Once we passed above the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, we were officially out of the Atlantic Ocean. Although the owners had previously decided to spend the 4th of July in Washington DC, doing so would add a week to the trip by taking several days to go up the Potomac River to Washington DC (given their cruising preference for short hops), and then back down again. Eitan suggested that, instead, we head to Annapolis, which was easily accessible to major airports in both Washington DC and Baltimore. So, once again, the plans had changed! Eitan and I would spend the holiday on the boat in Annapolis and the owners and brother-in-law would head to Washington DC for the famous fireworks display.
We spent four days traveling up the Chesapeake Bay, stopping in small towns along the way including Gwynn Island, Solomons Island, and Galesville. Our favorite of these stops was at Solomons Island, where we dropped the hook in a tight anchorage right in town. We took the dinghy over to the famous local Tiki Bar, where we enjoyed tropical drinks and a fantastic cover band. We learned that people come from all over the east coast for the opening week of the bar, once winter is over. Afterwards, whenever we mentioned Solomons Island, everyone asked if we went to the Tiki Bar.
On July 3rd, we pulled anchor in Galesville and set off to complete the remaining 10 miles to Annapolis, Maryland to spend the holiday. Eitan wanted to try towing the dinghy, which was only rated for 6 knots or less while under tow, so it was a bit of a slow motor up the Chesapeake. In most cases, the terms “dinghy” and “tender” can be used interchangeably. The term “dinghy” is used for small boats and can be anything from a row boat, mini-sailboat or small inflatable boat, whereas “tender” describes a “smaller boat” used to serve as a transport shuttle between a “larger boat” and land. So, in most cases in the cruising world they are used interchangeably, but on the larger, super and mega yachts, the tender can be a 36-foot center console, which is no longer considered a dinghy.
Some larger yachts have actual garages built into the transom for the tender, whereas others, that don’t have space on or in the yacht to store the tender, it simply gets towed behind the boat on a tether. The primary way to transport the dinghy on M/Y Puffin Quest is to load it onto the foredeck using a hydraulic crane davit. Eitan normally controls the davit while I handle the lines connected to the dinghy to control its position and prevent it from swinging like a wrecking ball, then Eitan unhooks it and drives it around to the swim platform. This all happens in reverse order to get the dinghy back on deck and secured in its cradle. For short trips, or in case there are any issues with the davit, Eitan wanted to test out the new tow line and try towing a dinghy behind the boat to determine the optimal length for the tether. For this reason, our 10-mile trip took a little longer than normal and I got my workout from pulling the dinghy in to keep the line out of the water while we anchored.
Upon arrival, we tried to anchor in an obvious wide-open spot just off of the Naval Academy field, but were quickly informed by the harbormaster that that is where the fireworks barge would be positioned and we needed to relocate to another spot. We dropped anchor a little farther out and had a quick lunch before dropping off the owner and brother-in-law on shore to get to Washington DC for the celebration there. Eitan and I finished up some boat projects then headed into town to check out Annapolis. Unfortunately, it was too hot and crowded so we opted to head back to the boat and explore more in the coming days once we were dockside. Also, the anchorage began filling up with boats of all sizes for the fireworks show and I could tell Eitan needed a little peace of mind making sure the yacht was safe from other boaters.
Before sunset, we prepared a nice dinner onboard and sat out on the back deck to enjoy the shenanigans going on around us as our neighbors got increasingly tipsy and rowdier. This was the first time Eitan and I had dinner, just by ourselves, on the aft deck. Without the owners onboard, most of the other boats passing by assumed that Eitan and I owned this multi-million-dollar yacht and came by to tell us how beautiful they thought the boat was and to ask a few questions with curiosity and envy. We could tell the question on the back of everyone’s mind was “How the heck do they afford a boat like this?!”. Since no one explicitly asked if we owned the boat, we enjoyed our time in the limelight as the bougie boat of the anchorage. We almost decided to watch the display from the hot tub on the fly bridge but decided not to flaunt our perceived wealth too much.
Once the sunset, we moved up to the bridge deck to enjoy the fireworks display. Being the tallest boat in the anchorage, we had the best seats in the house and were only about a quarter mile from the fireworks barge. After the first round of fireworks were shot off, Eitan ran down to the engine room to grab the hearing protection, which made the experience much more enjoyable. Overall, it was a great display and watching everyone try to maneuver out of the anchorage, fog horns and music blaring, was also just as fun. Annapolis was a great place to spend the 4th!
