NC3

Over the winter we joined this club NC3, Northern Chesapeake Cruising Club. It is a group of sailboaters most of who keep their boats in the Middle River area across the Chesapeake from Tolchester Marina where we keep TRANCE. The group hosts different events throughout the year.

On March 23, we attended our first event with the group. The Annual Sock Burning party. “Sock burning” is a Maryland maritime tradition that involves burning winter socks to celebrate the start of spring. The tradition originated in Annapolis, in 1978, after a very snowy winter where Bob Turner, a sailing enthusiast and boat builder, invited his friends to join him to burn their socks as a symbolic goodbye to winter.

This past week June 28 – July 5, we joined the group for seasons first week long cruise. The event began when we all gathered and anchored for the night near the public beach at Bradenton. A few of us rafted for sundowners then later separated for the night. The morning brought a dense fog that quickly dissipated.

In the morning we all departed and transited the C&D (Chesapeake and Delaware) Canal.

Upon exiting into the Delaware Bay, the wind was quite brisk going against the current.

We docked for two nights at Delaware City Marina which located on a section of the original canal.

The following day we all took a ferry 1/2 mile in Delaware Bay to Pea Patch Island and toured Fort Delaware, a Union fortress, made of granite and brick. During the civil war over 12,000 Confederate soldiers were imprisoned there. The fort surrounded by a mote, was constructed to protect the ports of Wilmington and Philadelphia. Today you can tour the structure guided by actors in period costumes describing their lives there in mid 1800’s.

The return trip through the canal, we all docked at the Chesapeake City Marina, followed by a two night stay at Sailing Associates up the Sassafras River. The final night we were at Worton Creek Marina, each departing in the morning for home ports. It was great making new friends we hope to do more adventures with them!