Association Forum - Potomac to Chincoteague?

Assn Members Area · Join

Home.

Association Forum

Ships Store

Cruising

Racing

Technical Tips

Photo Gallery - New

Boat Search - Updated

Manuals & Brochures

Swap Meet

Links

Officer Flag Line & Staff

Bylaws & Constitution

Members Area

Join the Association

Notice:
The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.

Association Forum

Username:	Password:
Save Password
Forgot your Password?

All Forums

Catalina/Capri 25/250 Sailor's Forums

Cruising Forum

Potomac to Chincoteague?

New Topic

Topic Locked

Printer Friendly

Author

Topic

Stellaluna
1st Mate

Member Avatar

53 Posts

Initially Posted - 04/20/2009 : 13:08:02

Hello,
We have an '82 Catalina 25 and are looking to take a trip to Chincoteague Island from where she is berthed in Kinsale, right off the Potomac. We have three children, one of which is obsessed with horses, so we thought we'd sail over to Chincoteague in July and see the running of the ponies and the associated festivals.

Is this doable in this boat? We are experienced sailors but don't want to put the kids through a harrowing journey!

TIA

Liz
Richmond, VA

Sea Monkey
82 SK/SR #3054

Edited by - Stellaluna on 04/20/2009 13:17:54

John Russell
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
3444 Posts

Response Posted - 04/20/2009 : 13:39:51

Just looking at a map, it looks doable. I'd guess it depends on the ages of the kids and how much they like to be cooped up in a small boat for a few days each way. From my rough guesstimate, it looks to be about 100+ miles around the southern tip of the DelMarVa. I suppose it could be done in chunks, hopping from one spot to the next.

All this with ZERO experience in the Chesapeake Bay or the Atlantic Ocean. So, wait til Steve Milby, among others, chimes in here. Steve spends a lot of time sailing the Bay.

Edited by - on

Stellaluna
1st Mate

Members Avatar

53 Posts

Response Posted - 04/20/2009 : 14:05:29

Right - I guess it is pretty close as the crow flies, but by sea it is a long haul. At least we would have plenty of opportunities to make stops.

Maybe Tangier would be better to start out and see how they do in the boat for extended periods. The little girls are almost 9 and our oldest daughter is 16 - it might be a bit small of a boat for everyone for that long.

Edited by - on

JimB517
Past Commodore

Members Avatar

USA
3285 Posts

Response Posted - 04/20/2009 : 14:08:41

Just be darn sure to avoid Smith Point.

Edited by - on

Stellaluna
1st Mate

Members Avatar

53 Posts

Response Posted - 04/20/2009 : 15:17:21

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by JimB517
 Just be darn sure to avoid Smith Point.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Because of the current, rough seas, or what?

Edited by - on

JimB517
Past Commodore

Members Avatar

USA
3285 Posts

Response Posted - 04/20/2009 : 15:29:07

tidal currents up river and down river plus mixing with the bay waters make the biggest, roughest, worst seas I've ever seen. I'm talking 8 foot waves in 7 feet of water.

Make sure to exit the river on the Solomon's MD side. Great place to stop by the way.

This shows where I went in the Bay on the big boat.

http://www.indiscipline.org/cruise2000/chapter9/ches1.html

Head to Solomons, then Annapolis and Baltimore for a first time voyage, cross the Bay to something on the MD side. As I recall Chincoteague is on the Atlantic side, that would be quite a voyage with a family in a C25.

Edited by - on

DaveR
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

USA
2015 Posts

Response Posted - 04/21/2009 : 05:58:35

Looks like about 175 miles each way; 3 to 4 days each way; That's a lot of time with 5 people on board! Could be great, might be............ less than great

Like you say though, lot's of stop-over opportunities. I probably would keep the itinerary flexible.

Edited by - DaveR on 04/22/2009 05:20:05

Steve Milby
Past Commodore

Members Avatar

USA
5908 Posts

Response Posted - 04/21/2009 : 08:11:56

That's a challenging cruise. I've never been to Chincoteague, and think you can land on the island by boat, but don't know the route. Nevertheless, starting from Kinsale, the trip amounts to a circumnavigation of Delmarva. The most popular way to circumnavigate Delmarva is north up the Bay, through the C&D canal, out the Delaware Bay and into the Atlantic Ocean. Then south to the entrance of the Chesapeake, and back up the Bay to your starting point. When you go through the canal and the Delaware Bay, you have to time it so that you leave on favorable tides, because you won't make any progress if you try to sail against the strong incoming tides. When I sailed to Cape May, New Jersey with a friend, we didn't make it all the way before the tide turned against us, and had to anchor in the Bay. In the Atlantic, the opportunities to find shelter inside are limited. That means, if the weather turns against you, you might have to cope with it until it abates. The Delmarva circumnavigation is generally considered a good 10-day trip for sailors to see whether they have the skills and temperament for bluewater cruising. During part of that 10 days, if the wind is light or in your face, you will be motorsailing, so that means carrying plenty of extra fuel. Most people do it for the first time in a group, sailing in a fleet of boats, with the thinking that there is safety in numbers. There is a Sailnet group that is planning a trip this spring, and I'm thinking about joining them. Most of the boats will be bigger than 25', but some will be in that size range. Honestly, I wouldn't recommend it for a first long cruise with children.

I haven't sailed the southern bay, south of the Potomac, and am not familiar with the area, but I wonder whether you could sail west across the Bay to a small town on the peninsula and rent a car and drive to Chincoteague for the day. I just googled "Belle Haven, VA rental car" and it returned a list of rental car locations near Belle Haven. One of them is Tawes Brothers Pontiac, located in Crisfield, VA. That would make a much shorter trip (probably 3 days), with much less exposure to the weather.

Edited by - Steve Milby on 04/21/2009 08:20:21

JohnP
Master Marine Consultant

Members Avatar

1520 Posts

Response Posted - 04/22/2009 : 12:33:45

With 5 in a C-25, I'd prefer to make several short hops from fun spot to fun spot, and get off the boat. If you haven't travelled around the Chesapeake Bay with the family yet, there are lots of places to explore before venturing out onto the Atlantic.

Here's a [url="http://books.google.com/books?id=2AA3z7rFrzUC&dq=gunkholer's+guide&printsec=frontcover&source=bl&ots=ZvbRDs9dht&sig=w8zi36471gNrZd4adC6iN1nEgg4&hl=en&ei=2W_vSeTGOZOMtgf8-Z3DDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=8#PPA8,M1"]cruising guide[/url], that just happens to be on the web for now, for starters. The Bay is a large sailing area, and there are lots of places to consider on the western and the eastern shores.

Maybe I'll see you on the water. My boat is on the Bay only about 100 miles from yours!

Edited by - on

Even Chance
Captain

Members Avatar

USA
393 Posts

Response Posted - 05/09/2009 : 01:21:36

Liz, I lived on the Virginia Eastern Shore for 8 years. I wouldn't make that trip in a C25. Our beloved boat just isn't -- as a general rule -- an ocean boat.

On the seaside of the Eastern Shore, there aren't good stopping places between Cape Charles (which is bayside, of course) and Chincoteague. The inlets to Oyster, Red Bank, Willis Wharf, and Wachapreague are shallow and winding. There are NO sailboats seaside on the Virginia Shore, which should tell you something.

Pony Penning at Chincoteague is . . . something. I guess everyone should do it once. Twenty-five thousand people crowd an island that normally holds five thousand. It is absolutely true that the best place to see the swim across the channel is from a boat, provided you can find a place. Note the swim is done at slack low tide, which is going to be a challenge for anything other than a swing-keel C25, which is exactly the wrong boat to take seaside.

Here's the dirty little secret, if you want to actually see the ponies swim the channel: go the week AFTER the Carnival, when they swim the unsold ponies BACK to Assateague. Nobody's there to see that swim.

I don't think there's a car rental place on the Virginia Shore, other than the very few car dealers. There's just not the need, since there's no public transportation. If you're determined to make this trip, I suspect it would only work from Crisfield, where there would be car rental from Pocomoke and Salisbury. You could also motor upriver to Pocomoke City.

If you want to sail to the Virginia Shore, the best port of entry is Onancock. It's a gorgeous town, and the creek entrance is straighforward and deep. The entrance to Occohannock Creek (Belle Haven) is tricky and there's only one small public wharf; Nassawadox Creek, where I used to live, is navigable only near high tide and with local knowledge. Pungoteague Creek is navigable but there's no there there. Onancock is the only real town on a bayside creek other than Cape Charles.

Cruising from Kinsale, I would recommend you begin with St. Mary's, across the Potomac; Solomons; Reedville; and Tangier. Coles Point, just up the Potomac from you, is another great spot. So are Deltaville, Irvington, and Urbanna.

Pick up the spiral-bound Guide to Cruising the Chesapeake Bay: it's invaluable.

Maybe it's just dumb luck, but the half-dozen times I've passed it I've never had a problem around Smith Point. That IS the widest the Bay gets, and the combination of that and the wide mouth of the Potomac can put you completely out of sight of land. If wind and tide are opposed, they can generate big waves.

Edited by - Even Chance on 05/09/2009 02:02:46

Stellaluna
1st Mate

Members Avatar

53 Posts

Response Posted - 05/11/2009 : 08:42:28

Thanks very much! I have ordered the "Gunkholer's Guide" and I look forward to exploring the area. I appreciate the suggestions - there should be plenty to keep us busy.

Edited by - on

Topic

New Topic

Topic Locked

Printer Friendly

Jump To:

Association Forum

Notice: The advice given on this site is based upon individual or quoted experience, yours may differ.
The Officers, Staff and members of this site only provide information based upon the concept that anyone utilizing this information does so at their own risk and holds harmless all contributors to this site.