Delaware City

June 28, 2013
39 34.262 N
75 35.421 W

We were a little late getting underway from the West River anchorage. The weather settled down overnight so we had enjoyed a decent nights rest. But we wanted to get into or past the C&D Canal so we had a long day ahead of us.

Once again we were lucky with the tide and for most of the day Tide Hiker was moving a knot or so faster than cruising speed. The tide eventually turned against us as the Bay narrowed and we entered the C&D. There was some sort of weekend festival at Chesapeake City and so the "free dock" was full (although I recon the last boat arrived minutes before us. Damn!) So we decided to take a slip at Delaware City Marina, right at the east end of the C&D. This place had a bit of a reputation because it was located on a narrow canal (maybe 75' wide) with a very fast current but with a good dock master.

All of those 3 assumptions turned out to be correct. But as we made our way thru the C&D the weather turned really ugly. Once again the National Marine Weather Service was advising listeners to move into their basements! Great advise for us. Amazingly, so far the storm cells were passing left and right of us, and they were rather spectacular. There was a report of a funnel cloud near us. Lots of lightening. As we approached the marina canal entrance I was very concerned. The wind was blowing the tops off the waves. We had worked out that the dock we would tie to would be up-wind and that 200 yards down current from the dock was a low fixed bridge. I was imagining disaster.

Looks nice now - we are leaving!

We could see the storm cells on the radar. So I called the dock master and said we would wait for a gap between the cells to enter the canal. We did not have long to wait. The wind dropped and we scurried into the canal. The dock was about 1/2 mile in and two guys were waiting for us. I basically pointed Tide Hiker at the dock and slammed the starboard transmission into reverse at the last minute to pull in the stern. Everyone scurried, and we were in! Miller time!

It looked like a cute little town. The marina gave us coupons for two crab balls at "Crabby Dicks" so we walked into town for dinner. What a great spot - Friday night crowd, a band, a crazy waitress who was a lot of fun and good food at a decent price. After dark the thunder storms dissipated.

Fun lady. Crazy, but fun.

Tomorrow we head down the Delaware. The tides are very strong so timing is important. We decided we had to leave at 6AM so we were in bed early