Journal Entry 14 — Chesapeake Bay: Maryland’s Eastern Shore
Dates: Early August, 2007
Weather: Hot, Humid, Hazy — Occasional Thunderstorms
Wind: Light/Moderate — Except in Storms
Virginia’s Eastern Shore along the Chesapeake Bay is flat. The Bay itself is very shallow averaging only about 18 inches in depth. To the south, long flat sand beaches extend out into the Bay. At low tide you can walk hundreds of yards off shore to exposed sand spits that appear like islands along the coast. To the north, the sand beaches become green expanses of salt marsh grass which extends inland, typically ending at a small clump of white buildings perched above the marsh on pilings.
The southern Bay is heavily used by commercial fishermen. Menhaden fishermen, net fisherman, crabbers, and oyster and clam fishermen depend on the clear clean water of the Bay and the abundant source of food and shelter provided by the shallow salt marshes. These provide nursery grounds which protect and cultivate the fishery resources. Old commercial warehouses, ice houses, small processing plants, and packing plants found in the small towns and villages along the coast demonstrate the southern Bays continued reliance on the fishery resources. The use and topography of the Bay begins to change around Cambridge, Maryland. While still supporting a significant commercial fishery, Maryland’s Eastern Shore has developed a strong tourism and recreational boating industry. The coast along this part of the Bay is generally higher than that to the south. The water along the coast is deeper. Several deep rivers and channels allow for easy boating access to the Bay from harbors, docks and marinas in most of Eastern Shore Maryland’s coastal towns.
The tourism and boating industry gives the middle Bay a different feel. Unlike the slow, dusty, sleepy small towns to the south, the towns of the middle Bay are more up-scale. The small wooden homes have been replaced with modern vacation homes. The old elegant historic homes have been renovated, using a mix of historic and modern design and materials. Small restaurants, dress shops, antique stores and gift shops are found on the main streets. The close knit families of fishermen and townsfolk found in the costal villages to the south have been replaced by vacationers drawn to the middle Bay to enjoy the boating, water, food and history of the area. But even with these changes, the middle Bay towns are fun. People living here love the history of the area and enjoy sharing it with visitors. There is an openness and desire to provide the visitor with helpful information.
I left Cambridge on an outgoing tide. The morning was calm making the Choptank River ideal for rowing. The weather forecast called for temperatures approaching 102. The air was still and already had the heavy feel of moisture from the building humidity. Before I left the dock, I had grabbed two extra bottles of water giving me a total of four.
I was heading toward Oxford and Cuttz and Case Marina. I had visited with Eddy Cuttz several times at the marina. Eddy has spent most of his life on the Bay. The craftsmen at Cuttz and Case Marina specialize in building and refurbishing classic wood sail and power boats. Ed Cuttz, Eddy’s father, had run the marina for years before Eddy took over.
Eddy and I had talked about the changes he has seen as he grew up sailing, fishing and living on the Chesapeake. His comments focus mostly on the number of people living on or visiting the Bay. He described growing up riding a motorcycle on back country roads, lazy days of sailing alone on the Bay, and days spent fishing with the commercial fishermen. These were fishermen who in Eddy’s words, “really knew where to go on the Bay and how to catch fish”.
Over the last twenty years, towns like St. Michaels and Oxford have undergone extensive development. Both year round and seasonal homes have been constructed along the Bay. The number of boats on the Bay and in the marinas has increased dramatically. The increase in boats is good for businesses like Cuttz and Case, but the boats, like the development put significant additional pressure on the Bay’s resources.
Rowing past the mouth of La Trapp Creek, I was able to get a first hand look at some of the changes that have occurred in the middle Bay over the last 30 years. In 1976, my wife and two friends chartered a sailboat out of Cambridge. We had spent a wonderful week traveling from Cambridge to Annapolis to St. Michaels and Oxford. Our last night was spent anchored in a protected cove at the mouth of La Trapp Creek. I found an old photograph we had taken on the trip. It showed a heavily wooded secluded shoreline, with trees coming right to the waters edge. As I rowed past, I could see the woods had been replaced by several lovely large estate houses. The secluded cove had become the vista of these homes. Boats were moored in the once empty cove. I also noted a significant change in the boating population of the middle Bay. Unlike Virginia’s Eastern Shore, Maryland’s Eastern Shore is filled with boats. The middle Bay is a boater’s paradise. The deep water harbors and historic coastal communities make this region of the Bay ideal for both weekend and extended touring.
Many large cruising power and sail boats passed by as I rowed from St. Michaels, with its beautiful harbor full of sail boats, north toward Kent Island Narrows. As I left St. Michaels harbor, I passed the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum. The Museum hosts a number of exhibits on the history of boat building in the Bay as well as navigation, commercial fishing and commercial gunning. The town welcomes tourists and with numerous Bed and Breakfast establishments as well as several fine restaurants it has become a destination for many travelers both by water and land.
Just north of Kent Island Narrows, the weather took a turn for the worse - much worse. The Chesapeake is noted for its squalls. Many sailors have been caught on the Bay where a sudden rain storm can whip through churning up the water. About half a mile north of the Kent Island Narrows Bridge, the sky to the north became black. Heavy clouds rolled across the horizon. The wind began to pick up, increasing from a fairly gentle 10 knots blowing out of the southwest to a very significant 20 knots from the northwest. I called John Geisel, my cameraman, on the marine radio. John had been following along with me since St. Michaels in his power boat, filming as we went along. It was time for me to get off the water — and quickly. I rowed over to John’s boat, pulled the oars and all of the electronic equipment from the Guide Boat, and tied it off on one of the cleats. By the time the Guide Boat was secure the wind had started to gust above 20 knots, it had started to rain, and we were in the middle of the squall.
John piloted his power boat south back toward Kent Island Narrows Bridge. Just north of the Bridge, we ducked behind a small jut of land gaining some protection from the west wind. The wind continued to increase. Rain now came down in sheets at times blowing sideways and pelting the boat. White caps appeared across the Bay as the wind blew across the waves and chop. After about 10 minutes, the wind began to calm. We turned east and made our way into Mear’s Marina at Kent Island Narrows. We docked in one of the small slips toward the back of the marina and pulled the Guide Boat up on the shore. The harbor master at Mears not only helped us find a room for night, but drove us to the hotel in his truck. Tired and wet John and I really appreciated his help. We both grabbed a hot shower, some good food, and went to bed early.
The northern part of the Chesapeake near the Sassafras, Bohemia and Elk Rivers, presents another change in scenery. Unlike the southern and middle Bay, the shoreline of the northern Bay is heavily populated with both year round and summer vacation homes. This area of the Bay is an easy drive from Baltimore, Wilmington and Philadelphia. As such it has experienced much more rapid development than the areas to the south.
For the most part, the homes here are found in small clusters along the shoreline. Between them, small areas of farm land and woodland still exist. Most of the homes have boat docks, moorings, and decks overlooking the Bay. Some are magnificent buildings with large expanses of manicured lawns and gardens extending to the water. Others are groupings of town homes or condominiums.
Another significant change in the northern part of the Bay is the boat traffic. On a summer weekend, by 11:00 AM, boats can be seen everywhere. The power boats create significant wakes which turn the otherwise calm water into a rough chop. At times, the wake and chop caused by the large number of boats on the Bay made rowing the Guide Boat a bit of a challenge. On several occasions wakes up to 3 feet high were thrown up by the power boats. I would have to turn the bow of the boat into the wake to row through them. The Guide Boat would rise sharply on the front of the wake, drop with a splash into the trough behind and quickly begin to ride up the front of the next wake. Once or twice, power boats went by on both sides at the same time, causing the Guide Boat to be caught between two sets of wakes. As the waves rolled toward the boat, I would stop rowing and extend both oars out to the sides. The oars would act like big pontoons keeping the boat stable. The boat would ride up and over the waves, bobbing back and forth like a cork.
The Chesapeake and Delaware Canal is near the head of the Elk River. I had obtained permission to row through the Canal from the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers. Normally, human powered boats are not allowed through this major international waterway. I contacted Jim Tomlin the Head Engineer for the Army Corps of Engineers in Chesapeake City, Maryland to discuss the C and D Canal and the conditions I could expect as I rowed through. Jim is responsible for the Canal. He is very knowledgeable about the water conditions and boat traffic on the Canal. After talking with Jim, I began to understand why the canal is closed to small, human powered boats. The water in the canal is very swift. Currents caused by the rising and falling tides can exceed 2.5 knots. Because the canal is deep and very narrow, these currents create very unstable water, much like the water under the Kent Island Narrows Bridge except extending for a distance of about 12 miles.
Not only are the currents tricky, the configuration of the Canal with its steep banks, creates very unique and unpredictable wakes from power boats and from the large ocean going vessels that regularly pass through. Large power boat wakes often reach four to six feet in height in the Canal. These wakes have been known to crash over the decks of good sized power boats. The ocean going vessels create a surge in the water. The powerful ships propellers pull water from the front of the vessel and thrust it to the rear. A bubble of water is found behind the ship. In front of the ship, the water level actually drops. Along the sides of the Canal, the surge is noted as a receding of the water away from the banks, as the vessel begins to go past, followed by a rushing of water back into the banks as the vessel passes. As much as four feet of water can be pulled from the banks from the surge, a rush of six feet of water returns. Although the Army Corps of Engineers had granted me permission to row the Adirondack Guide Boat through the C and D canal, I decided that it would not be safe. I ended the Chesapeake Bay portion of the Odyssey at the western terminus of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal on the Elk River near Harbor North Marina.
Delaware City, Delaware is located at the eastern terminus of the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal on the Delaware River. Historically, the Old C and D Canal passed right through Delaware City. When the Canal was dredged to sea level and opened to international vessels, it was straightened. The new Canal passes to the south of Delaware City. But, a branch of the old Canal still runs through Delaware City. Since I had decided not to row through the entire C and D Canal, I decided would row through the old Branch Canal into Delaware City. From Delaware City, I could row the final leg of the Delmarva Odyssey, back home to New Castle.