Chesapeake Bay's Eastern Shore

As you can see from our looper locator, we are in Crisfield, MD. We left The Tides Inn on Friday May 7, and cruised to Onancock, VA. At check-in, Terry asked Dockmaster Al if they had "wifi". Al responded "Why do you want to know if I have a WIFE??" Hence, the delayed Blog entries. We later learned from the manager of the Blue Crab Bay Company that Al is from Tangier Island where Elizabethan English is still spoken so he and Terry were divided by a common language.

Onancock (pronounced uh-NAN-cock) was founded in 1680. It is a quaint town with many historic, well-kept homes and friendly people who seem to really care about each other; willing to help out strangers. After a couple of days, they made us feel as one of them. It was one of our more enjoyable and relaxed stops so far. On Saturday morning, Onancock held their annual flea market. They blocked off the one main street and set up booths to display their treasures. We were docked at the town wharf at the end of the main street, so we had a continuous parade of people checking out Litenup III. It made us proud that she drew so much attention. Well, until a fellow showed up in a vintage jeep with a machine gun (complete with ammo box)and a 10-hp Johnson outboard motor, both mounted on the back. He won the prize for most interesting means of transportation.

Dockmaster Al loaned us his car to drive around the area. We really felt awkward about accepting his generous offer but when we declined, he told us not to worry; it was his wife's car and he hated it. So we drove to the Flounder Capital of the World, Wachapreague, for lunch and stopped in at the county seat of Accomac to look around. The economy of the Eastern Shore is primarily related to fishing, crabbing and oystering, with some agriculture thrown in.

Winds have been unusually high and have resulted in us spending additional days in both Irvington and Onancock. Otherwise, the weather has been nice.

Urbanna

Rappahanock

Tuesday -- Leaving Hampton, we were able to experience for the first time, the waters of the Chesapeake Bay and so far, she has lived up to her reputation as being one of the world's greatest cruising areas. Passing traditional Chesapeake Bay lighthouses, Point Comfort and Wolf Trap, we had calm seas and little wind as we headed toward the Rappahanock River bound for the Tides Inn. On the Rappahanock and Carter's Creek, we noticed a distinct difference in the terrain. Beautiful homes atop high bluffs with lawns stretching all the way to the water's edge. We felt as though we were looking at calendar pages, such was the beauty. The Tides Inn (Google this place!) is wonderful with the amenities of a fine resort. We bicycled into town and to the local winery where we were greeted by a huge fox who was as surprised to see us as we were to see him. Later that day, we cruised around the small creeks in our tender and saw an otter scampering across the yard of one of the homes! Is there no end to the wonders of nature we will experience??



Wednesday -- Today we took a tender ride 6.5 miles across the Rappahanock to the historic town of Urbanna, VA, the Oyster Shucking Capital of the World. On our journey, we have noticed that many locales make similar claims and therefore, we all feel required to do taste testing to make a final judgement. Though Urbanna has a storied history, today it is a sleepy town EXCEPT during the Oyster Shucking Festival in November when the town hosts over 200,000 people in one weekend! Yikes!

Evenings in Hampton, VA

Williamsburg

Williamsburg, VA

While Jon and Margaret traveled to Fredericksburg for a wedding, Terry and I toured Williamsburg and enjoyed the sites around Hampton, VA. Neither of us had been to Williamsburg in years. We drove the Colonial Parkway along the beautiful York River arriving in Williamsburg to find many roads were closed for a bike ride along the Parkway and a farmers market was being held in the middle of the historic district! As our touring time was limited, we chose to walk the main historic area and take a carriage ride past some of the other sights. The actors in period costume entertained throughout the day. Such fun to see it all!