Day 214 - May 27, 2013: The C&D Canal, Delaware and anchoring behind Reedy Island

A nearly perfect night is hard to describe, but we had a clear sky with almost a full moon, not a whisper of a breeze, and water as smooth as glass. We could hear the birds chirping into the evening and early in the morning. Rising early, as we departed the anchorage, I noticed a tall structure along the shore which seemed out of place. After getting closer, it turned out to be a four-story set of wooden stairs from the home's sloping lawn over a cliff and straight down to the dock. As a boat owner with a dock, I can appreciate how important it is to have access, but this sets a record! I wonder what the neighbors think?

A four-story set of dock stairs!

We turned north and traveled almost to the northern limits of the Chesapeake Bay and turned into the C&D Canal, which is a 14-mile long deep ship canal that connects the bay with the Delaware River. It cuts across Maryland and Delaware and was motivated by the need to provide a short-cut from Baltimore to Philadelphia. The project was started in 1804 but the canal was not completed until 1829 due to funding and construction difficulties.

A few weeks ago I exchanged messages related to my dinghy with the owner of a new American Tug 395 who keeps his boat on the C&D Canal. We were keeping in touch, hoping to meet, so he could see my dinghy, and we could see his new boat. We arranged to meet Nick and Robyn just inside the entrance of the C&D Canal at Chesapeake City and had lunch at Schaefer's Canal House restaurant where you can dock right in front of your table. It was great fun sharing tours of our American Tugs, telling them about our Great Loop trip, and learning about the Hudson River from Nick who grew up in that area. The crab cake sandwiches were great, too!

Schaefer's Canal House restaurant

Together with Nick and Robyn in front of their new AT 395

We continued on the canal, encountered a number of tugs and many pleasure boats, and soon entered the state of Delaware which is our 14th state so far on this adventure. Exiting the canal, we turned south and anchored behind Reedy Island. The Delaware River is wide here and the shores are flat and mostly barren so far, except for the power plant we can see to the east. We are poised to go south in the morning through the Delaware Bay.