor, off the town of Lewes, Delaware. It's fairly open to the weather there, with some big rock breakwaters. There's no marina there.

You could look into Ocean City, Maryland. Mostly power boats in there, but you might find a marina that can handle a sailboat.

[sneuman]

Thanks Hud, I think we'd rather stay away from Ocean City.

[Hud3]

Don't blame you. Treacherous in there, with the currents and shifting sand.

BTW, if you're really lucky and round Cape Henlopen at slack before flood tide, you can get quite a push up Delaware Bay. We hit it just right and had tidal currents pushing us all the way up to and through the C&D Canal, and even as far as Tolchester Beach in the Chesapeake before it went slack. Nice ride!

A little-known fact. People have been known push old vehicles over the edge into the canal to get rid of them. The bottom profile has a bench near the rip-rapped shoreline, so they just sit there in maybe 10'-12' of water. If you move too close to the bank trying to give a tug & barge a little extra room, you might just get a nasty surprise.

The reason I know this is that a few decades ago, an ecological survey boat was dragging a seine net in the canal one icy December day. They came to a sudden halt and then started moving backwards. They cut the seine lines just as the stern started to drop down. Turns out they'd snagged one of those vehicles. It was balanced on the edge of the bench, and the seine tipped it over. Down it went, pulling the boat with it.