Chesapeake Chase Days 28-29: Solomons Island

Chesapeake Chase Days 28-29: Solomons Island

July 9, 2022: Rainy day Solomons

We woke to rain this morning in Solomons, the kind of rain that will last all day.  Today was supposed to be our exploring day.  Tomorrow the plan was to anchor one night and then head to Annapolis the next day.  We wanted to spend two nights in Annapolis.  Disappointment?  Not at all.  We are flexible, so we looked at our options.  We could explore in the rain and stay on “schedule,” or wait to see if the rain would stop, or we could ask about staying another night and explore tomorrow.  Would we skip the anchorage or cut a night in Annapolis?  It’s always good to have options.

It was easy deciding on an alternate plan.  The rain was forecast to last all day.  We had laundry we could easily do on the boat.  We were behind on our travel journal, and we needed to get a few groceries.  The marina gave us the go ahead for another night.  Since the anchorage was just to cut the length of the trip to Annapolis, Fred checked the mileage, and it was not as many miles as he had originally thought.  It would not be that long a day.  The rainy day was well spent including some relaxing and we enjoyed a delicious crockpot dinner.

July 10, 2022: Solomons, and the Calvert Marine Museum

Today was cloudy but no rain in the forecast.  Solomons Island is not a big island.  Fred decided we should take our bikes out and explore.  I am not as comfortable riding a bike as he is, but I agreed it was a good idea, and I really needed to get used to the bike.  A small town was a good place to do this.  We rode around much of the island checking out restaurants and the waterfront.  I didn’t see much because I was more focused on maintaining my balance and staying out of the way of cars. 

A small bridge just before the yellow building crosses a gap in the peninsula that makes Solomons an “island”
Little churches
Big churches
Bike friendly

I did want to see the Calvert Marine Museum which featured the historic Drum Point Lighthouse.  We made the decision to walk back a little later to visit the museum.  We also needed to allow time to wash the outside of the boat.

The museum offered much history about maritime matters in this area of the Chesapeake.  The lighthouse closed an hour before the museum, so we toured it first.  Built in 1883 to mark the northern approach to the Patuxent River, it was no longer a working lighthouse and was moved from its original site in 1975.    It was a hexagonal wooden structure built on seven iron screwpiles. 

The prefabricated and numbered parts were assembled on the site in thirty-three days.  A fourth-order Fresnel lens was installed showing a fixed red light.  That was changed in 1911 to a fixed white with three red sectors. 

There were living quarters on the first floor which included a kitchen, sitting room, and two bedrooms.  There were two rooms on the second floor.  One of these housed the bell striking mechanism.  At the very top was the light itself. 

Water for use came from four 200-gallon tanks which collected water from the roof.  An outhouse on the first level seemed to be the only “bathroom”.  There was a straight set of ladder type stairs leading through a tight opening to get to the first floor.  The other stairs were narrow, spiral stairs.  Folks in those days had to be small!

Stairs down to boat deck

This museum has quite an extensive list of activities and educational opportunities available.  One thing that really fascinated me was a remote-control mini sailboat race on the waterfront.  I was told there were no motors, only sails. 

You could also row a boat around in their little basin.  This was great for families, and we saw families taking advantage of this offering.  I remember rowing boats at camp. I loved it!  There was a building outside with a variety of old, small boats.  We took a quick walk around inside the museum, which included a discussion of slaves who were used to grow tobacco.  There was more to see than time allowed.

By now you know that we are always looking for good places to treat ourselves to ice cream.  We planned to end our walk with ice cream.  The only place we could comfortably walk to was soft serve.  We decided on milkshakes.  These were expensive, not satisfying and definitely not worth the money or calories.  It’s all part of the adventure.

We returned to Betty Lou and together washed the outside. 

Clean Betty Lou

It was then time for showers.  Fred first went for a dip in the pool.  I went straight to the showers.  Disappointment number two – the water never got hot!  I braved it and got clean – adventure!

The beautiful sunset at the end of the day once again reminded me of how privileged we are!

Captain’s Comments: Solomons

Easy, bikeable town. A 10′ gap in the peninsula makes it an island. Good maritime museum, but worst ice cream value of the trip, so far. Interestingly, they grow corn on the peninsula.

Besides interesting dock fixtures (discussed yesterday), Safe Harbor Zahnisers offers a pool (best of the trip, with lifeguard), well equipped and spacious captain’s lounge, on-site restaurant (we didn’t eat there), free shuttle service to stores, and especially interesting these days, ability to charge an EV.

Showers were adequate, but old. A bathhouse and laundry renovation were in progress.