Best Cruising Guide for Chesapeake

[greg cook]

Hi
We are planning on leaving Jacksonville, bound for the Chesapeake this April and were wondering what the concensus is regrding a cruising guide for the Chesapeake

[sv_makai]

Originally Posted by greg cook

Hi
We are planning on leaving Jacksonville, bound for the Chesapeake this April and were wondering what the concensus is regrding a cruising guide for the Chesapeake

I don't know about a concensus but we have sailed on the Bay since 1997 and found many good guides. Our favorite is the Gunkholers Guide to the Chesapeake Bay. It has great descriptions of the areas and includes charting to guide a boater into anchorages with info about the area and its activities.

You can sail the bay for a lifetime and not anchor in the same place twice.

[karenmccraw]

We did a two week trip to the Chesapeake from Oriental, NC last year and used Dozier's guides. I don't have them with me right now, but I think we used one that was for the ICW and another that was specifically for the Chesapeake Bay. Lots of good info and phone numbers - easy to find on Amazon. Thought about the getting Gunkholers guide, but we wanted to go to shore most every night and didn't think it would be as useful for our kind of trip. Maybe we'd use that one when we had more than two weeks.

We went up thru the Dismal Swamp. The trip was terrific - never thought it would be as much fun as a BVI charter, but it was!

If you have the time, you can see my very long daily blog about the trip. Just click "newer post" at the bottom of each entry to view it in the correct order: Sailing Trip

[2ndstar]

My favorite is the Gunkholer's guide, but I also like Dozier's. Dozier's seems better organized, and the gunkholers guide has more detailed descriptions.

Carl

[clsailor]

Look at Chesapeake Bay Magazine's Guide to Cruising the Chesapeake Bay. Lots of info on anchorages and shore side amenities.

[r.furborough]

Also, do not forget the opinins of the members of sailnet!!! there are many members that live in the bay and have a more intimate knowldge of the area.

[White Feather]

If you're on the Chesapeake the first week in July stop inside the Hart-Miller Island area for our anchorage meet. Inside the island is a nice anchorage area with fairly deep water. Nice spot where locals anchor out for the weekends and meet friends. We have several boats meeting the first week or ten days in July. Hope to see you then.

I've been a Bay sailor since 1958. Worked as a waterman for several years and lived in Middle River, Cape Charles, Norfolk, Pungo Ferry, Little Creek, Bear Creek, Sparrows Point, Kings Creek, Dundalk, Darkhead Cove and many other places. I lived aboard several boats over many years and am now heading back for the first time in several years of wandering the deep blue.

[sandy daugherty]

I second the Chesapeak Bay Magazine's Guide. It's written by literate, local authors and updated annually. The hand drawn chartlets are quite good; they include current local knowlege. When a particular marina or restaurant receives a recommendation, it's based on real, recent experience with other sites, not just a one-time fancy.