Solomons Island

Solomons Island, just inside the mouth of the Patuxent River, has developed since the 1970's into one of the Chesapeake's top destinations for cruising boaters.

There are may protected spots for anchoring so we pulled into Spring Cove with it's serene setting of beautiful homes and calm waters.

Our new friends, Sarah and Brooks McCuen (fellow loopers) anchored near by, picked us up by dingy to explore the town.

Issac Solomon established the first oyster-canning plant here in 1867 and since that time, Solomons has been a major boat-building and waterfront community. Up Back Creek is the Calvert Marine Museum easily identified by the restored Drum Point screwpile lighthouse.

The first bugeye (oyster-dredging sailing vessel) was built here in 1879, and during the 1930's the yard of M.M. Davis and Son produced many famous racing yachts.

The museum has three maritime themes: local maritime history (including a bugeye and three-log canoe); paleontology of Calvert Cliffs (fossils of a 22-foot toothed bird and 17-million-year-old whales and sharks); and estuarine life of the tidal -Patuxent River.

Sarah takes our picture as they drop us off. We will be taking a slip tomorrow in a Marina to take care of our laundry and grocery needs.

In the morning we pull into a popular full service marina, Spring Cove. With friendly service and a beautiful country-club setting, we first put on fuel (3.60 a gal for diesel).

Landscaped grounds with picnic areas and a playground is very different from marinas that I'm used to. I feel like I'm in a park.

The marina has special rates for boaters that want to extended their stay, along with free WiFi, bike rentals, a ship's store, and laundry facilities.

And of course, there's the heated pool which I spent the afternoon in yesterday. I think this is a pretty nice destination and a great place to keep your boat on the Chesapeake Bay.

You all have to see Bob's new invention. "Have-Cart-Will-Travel" for those out of the way places. (Maybe he can sell it back to West Marine!).

Not a bad place to wait for the weather to change.

Samy agrees.