Thursday, August 4, 2011

weekend weather, Solomons Island

Still watching Emily.  The tropical storm is approaching Haiti right now.  Forecast is for her to cross the eastern tip of Cuba, head of the Bahamas and then curve to the northeast.  Early Monday morning the storm, possibly a small hurricane by then, could be off of the Outer Banks.  I think I'll head down to Ocracoke regardless.  Either I'll get some work done or maybe just watch the storm.


Saturday looks decent for sailing, possibly the best wind I've seen in weeks.


A couple of blog visitors, Shawn and Laura, are heading down to the Outer Banks for a break.  They say they will give The Paper Canoe, the restaurant I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, a try.  I hope they will send me a review.  They are, I believe, from Maryland, somewhere in the mid-Chesapeake Bay region.  In a comment Shawn mentioned Solomons Island as possible sailing grounds.  That has got me thinking about the area.  It is near the mouth of the Patuxent River, just across the bay from the Hooper Islands where I'll be this fall.


There appears to be a couple of nice waterfront restaurants there, maybe a spot to grab a lunch.  I do remember seeing the Tiki Bar last year when I was picked up by a launch at Solomons Island for some work on a research boat.  I posted some photographs from that trip here and here.  I remember the crew hoping the boat would spend an extra night at the anchorage so they could visit the Tiki Bar - but no such luck.


That was the second time I had visited Solomons Island.  The first time was a couple of years earlier when I was on board the tugantine Norfolk Rebel with legendary captain Lane Briggs during a Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race.



That was a very rough trip.  After getting bounced around we pulled into Solomon Island for some maintenance.  It was mid-October and I remember thinking that the entire waterfront looked like it had shut down for the off-season.  But that was just a quick look on a grey, cold day.  I'll need to research the area a little more.  But it does look like an area worth visiting.  Thanks for the tip, Shawn and Laura.

steve

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