Was it weather? Or repairs? Or something else? At any rate, last year our planned cruise to St. Michael’s was replaced with a car trip. Highly unsatisfactory — especially compared to the real deal.
We set out mid-morning on a sunny, but hazy day and arrived in about 4 hours, opting for a marina within a close walk of the “city” center. Its location was perfect. (Services, not so much, but that’s a different story.)
We did visit St. Michael’s by boat 100 years ago or so (maybe closer to 33-34) when we ventured across the Chesapeake from the Severn River (Annapolis) in a houseboat with our three kids, plus Cliff’s parents and my mom. We were well prepared….we had a placemat from the local diner that pointed out (approximately!) where St. Michael’s was from Annapolis. With the houseboat’s compass and a pair of binoculars, and the placemat “chart”, off we went. And we made it somehow, ending up in an anchorage just off The Crab Claw, a tourist dive then as it is now, I am sure. In those days, the Crab Claw sent a tender to moored boats bringing them into the restaurant. Today, the mooring field has been replaced by permanent piers and the complimentary tender is no more.
Preparing to shove off. 
Houses speckle the shore nearly all the way. 
Captain Cliff
Cruising essentials! Headsets! Better than marriage counseling:-) What we’ve discovered over 35+ years of boating together is that any yelling aboard is a problem. Even if you are just warning your loved one that there is a large log in the water, when you yell the information, it is as annoying as it may be helpful. The answer is: Don’t yell! The other essential: Champagne! Breakfast of champions. But only after all the yelling has subsided.
One of the fun things on the Chesapeake is to see all of the different boats on the water which range from impressive yachts to huge tankers and container ships. The crabber above was unusual because it had four crew members aboard. Most of crabbers we’ve seen in the past have only one or two watermen aboard.
The photo below is a Coast Guard boat designed to place (or replace) day marks. They had both a green and a red daymark aboard, a full day’s work I’d think.
Rain was threatening when we arrived in St. Michael’s, so we cleaned up the boat, cleaned up ourselves and opted for an early dinner at Limoncello (highly recommend!) We managed to arrive moments before a horrific downpour accompanied by wicked winds that bent tree branches, flapped awnings menacingly and whipped umbrellas into rain catchers. It eased a bit as we left to hopscotch puddles on the way back to the boat. My shoes will never recover.
St. Michael’s is a great walk-around town and reminded us a bit of Key West without the obscene tee-shirt messages. The central street, Talbots, is lined with stores that can only be described as touristy filled with every kind of memento with St. Michael’s emblazoned on it that you can imagine. Three ice cream shops. Three or four churches, cemetaries with headstones tilted akimbo like crooked teeth in a wide smile. Three or four real estate offices — and yes, Cliff did stop in….just to find out what “water access” vs. “waterfront” meant he said. I stayed outside:-) We imagine that the zoning restrictions in the charming residential areas are nearly as strict as those in Charleston, prohibiting changes to historical details. But apparently they are a little lenient when it comes to paint colors (see lavender store below!)
Tomorrow’s trip to the Kent Narrows is short so we’ll have time for breakfast on board and a walk before we depart.