PropTalk Magazine November 2022

Now Reserving Winter Storage

30

on the cover

Features

28

Boat Notes: Wellcraft 355

This completely fresh cruiser represents a new dawn for Wellcraft Boats.

By Lenny Rudow

30

See the Bay: Tangier Island, VA

A visit to Tangier is an opportunity to step back in time and immerse yourself in Chesapeake Bay watermen’s culture and history.

By Kelsey Bonham

33

Powerboat Winterization: The Power of the Pickle

Whatever you do right in the fall, you won’t have to repair in the spring.

By Capt. Mike Martel

38

38Lifelong Friendships Built Around Boating

Collectively, this group of college friends have thousands of Bay and ICW miles under their belts.

By Mike Pitchford

41

Destination Lake Anna, VA

This watery destination is just a short hop via land yacht from the friendly confines of the Chesapeake.

By Craig Ligibel

68 Kiptopeke Fishing Adventure

Put this red-hot fishing destination in Cape Charles, VA, on your list.

By Kaylie Jasinski

Aileen McCausland enjoying her birthday (and the end of summer) on her new-to-her 11-foot Boston Whaler on Bear Creek in Dundalk. Photo by Mark Hergan, Deadrise Marine Photography

Dog: Finley

Calendar

by the boatyard

Don’t Fear the Blue Water By Joe Roberts

Charter Series Part III: A Sample BVI Itinerary By Kaylie Jasinski

Cruising Club Notes

by arGo

Classic Boat: Classic Boating on the C&O Canal

Chris “Seabuddy” Brown presented by annapolis Gelcoat

Tides and Currents

by hidden harbour

Biz Buzz: Chesapeake Business

Brokerage: Used Boats for

Marketplace: Services,

Index of Advertisers

Bay People: Pete Mathews

Told to Beth Crabtree

by herrinGton harbour

PropTalk Monthly Subscription

Racing News

News: Smith Island Crab Skiff

National Hard Crab Derby,

Kent Island Regatta, and Hampton Cup Regatta

Boatshop Reports

Boatshop Reports By Capt. Rick Franke

by bay shore Marine

Fishing Scene

Fish News By FishTalk Editor Lenny Rudow

Big Ocean Rockfish By Eric Burnley

Fish Tip: Put it Away Clean By Eric Burnley

Coming in December PropTalk

Boat Parades

the Chesapeake Yacht Club

Proud to Earn the Five Star Marine Industry Certification

The Marine Retailers Association of the Americas (MRAA) announced that Pocket Yacht Company of Maryland has earned Certification as a Five Star Marine Industry Certified Dealership this past June.

Becoming a Marine Industry Certified Dealership is a huge accomplishment for everyone on our team. Our goal has always been to transfer our passion for boating to our customers and create a pleasurable buying experience from start to finish. Completing this certification program has helped us not only better our dealership, but better your experience.

As a family-owned and operated dealership, we are dedicated to our customers and our community. Thank you for your continued support of our small business!

you on the water!

Mark Schulstad

Managing Director

Pocket

612 Third Street, Suite 3C, Annapolis, MD 21403 (410) 216-9309 proptalk.com

PUBLISHER

Mary Iliff Ewenson, mary@proptalk.com

A SSOCIATE PUBLISHER

Chris Charbonneau, chris@proptalk.com

MANAGING EDITOR

Molly Winans, molly@proptalk.com

EDITOR

Kaylie Jasinski, kaylie@proptalk.com

SENIOR EDITOR

Beth Crabtree, beth@proptalk.com

CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Lenny Rudow, FishTalk Editor, lenny@fishtalkmag.com

ADVERTISING SALES

Eric Richardson, eric@proptalk.com

COPY EDITOR

Lucy Iliff, lucy@proptalk.com

EDITORIAL ASSISTANT

Kelsey Bonham

CUSTOMER SERVICE MANAGER

Brooke King, brooke@proptalk.com

DISTRIBUTION /BROKERAGE /CLASSIFIEDS MANAGER

Beatrice Roderick , beatrice@proptalk.com

ART DIRECTOR / PRODUCTION MANAGER

Zach Ditmars, zach@proptalk.com

GRAPHIC DESIGNER / PRODUCTION ASSISTANT Royal Snyder, royal@proptalk.com

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Chris “Seabuddy” Brown, Eric Burnley Sr., Steve d’Antonio, Capt. Rick Franke, Charlie Iliff, Craig Ligibel, Kendall Osborne, and Ed Weglein (Historian)

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS

Paul Denbow, Dennis J. Falkowski, Al Schreitmueller, and Thomas C. Scilipoti

DISTRIBUTION

Martin and Betty Casey, Gregory G. Greenwell Sr., Dave Harlock, Abbey Iliff, Ron and Colleen Ogden, John and Chrissy Wathen

PropTalk is a monthly magazine for and about Chesapeake Bay boaters. Reproduction of any part of this publication is strictly prohibited without prior consent of the officers of SpinSheet Publishing Company. SpinSheet Publishing Company accepts no responsibility for discrepancies in advertisements.

PropTalk is available by first class subscription for $45 a year, and back issues are available for $4 each. Mail payment to PropTalk Subscriptions, 612 Third Street, Suite 3C, Annapolis, MD, 21403.

PropTalk is distributed free of charge at more than 950 establishments along the shores of the Chesapeake. Businesses or organizations wishing to distribute PropTalk should contact the PropTalk office at (410) 216-9309 or beatrice@proptalk.com.

ember o f:

© 2022 SpinSheet Publishing Company

As Summer Collapses Into Fall...

By Kaylie Jasinski

By the time this issue hits the streets, the powerboat show will have come and gone, the first leaves will have begun to change and fall, and there’s a new crispness in the air that seems to have come out of nowhere. Looking back a few weekends, I was at the beach if you can believe it. Now, it’s 52 degrees and rainy. Oscar Wilde once said, “And all at once, summer collapsed into fall.” No other season feels quite so surprising as fall when that first really cool day hits. Sometimes it comes about suddenly, just days after you were wearing shorts and flip flops. Other times, it’s so mild and happens so gradually that you don’t even notice until it’s practically winter.

As boaters, fall often signals the end of the season for many (most) of us, un less you’re lucky enough to cruise south for the winter or (crazy enough?) to keep your boat in the water throughout the cold weather months.

While the hurricane season actually starts in June, fall heralds talks of hur ricane preparedness in the Mid-Atlantic region (find tips on page 24). And it also,

sadly, means winterization, unless you were one of the few lucky snowbirds mentioned above. This month, Capt. Michael L. Martel shares winterization tips and best practices on page 33.

If you’re already dreaming of cruis ing adventures for next year, Kelsey Bonham wrote a great See the Bay this month on Tangier Island, VA, which is one of only two inhabited offshore islands remaining in the Chesapeake (page 30). You’ll also want to check out Craig Ligibel’s feature on Lake Anna, VA, which is just a short hop from the Bay via land yacht (you can opt to rent a boat on the lake or trailer your own) on page 41.

Joe Roberts, who a few months ago shared with us the story of his liveaboard dreams becoming a real ity, is back this month with the tale of transporting his new-to-him trawler from Virginia to Connecticut with the help of good friends (page 44). And Mike Pitchford will hopefully inspire all of us to take more cruises with friends, no matter how much life might try to get in the way (page 38).

Autumn also means great fishing op portunities and the end of the Chesapeake Bay powerboat racing season. Find race recaps and photos on page 52. And in our fishing section, you’ll find an article about my recent Kiptopeke fishing adventure which should definitely go on your to-do list for next year (page 68). It just so hap pened to be the most prolific fishing day of the year! And if you haven’t yet signed up for Fish For a Cure on November 5 (what are you waiting for?!), now is the time. Even if you don’t plan to partici pate in the tournament, please consider making a donation under Team FishTalk/ PropTalk (or any team for that matter— it’s all for the same great cause). Learn more at fishforacure.org

As summer collapses into fall and fall collapses into winter, we can take with us the memories of another amazing season on the Chesapeake Bay, and plan for the year to come. We hope this issue of PropTalk helps in both regards.

# Savor these summer moments, because beforeyou know it, 25 years have gone by in a blink.

# As evidenced by this photo of my mom and brother from 1997!

Editor’s Note

Back in September I wrote what I hoped was a cheeky take on RVs vs. boats for my editor’s note. As I wrapped up the end of summer, I began to think more on this debate and wanted to add one thing that wasn’t mentioned a few months ago. Boating, like camping, can look so different for different people. For example, in camping alone you have so many subsets—tent campers, van lifers, RVs that you drive, RVs that you trailer, pop-up campers, fifth wheels, and the list goes on. In boating too, you could spend all day talking about the different types of boats and boaters on the Chesapeake Bay: stand-up paddleboarders, kayak fishermen, trawlers, large cruising yachts, center consoles, bow riders… So perhaps it wasn’t fair to compare one style of boating versus one style of camping and call it RVs vs. boats.

In my parent’s case, they trade off weekends between the RV and the boat but always seem to be doing one or the other. And more importantly, they use the two in different ways. While the RV is for farther-afield explorations, the boat allows them to “take a vacation for the day.” As soon as they cast off from the pier, even if only for a few hours, all their stress just melts away. Could they take their particular boat on longer journeys? Absolutely. But for now, they prefer explor ing waterways close to home. There is inevitably more stress that comes with planning longer excursions, by water or by land, and it’s nice to know that their boat will always be a place to escape stress (the boat’s name is Remedy after all).

If you are a boater and a camper, I welcome your thoughts on this matter. Feel free to email me at kaylie@proptalk.com

Send your questions, comments and stories to kaylie@proptalk.com

Boat Dog

Meet Finley

Dawn Bahen shares these photos of her 15-month-old Pomsky (husky mix) Finley, “Finn” for short. She says, “Finley suffers from ‘fear of missing out.’ Strap on the life vest and he is ready to go! When he is done navigating, bird watching, and saying hello to all who pass by, he enjoys chilling at the feet of the captain. Finley took his first swim lesson this summer and no doubt he is hooked! Who would have thought a husky to be so nautical?! We have a 21foot Sea Hunt Ultra and dock it at Town Point Marina in Tracys Landing.”

Want to see your dog featured in PropTalk? Email one to three photos and a short description to kaylie@proptalk.com.

October Word Search

his month, we did a random drawing of all the correct submissions. The prize: a PropTalk ball cap. Congratulations to Trae Reuwer! Thank you to everyone for participating and stay tuned for our next puzzle in an upcoming issue.

T

Racer Profile

ust wanted to reach out and thank you again for do ing the article (“Courtney Mangini: Blasting Down the Bay,” page 100 in the October PropTalk). It came out great! I have gotten so many compliments from friends and the boating community. They all loved it! Thank you so much for taking the time and interest in my story. It meant the world to me and it was a great experience!

J

~Courtney Mangini

# PropTalk office dog Bodhi models the word search prize (don’t worry, we gave Trae a new hat).

Help us Fish For a Cure!

If you only participate in one fishing tournament per year, it should be Fish For a Cure (F4AC). Over the past 15 years, F4AC has raised more than $4 million to support the Can cer Survivorship program at Luminis Health Anne Arundel Medical Center’s (LH AAMC) Geaton and JoAnn DeCesaris Cancer Institute.

LH AAMC programs that are donor funded provide social, emo tional, physical, and psychological support for patients and families as they navigate treatment and recovery from illness. Donations made through F4AC support more than 2000 people experiencing the unique challenges of a cancer diagnosis with access to critically needed psychosocial services, including nurse navigation, nutrition counseling, psychosocial well-being, and oncology rehabilitation services.

This year’s 16th annual Fish For a Cure charity fishing tournament takes place November 5. Here are a few ways you can get involved:

Fish the Tournament

This is a catch, photo, release tourna ment for striped bass—the three longest fish must be logged on the iAngler tour nament app. Other categories include the Grand Slam (heaviest stringer of three unique Bay species, excluding rock fish), heaviest stringer of three perch, and heaviest stringer of three invasive species (catfish and/or snakehead).

The entry fee is $500 per boat (for the captain and up to three anglers) and $150 per additional angler. There is also a kayak division—a four-man kayak team may register as one boat and will be afforded the same privileges and be required to abide by the same rules as any individual registered boat. But the tournament is about more than catching the biggest fish; each entry is expected to raise at least $1500 in the Paul C. Dettor Captain’s Challenge. The deadline to register is October 31.

Attendance at the Captain’s Meet ing, November 2 from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Annapolis Maritime Museum, is

#

Even if you don’t plan to fish the tournament, you can still help this amazing cause by making a donation under a specific team (preferably Team FishTalk/PropTalk!).

mandatory. One crew member from each team must be present to learn about the tournament rules and procedures and pick up the team’s captain’s bucket.

Following the tournament, celebrate with live music, a buffet-style dinner, and an open bar at the Shore Party. Tourna ment winners and awards will be an nounced from 4 to 5 p.m. and the Shore Party runs 5 to 9 p.m. at South Annapolis Yacht Centre. For those not registered in the tournament, party tickets cost $150 per person. All proceeds support the tour nament’s cause.

Help a Boat

Even if you don’t plan to fish in the tournament, you can still get involved by donating to a team and helping them win the Captain’s Challenge. You can also just make a general donation to the Fish For a Cure cause. If you want to help Team FishTalk/PropTalk, make a donation under our team’s name, and stay tuned for our online silent auction fundraiser as we get closer to the event. Prizes up for bid include guided fishing trips, polarized sunglasses, fishing tackle and lures, books, and more! We are still finalizing details— stay tuned for updates on our Facebook page.

Marina Challenge

The Marina Challenge is a fun competi tion to see which marina can have the most boats registered in the tournament. If you’re a captain, make sure to designate your preferred marina in the write-in box when you register. To register your ma rina as a participant, download the F4AC Marina Challenge Packet and submit your registration form to fishforacure@ aahs.org. Once your information has been received, your marina will be added to the F4AC boat registration page.

Visit fishforacure.org to register your boat, make a donation, check out the fundraising leaderboard, and learn more about the amazing cause this tournament supports. This event should be on every one’s radar. We hope to see you there!

Last Minute Tips for Snowbirds

By Kelsey Bonham

Headed south this season? If so, you’re probably in the final stages of your planning and preparation. Hopefully, you already have most of your route planned, your crew established, and your boat ready to go. Now, it’s just down to the de tails. So here are a few last-minute tips and reminders to make the beginning of your journey stress-free.

Remember to check in with mari nas and make reservations in advance as you move down and out of the Bay. You’ll likely be traveling alongside many other boaters who are aimed for the same marinas that you are. Find ing out that a slip isn’t available with little time to change plans is not the best way to start your evening.

If you’re less familiar with the Southern Bay, remember that the wa ter is bigger down there. Weather roll ing in from the Atlantic can kick up bigger waves, marinas and anchorages are further apart, and your destination for the night will likely be more rural with sparser access to grocery stores and other amenities.

As you leave the Bay, you’ll prob ably find yourself making a stop in Norfolk, VA. The waters of the Eliza beth River can be a bit daunting for someone who’s never passed through before, with all the tugs, barges, cargo

# As you leave the Bay, you’ll probably find yourself making a stop in Norfolk, VA.

ships, and naval ships, but don’t be intimidated. The naval police boats guarding the base won’t cause you any trouble as long as you don’t get too close, and the tugs and barges are used to avoiding smaller boats. Just don’t get too lost in your chartplotter that you forget to look up!

If you’ll be taking the Intracoastal Waterway (ICW), check in with the railroad bridges in Norfolk. The numerous railroad bridges that cross the Elizabeth River are usually left up when there is no train passing through, but sometimes they get shut down for repairs and may be left closed for a day or more. Listen closely to any notices about bridge closures that may come through your VHF. If you’re planning on going through the Great Dismal Swamp, make sure you know the lock schedule and time your approach accordingly, as the lock tender will not want to hold it for a late boater, and there is nowhere to drop an anchor and wait.

This is probably obvious, but worth mentioning anyway. It is still the peak of hurricane season, so make sure you have a plan to be flexible and find a hurricane hole. Also be sure to watch the weather on a daily basis. Many ICW travelers make the mistake of relaxing their weather watching after

#

If you’re planning on going through the Great Dismal Swamp, make sure you know the lock schedule and time your approach accordingly.

they’ve left the Bay due to the ICW’s reputation as an easygoing “nautical highway,” but there are still plenty of large crossings where weather matters.

The Albemarle Sound in North Caro lina is definitely one of them.

Lastly, take a minute to congratulate yourself on the work you’ve done to get to the point where you’re ready to cast off the lines and go. Even if you’re a veteran snowbird, it takes a lot of plan ning and effort to get ready to go south, whether it’s your first time or your 10th. Now that you’re about to depart or have just done so, slow down, see the sights along the way, and don’t get so caught up in planning that you forget to enjoy it.

Making Every Day on the Water Count

Even if it’s hosted by a sailing magazine, the SpinSheet Century Club is open and free to all boat ers seeking a challenge. To qualify for the club, aspiring members must log 100 on-water days, aboard any type of vessel, within the calendar year.

Eric Packard, kayak angler and vet eran club member, who has logged 107 days so far in 2022, says, “Joining the Century Club and participating over the past few years has inspired me keep at it. I love the challenge as I get closer to 100 days and trying to beat my prior year on the water.”

Dave Nestel, who has logged a whop ping 230 days this year, calls himself “a powerboater at heart that has a sailing and paddling habit.” He says, “Since April 23, I have spent some of the most fun days on the water this summer on my ‘new to me’ Jet Ski and center console runabout. I have taken 58 rides between the two of them to date… It would be great to see more of my pow erboat brethren join in on the fun in the Century Club!”

Doug and Becky Firth have logged 150 days in 2022. Becky says, “Our six-month on-the-water travel experi ence on our Wilbur 34 Downeast sedan exploring the Atlantic Intracoastal, Okeechobee, and Gulf Intracoastal Waterways exceeded all expectations… Every day we learned something about history, geography, math, science, and … our boat! We were never bored but often overwhelmed by just how cool living and traveling on a boat can be.”

PropTalk contributor Mike Pitchford, who is at 114 days, aims for 140 this year. He says, “We have taken our boat to Florida almost every year since the winter of 2015-16. If I had been logging from the beginning, we would have probably exceeded 100 days most years.”

Does Mike have words of encourage ment for aspiring Century Club mem bers? “It is said that time on the water does not count in your allotted time on earth. In other words, time on the water adds to your lifespan. It surely adds to your life!”

To learn more, visit spinsheet.com/century-club

New Virtual Media Platform Dedicated to Sportsmen and Women

Harvester’s aim is to unite hunt ers, anglers, and shooting sports enthusiasts using their com bined passion for the great outdoors. As an industry-wide centralized resource, Harvester will strive to grow participa tion in hunting, fishing, and shooting, as well as showcase the wildlife and habitat conservation efforts funded by the industry.

Unique, personal profiles connect each member to other outdoor enthusiasts, regional charters and guides, conservation groups, affiliations, and retailers all related to outdoor recreation. Daily posts, videos, photos, and articles fill an ongoing feed as new and exciting experiences are shared, tips and tricks are uncovered, industry news and reports are disclosed, new prod ucts are announced, and celebrations of

outdoor sporting hobbies are spotlighted. Destinations are front and center in order to highlight their desirable loca tions for the next planned experience; providing first-hand insights on where to go, what to use, and when is best.

We’re Hiring!

Today, sportsmen and women are the largest supporters of wildlife conserva tion, providing more than $1.5 billion annually through federal and state restoration programs. “To us it is simple. There is an obvious need to grow the hunting and fishing community,” said Ben Isenberg, founder of Harvester. “The funding and support is critical to managing our public natural resources. However, recruitment has been an issue and we feel the voice of the industry is fragmented across too many digital platforms.”

A common practice on other content platforms, Harvester does not rely on an algorithm that promotes content based on the company’s business objectives. “At Harvester, we want club members to decide what content to follow and see,” said Isenberg. “Club members can monitor and engage with content based on their preferences as all content can be tagged and monitored by species, locations, brands, and even gear type. Members can dive deep into their pas sion, yet also easily access industry wide initiatives, policy updates, conservation efforts, tournaments and events, and new hunting, fishing, and shooting opportu nities.”

Harvester is free and without limits. Start sharing, exploring, and connecting today. Sign up at: harvester.club. See you in the club.

Greenline

are

Fall Safe Boating Tips

Fall boating season has arrived, and with it come different types of risks that cold water and air temperatures bring. The BoatUS Foundation for Boating Safety and Clean Water shares these three boating safety tips just right for leaf peeping season.

1. File a float plan.

A float plan is as simple as telling a responsible person where you will be going and when you’ll be back. With fewer boats on the water after Labor Day, a float plan ensures rescuers will be notified if you ever fail to check back in after your outing. Additionally, leaving a note under your vehicle’s windshield wiper at the launch ramp can help trigger an alarm.

2. Have a way back into the boat if you fall overboard.

Falls overboard may be ranked number five on the 2021 U.S. Coast Guard’s list of the “Top Five Primary Accident Types” with 273 accidents, but they also led the most number of deaths (170 fatal), as well as more fatalities than all the other top four accident types combined (number one: collision with vessel—1226 accidents/31 fatal; number two: collision with fixed object—508 accidents/43 fatal; number three: flooding/swamping—461 accidents/55 fatal; number four: grounding—308 accidents/23 fatal). Your boarding ladder should be functional and accessible as cold water can quickly sap strength. If your boat doesn’t have a built in-ladder, a compact emergency ladder or even a looped line attached to a cleat, pre-rigged with foothold loops every few inches and hung over the transom, can substitute.

3. Wear a high visibility lifejacket. Camo styling hides a danger—dark green, tan, and black camo patterns are remarkable at doing exactly as designed, blending you into your surroundings. However, that’s not a benefit if you happen to be floating in the water and rescuers are searching. If possible, make their job easier and wear a lifejacket with high visibility. For smaller vessels and paddlers, leaf peeping season is also a really good time to secure the lifejacket to your body—that includes using buckle snaps.

Go Green, Get Power!

Preparing for Peak Hurricane Season

By Kelsey Bonham

Hurricane season in the Atlantic runs from June through the end of November, but the vast majority of the strongest storms occur at the end of the season. This means that even if hurricanes haven’t been an issue for you so far this year, you’re not in the clear yet. The triple threat of high winds, heavy rains, and storm surges brought on by hurricanes can be seriously bad news for your boat, but having a plan in place can help protect both your boat and everyone else’s if the time comes.

Your hurricane plan should be unique to your vessel, your location, and the forecast for the storm. If you’re not confident about your boat’s current slip, you may want to move it to a nearby hurricane hole, haul it out, or move it onto your trailer, depending on your situation. If your boat will stay in the water, floating docks with tall pilings are the best option for riding out a storm surge. Make sure your docklines are strong and secure—they should be

free of wear, the appropriate gauge for your boat or larger, and properly cleated. Doubling your docklines, adding ad ditional spring lines, and adding chafe gear are all good ideas. If your boat is at a fixed dock, make sure your lines are set to handle a storm surge—rising waters are notorious for snapping lines and set ting boats adrift.

Disconnecting from shore power may help you avoid the potential conse quences of the dock’s power lines being submerged. It’s also a good idea to check in with your marina about their hur ricane plan and report any boats that ap pear unprepared to marina management. Make sure your marina knows how to reach you in case of an emergency.

If your boat is hauled and blocked, do what you can to ensure that jackstands won’t slip in high winds, such as asking your yard to chain them together or add extra stands or blocks. If your yard has anchor points in the ground, strapping your boat down may also be a good idea. If your boat is trailerable, make sure the

boat and trailer are secure—again, strap ping them down may be the best option.

No matter where your boat will ride out a hurricane, remove everything that could get ripped off by high winds. This includes biminis, covers, extra fuel cans, dinghies, cushions, important documents, and any loose gear. Last but certainly not least, make sure that you give yourself plenty of time to execute your plan. The one silver lining of hurricanes is that we can see them coming, so don’t wait until the day before they hit to make sure your boat is ready!

The Best Direct access to the Bay!

# The author prepares her sailboat for the lingering effects of Hurricane Ian this fall.

Cape Charles Community Helps a

in

By Karen Soule

“I cannot forget from where it is that I come from; I cannot forget the people who love me; Yeah, I can be myself here in this small town; And people let me be just what I want

That song by John Mellencamp pret ty much describes Cape Charles, VA, and its native son, Kalab Robinson. In August, 20-year-old Kalab was in a horrific car accident in North hampton County, paralyzing him from the neck down. Once he was transported to a Norfolk hospital, his childhood friends and hometown of Cape Charles banded together to raise money to help pay for his recovery.

Their efforts culminated on August 27 at the Cape Charles town docks where hundreds gathered for the Kalab Robin son Benefit Seafood Steam. All-you-can eat crabs and oysters, along with a silent auction with items donated by local retailers, attracted hundreds of locals and visiting boaters. And the common refrain from everyone there was, “This is what a small town does for one of its own.”

Kalab is the first mate on the fishing vessel, Lady Lynnae, owned by his child hood friend Scott Wivell. Scott, along with another childhood buddy, Donald Rogers, quickly jumped into action, rounding up support from other watermen and businesses in Cape Charles.

“Our goal was to raise enough money to pay for an Angel MedFlight to get him to a rehab hospital in Atlanta,” says Donald. “We needed $10,000.”

They raised $45,000.

“We were blown away by the sup port we got from the town,” says Maria Stevens of Machipongo, VA, Kalab’s mom. “We got approval for the Angel Flight to Norfolk and because of all this, we can help Kalab take his body as far as it will go.”

The report from the Atlanta rehab hospital is encouraging. “He’s got some movement in the upper half of his body and is now in a wheelchair,” reports Don ald. His family, friends, and community are hoping he continues to improve. His place on Lady Lynnae will be waiting for him when he does.

Through Oct 31

the Great chesapeake Invasives count

An angling based effort to provide important data to Maryland DNR, USFWS, and other management agencies on what you’re seeing on the water. Fishery managers need help in understanding where invasive species are being caught, and with what regularity or how much effort. Presented by CCA-MD on the iAngler tournament app. Prizes awarded to up to 10 winners every month. Register for free at ccamd.org/count

6-17 Weems & Plath tent Sale

October 6-9 and October 13-17 at Weems & Plath in Annapolis. Huge savings on discontinued, overstock, and sample items.

8-16

maryland rod and reef Slam

Angling for oyster restoration. Join CBF for a unique fishing tournament that celebrates the difference restored oyster reefs are making in the return of healthy, diverse populations of Chesapeake Bay reef fish. Register at cbf.org

13-17 United States Sailboat Show

At City Dock, Annapolis, MD. Purchase tickets at annapolisboatshows.com

15

October

chesapeake Fishing open

At the Baltimore Yacht Basin. Anglers are vying to catch the biggest rockfish, catfish, snakehead, and white perch. Works to support local nonprofits focused on improving water quality and promoting conservation efforts in and around the harbor and the Patapsco. Party and awards at Nick’s Fish House. chesapeakefishingopen.com

15 8th annual Patapsco open

Trolling only rockfish tournament. Captain’s Meeting will be held Wednesday, October the 12th, 6:30 p.m. at the Rumor Reel.

15

ccWbra oktoberfest regatta

At Safe Harbor Great Oak Landing in Chestertown, MD. Spectators welcome! Cocktail Class Wooden Boat Racing Association.

15

FSFF monthly Hands-on Session

10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Free State Fly Fishers Clubhouse (behind Ford Hall) at the Davidsonville Family Recreation Center, MD. Adam Bange will teach club members how to tie deerhair poppers using the stacking hair technique. Free to FSFF members and visitors. Please contact Ryan Harvey at rybeer@gmail.com with any questions.

Fresh Seafood Specials & Oyster Selections Daily

400 Fourth St Annapolis, MD boatyardbarandgrill.com 410-216-6206

15 eYc’s Party in the Portboat Show edition

At Eastport Yacht Club in Annapolis. Music by Dublin 5.

15-16

56th annual U.S. oyster Festival

At the St. Mary’s County Fairgrounds in Leonardtown, MD. Home of the U.S. national oyster shucking championship and the national oyster cookoff.

20 cbmm Fall Speaker Series

Our Coming Coast: panel discussion about climate change in Chesapeake communities. 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Van Lennep Auditorium at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michaels, MD. $8 per person, limited tickets available. Register at cbmm.org

22 cPr/aeD and First aid for boaters

Upon completion of the training, students will receive an American Heart Association Course Completion Card in CPR, AED & First Aid. 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Selby Bay Yacht Club, 1116 Turkey Point Rd. Edgewater, MD 21037. $100 for CAPCA and SBYC members and their families; $115 for all others. Email questions to education@capca.net

For more details and links to event websites, visit proptalk.com/calendar

27 celebration of conservation Fundraiser banquet

Join the Annapolis chapter of Coastal Conservation Association at the Chesapeake Bay Foundation Philip Merrill Center for a fundraiser dinner that directly supports CCA MD’s focus on ensuring the health of our marine resources and anglers access to them, and our objective to conserve, promote and enhance our marine resources for the benefit of the general public. ccamd.org

29 cbmm oysterFest

10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michaels, MD. Rain or shine. Featuring oysters served a variety of ways, along with other local fare, craft beer, and spirits, plus live music, an oyster stew competition, cooking demonstrations, Chesapeake Bay retriever and oystering demonstrations, children’s activities, and more.

29-30

ccWbra

Downrigging Demo

In Chestertown, MD. Spectators welcome! Cocktail Class Wooden Boat Racing Association.

November 1 - Feb 28, 2023

cca maryland Pickerel championship

Target chain pickerel all winter long in this catch, photo, release tournament to compete for great prizes including Panfish, Kayak, Fly, and Youth divisions. Learn more at ccamd.org

2 cbmm Fall Speaker Series Shaping a Landscape: The Archaeology & History of People in the Chesapeake. 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Van Lennep Auditorium at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michaels, MD. $8 per person. Register at cbmm.org

2 kent Island Fishermen monthly meeting

7:30 pm at American Legion 278. Contact: Bert, 302.399.5408. Speaker: CJ Canby of the FV Miss Paula. He is a local crabber who will be speaking to us about the crabbing season for local watermen and some myths that we didn’t know about.

# Don’t miss the Youth Fishing Derby at the Waterfowl Festival in Easton on Saturday, November 12-13 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

FSFF monthly meeting 7 to 9 p.m. at the Free State Fly Fisher’s Clubhouse (behind Ford Hall) at the Davidsonville Family Recreation Center in Davidsonville, MD. Speaker: Jim Delle Bovi’s “Inshore Kayak Fishing the Delmarva Peninsula.” Please contact Ryan Harvey at rybeer@gmail.com with any questions

2

4-5

Urbanna oyster Festival

Hospitality tents throughout Urbanna, VA, wine and beer tastings, oyster tastings, discounts at local businesses, shucking contest, and more.

5

16th annual Fish For a cure tournament

Register your crew for the F4AC tournament, Paul C. Dettor Captain’s Challenge, and Shore Party to be held at South Annapolis Yacht Centre. This tournament supports the Cancer Survivorship program at Luminis Health Anne Arundel Medical Center’s (LH AAMC) Geaton and JoAnn DeCesaris Cancer Institute. Register/donate at fishforacure.org

5

the mariners’ Park Fall Festival

1 to 5 p.m. at the Mariners’ Museum and Park in Newport News, VA. Food trucks, beer and cider tastings, pumpkin decorating, kids activities, and more. Entrance to the festival is $2 per person. Children 3 and under are free. Tickets for tastings of craft beer and cider are $35 for Members, and $40 for nonmembers.

5 madness on the marshyhope

Join us for a family friendly fishing tournament and festival in Federalsburg with music, food trucks and educational presentations from DNR while the anglers fish. madnessonthemarshyhope. simpletix.com

9 Frederick Saltwater anglers club monthly meeting Frederick Saltwater Anglers meet monthly at 7 p.m. at the Frederick Elks Club, the second Wednesday of every month. Food starts at 6 p.m. and we have speakers, vendors, and raffles with 50/50s. Call Rob at 301.606.0392 for more information.

5

FSFF monthly Fly tying 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Free State Fly Fishers Clubhouse (behind Ford Hall) at the Davidsonville Family Recreation Center in Davidsonville, MD. Join us as one of our members instructs us on how to tie a couple of fly patterns and demonstrates proper tying techniques. Patterns to be determined. All materials will be provided. Please bring your vise and tying tools if you have them. Please contact Ryan Harvey at rybeer@gmail.com with any questions.

11-13 51st Waterfowl Festival

Featuring a wildlife and nature art show; craft brews, wines, and delicacies of the Chesapeake; kid’s fishing derby; retriever demonstrations; birds of prey; buy, sell, swap and artifacts exhibit; world waterfowl calling championships, and more! Tickets $20 for all three days.

17 cbmm Fall Speaker Series

Our Common Table with Chef John Shields. 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Van Lennep auditorium at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in St. Michaels, MD. $20 per person. Register at cbmm.org

For more details and links to event websites, visit proptalk.com/calendar

Wellcraft 355: Event Horizon

This completely fresh cruiser represents a new dawn for Wellcraft Boats.

By Lenny Rudow

Wellcraft boats have been through a number of gen erational changes through the years, but their new 355 is nothing short of an evolutionary leap. Unlike anything the company has built in the recent past—or ever, for that matter—it signals a completely new direction for this iconic boatbuilder.

The 355 has the aggressive modern-yetretro look of today’s Euro-boats, combin ing a raked-windshield pilothouse with a plumb bow, angular hullside windows, and a sheerline running unbroken to the transom then bolting down to the swim platform. Aggressive looks are one thing, but aggressive performance is another, and the 355 delivers it in spades. Carrying triple outboard engines (300-hp Mercury or Yamahas or triple 350 Mercs) speeds reaching well into the 50s are in store, and Wellcraft says max power can get you to the 60-mph mark. The razor-sharp entry stands ready to slice open the chop, while the Michael Peters-designed hull delivers close to a mile

per gallon at cruise. The boat’s construc tion is just as modern as the look and performance, too, with vacuum infusion trimming displacement down to 11,636 pounds.

The 355 is designed to be an all-weath er cruiser, which is clear the moment you step from the cockpit into the fully en closed cabin. A dinette with an L-shaped settee sits aft to starboard across from the galley, and a pair of helm seats plus a pas senger’s side seat sit forward. Surrounded by glass the visibility is 360 degrees, and when the weather’s nice the aft open ing door and window plus opening side windows keep things light and airy. Note that the aft window swings up flush with the hard top overhang, so it’s not one of the forehead-banging devices you’ll find on some boats with similar designs. Both AC and diesel heating are options, too, so this boat could definitely see duty all 12 months of the year.

Speaking of year-round cruising: the forward cabin offers plenty of accommo dations including a queen berth forward, a fully enclosed head compartment with separate stand-up stall shower, plus stow age compartments. A nifty feature you’ll appreciate down below is the long hullside windows flanking the berth, which will let in plenty of natural sunlight. When guests are aboard for an overnighter the upper cabin dinette converts into a double berth. Since the berths are located in separate cabins that can be closed off with a door, you get a lot more privacy between the sleeping spaces than most 36-footers can deliver.

All-weather cruising is great, but when the sun’s shining, we’ll want to enjoy the great outdoors, right? The choice spot aboard will no doubt be the forward

lounger sitting atop the cabin, a triplewide affair with high, comfy backrests and fold-down arm rests. Forward there’s another seat, and when it’s time for lunch on the hook you can add in the removable dinette table. Note also that Wellcraft de signed in an extra-wide recessed sidedeck on the starboard side of the cabin as well as a side door at the helm, so the captain can pop out for easy access, and moving forward and aft is safe and secure.

The aft cockpit is one of the more customizable zones of the boat. You can have it with a teak deck or Seagrass car pet, with or without a three-person bench seat, and with or without a galley module with a sink, stowage, and drink holders. If the kids are into watersports, you can opt for the stainless-steel tow bar, and if some of your family members like to wet a

Specifications:

LOA: 35’11”

Beam:10’9”

Draft: TBD

Displacement: 11,636 lbs.

Fuel Capacity: 264 gal.

Water Capacity: 42 gal.

Max HP: 1050

Local Dealer: Clarks Landing Yacht Sales in Annapolis and Stevensville, MD. (410) 867-9550 or clarkslanding.com

Contact dealer for pricing.

line now and then, there’s also an optional fishing package with four rod holders and a cockpit module for stowing the tackle.

Savvy boaters who visit Wellcraft’s web site may notice that while the 355 appears alone on the home page, it’s under the heading “Performance Cruiser Series.” Yes, “Series.” We don’t know what’s coming from Wellcraft next, but it seems a safe bet that the 355 isn’t just a new model—it’s an entirely new direction. #

Shopping for a new or used boat?

browse our catalog of in-depth boat reviews by

visting proptalk.com or scan this code with your phone’s camera.

Located 12 miles from the Eastern Shore and just south of the Maryland-Virginia state line, Tangier Island is one of only two remaining inhabited offshore islands in the Chesapeake Bay. It has a population of just under 500 full-time residents, most of whom depend on the bounty of the Bay for a living and descend from generations of water men. If you can navigate the narrow channel and don’t mind a general lack of resources and provisions, Tangier is well worth the trip.

A visit to Tangier is an opportu nity to step back in time and im merse yourself in Chesapeake Bay watermen’s culture and history, see gorgeous white sandy beaches and plenty of wildlife, and enjoy fresh local seafood. You can also hear the iconic Tangier Island accent, which some historians believe is the closest living example to what some of the original English colonists may have sounded like, preserved over centuries due to the island’s isolation.

If coming into Tangier on your own boat, be aware that you won’t find fuel or pump out services, and groceries, sunscreen, and other essen tials are hard to come by; so make sure that you’re fueled up and have every thing you might need. If you do need to make a pit stop before your day or weekend on the island, Crisfield, MD, is the closest option. You should also

Tangier Island, VA

By Kelsey Bonham

be aware that Tangier is a dry island, so you cannot purchase alcohol there. You are allowed to bring your own but be respectful if you choose to drink.

There are two channels into the island: one from the Eastern Shore side and one from the Bay side. The Bay channel was seven feet deep or more all the way through as of September 2022, and the work boats and tour boats utilize both channels. The tidal swing is only one-and-a-half feet, but the current is strong through the narrow channels and sometimes forms unexpected eddies.

There is only one marina, Park’s Marina, which is located closer to the Bay side of the island. Park’s Marina has a row of 25 slips, but these are suitable only for boats drawing four feet or less. The marina has two alongsides that can sup port deeper drafts, one on the side of the white building running north to south and one on the front of the building running east to west. If you’re going for the one on the side, make sure you enter it between the dock and the free piling to avoid a three-foot shoal.

# Courtesy of NOAA

# A visit to Tangier is an opportunity to step back in time and immerse yourself in Chesapeake Bay watermen’s culture and history. Photo by Nic Bailey

The marina has 30- and 50-amp power, water, and showers. A brief stay costs $5, and an overnight stay costs $25 for boats up to 30 feet and $30 for boats over 30 feet. Milton Parks, the marina’s builder and longtime owner, unfortunately passed away this past year at age 90, so the obligations of the marina are now in the hands of his family. If no one is there to greet you, make sure you leave your slip fees in the labeled lockbox in front of the brick house.

You can also visit the island via one of several tour boats. Cruises depart from Reedville, VA, aboard Chesapeake Breeze (tangiercruise. com), from Crisfield, MD, aboard the Steven Thomas (tangierislandcruis es.com), and from Onancock, VA, aboard the Joyce Marie II (tangier ferry.com). Most cruises operate from May through September or October, although the Joyce Marie II operates year-round by special request. Cruises are usually one-day trips, arriving on the island in the morning and depart ing in the afternoon, but if you’d like to stay longer, you can usually book your return trip for the next day.

If you’d like to stay the night, or you’re coming on your own boat but would rather sleep on land, there are

# Tangier Island is one of only tworemaining inhabited offshore islands inthe Chesapeake Bay. Photo by Nic Bailey

several bed and breakfasts available. Watermen’s Hideaway (waterman shideaway.com) and Brigadune Inn (tangierisland-va.com/brigadune) are both lovely, quaint options, along with a few more options on AirBnB.

Once on the island, the walk into town from either Park’s Marina or the tour boat docks takes only a few minutes. You’ll quickly notice that there are very few cars—instead, most people get around the narrow streets with bikes or golf carts. If you’d like to rent a bike or golf cart of your own, you can do so at Four Brothers Crab House and enjoy an ice cream, soft serve, soda, or crab cake sandwich on their large, shaded deck while you’re there. Or, you can get a guided tour of the island from one of the residents that will likely be waiting in their golf carts nearby.

If you want to sit down to a meal, head over to Lorraine’s Seafood for fresh crab cakes, fish, shrimp, sandwiches, pizza, wraps, and salads. For tee shirts and other souvenirs, there are several small gift shops a few minutes’ walk from the docks. Keep in mind that many of these businesses close when the last tour boat leaves for the day—the gift shops, espe cially, will likely be closed by 3 or 4

in the afternoon. Lorraine’s Seafood is open until 8, and Four Brothers Crab House is open into the evening.

To learn more about the island and its residents, make sure you pay a visit to the Tangier History Museum. The one-room house can take anywhere from 30 minutes to several hours to go through, depending on how much you want to read. The museum features exhibits on the island’s prominent families, its role in American his tory (especially the War of 1812), the lives of watermen, and the islanders’ ongoing battles with erosion, sea level rise, and extreme weather. There is a 12-minute video that you can ask a volunteer to play for you. Admission is $3, and free for children and activeduty military or veterans.

To get off the beaten path, you can explore the island’s water trails via kayak with rentals from Cameron Evans, who offers single and double kayaks out of his photography studio located right next to the tour boat docks. There are several water trails to choose from that can take you around town or into the marshes. These trails are a great way to see wildlife—Tang ier is home to a variety of waterfowl and aquatic life that you can get up close and personal with via kayak.

# Photo by Nic Bailey

See the Bay

You can also take your rental bike, golf cart, or kayak to the beach on the southern end of the island. If you have the time, hike down to the end of the spit, where you’ll get a great view of the Tangier Sound Lighthouse and get to watch the waves converge between the Bay and the Sound. You may also see a small plane or two headed to the Tangier Island Airport.

While Tangier is certainly wellknown for its watermen, fresh seafood, unique accent, history, and wildlife, it may be best known for its erosion. The island has lost about 67 percent of its landmass between the 1960s and the present day, and some researchers anticipate that it will be uninhabitable by around 2050. The highest points on the island are less than five feet above sea level, putting residents at high risk of flooding and storm surges even without climate change. A visit to Tangier can help raise awareness of their plight, support their economy, and spread knowledge of the island’s unique history and culture before it is lost to time. #

About the Author: A recent graduate of Colgate University, Kelsey Bonham studied climate change and environmental justice. When not writing for PropTalk and SpinSheet, she works as an environmental educator with the Elizabeth River Project in Norfolk, VA.

# Park’s Marina is the only marina on the island.

# Photo by Nic Bailey

# Tangier is home to gorgeous white sandy beaches and plenty of wildlife.

The Power of the Pickle

By Capt. Michael L. Martel

Grandfather once told me, in refer ence to preparing a boat for the winter, that whatever you do right in the fall, when putting her away, you won’t have to repair in the spring. Spring time is, after all, when we find out just what we did wrong in the fall.

I learned this lesson one year when I neglected to properly drain my freshwater system. The water froze in the lines over the winter and, even though the lines were made of what I considered to be a somewhat flexible material, they split nonetheless and, in the spring, when I en gaged the pressure pump, there were leaks (some quite dramatic) everywhere. I had a lot of hose to replace, some of it in very inaccessible places, which resulted in a bit of strong language, mostly self-directed. Since then, I drain and pickle my freshwa ter lines every fall, whether I am expecting a harsh winter or a mild one, and flush them liberally in the spring at commis sioning time. As Ben Franklin once wrote, “Experience keeps a dear school,

but only fools will learn in it.” Ben, as we learn, actually spent a great deal of time in boats, primarily in crisscrossing the Atlan tic, so he ought to know something.

It’s fall, now. Winters in the Chesa peake region are not significantly different climactically from those in southern New England, where I hail from, and thus methods of winterization do not and should not vary significantly either. In many cases, marinas and boatyards with their teams of profes sional mechanics and boat systems special ists will handle various vessel winterization procedures for their cli ents, when contracted to do so. But there are also many more of us who are D.I.Y. boat owners and who always have been (and prob ably always will be), so there are a number of winterization tasks that must be performed ev ery year, done the same

way, and with the same level of detail. It is perfectly sensible to leave engine winter ization and cylinder-fogging, for example, to the yard’s professional mechanic. These folks know what they are doing, they do it all the time, and they can often spot other things that may be out of order and bring them to your attention, problems that you might not notice. They are well worth the money spent.

Cold and freezing are the enemies of the boat owner, and it follows that so also is moisture, seeping into decks around hardware and fittings, for example, and then freezing and causing delamination, rot, and a host of other issues over the idle winter months. Investing in a moisture meter, an instrument that can sense moisture below the surface of the deck, is therefore money well spent.

Among the DO’s and DON’Ts of winterization, some of these line items fall under the category of the familiar, the common-sense, and there are the notso-familiar items, but here are a few key things to remember:

• Change engine oil and sterndrive or lower unit oil before laying up.

This prevents acidic used oil from damaging internal parts.

# Late-season tour cruise on TEMMA. Photos courtesy of Capt. Tom Bradford

# Capt. Tom Bradford changes the fuel filters on TEMMA as part of end-of-season winterization.

• Fog gasoline engines to protect against internal rust. I also fogged my auxiliary diesel engines as well. After all, a piston is a piston, and steel against steel is a good way to freeze up an engine if condensation forms in the cylinder and rusts things together. When I was a lad, I recall Grandfather having to pull the cylinder head off the old Chrysler Crown engine every couple of years after a particularly harsh winter and put a chock of wood in the bore with oil and smack away at

it with a big wooden hammer to free up the pistons. Every hammer blow rang like a bell that could be heard floating across the springtime air at the boatyard.

• Fill gasoline tanks and treat the fuel with stabilizer, or completely drain to ward off ethanol-induced issues and stale gas the following spring. E10 fuel is a particular culprit. Generally, I have heard friends say that ethanolinfused gasoline is fresh for perhaps three weeks and no more. Bad fuel makes for a sick engine.

• Flush outboards with freshwater and store in their lowest position to prevent water from remaining inside and freezing. Let ‘er drain!

• Remove expensive electronics and fishing gear, and store at home to prevent damage or theft over the winter. Freezing is never good for any electronic device with a display. Should moisture work its way in over the summer, if it freezes, it can harm the display unit.

Dockage, Fuel, Service & Repairs

Complete

• Don’t use an electric heater. It will be very expensive to run and won’t make any appreciable difference anyway. Your heater can’t put out enough heat to make any difference. I learned this the hard and costly way one year. A boating fellow told me that, “The only real way to warm up the boat in the wintertime is to sail it to warmer waters.” Amen to that. If you can’t do that, put her up on the hard, charge her batteries, drain and pickle everything else, and don’t worry about her. I have known boatyard owners to fly into a frothing rage to find live extension cords in winter leading to boats that had a space heater running inside, or a battery charger, with no owner anywhere around. For some reason (vibration?), space heaters tend to move around and tip over. More boatyard fires have begun, and multiple boats destroyed, by electric space heaters carelessly or deliberately left running by an inconsiderate blockhead (wooden, double-ash block) of a boat owner.

• Visit your boat from time to time to check for such things amiss as loose jack stands, slack or slapping rigging, water pooling, loose tarp straps, anything dripping or leaking or not looking right. Look carefully, walk around the boat like pilots do their plane before a flight. Problems are not always obvious at first. Take your time.

If the engine is small enough, like a dinghy engine, it makes sense to remove it, or arrange to have it serviced by your favorite marina. It’s rarely cheap, but can you put a price on peace of mind? My venerable 9.9 two-stroke Yamaha dinghy motor, after its annual winterizing and fogging at my local boatshop, spends the rest of the winter upright in my backyard tool shed where it continued on page 36

is dry and out of the weather. During the worst Covid year, it saw almost no use, so I simply ran it in freshwater, drained it, and fogged the cylinders with over the shelf fogger and returned it to its shed. But any year that it sees any appreciable use, it goes to the engine shop. It’s not about saving money, really. Any money saved through skimping on maintenance is truly false economy.

Think Shrink!

Before You

This year, try a reusable cover

Did you know...

• Semi-custom covers cost the same as shrink-wrapping a 20- 30’ boat for two seasons.

• Reusable covers can last 5 - 10 years.

• Canvas shops can repair and clean reusable boat covers, extending their life even further.

• Installing a reusable cover on a small boat is easy and protects as well as plastic.

• Semi-custom reusable covers are available for most boats.

• Recylcing shrinkwrap is costly and difficult.

Shop online or ask your marina or local marine retailer for help with purchasing, cleaning, or repairing your cover. A list of marinas and canvas workers can be found on the Marine Trades Association of Maryland website (mtam.org)or in the Guide to Marine Services produced by MTAM each year.

REFUSE > REDUCE > REUSE > RECYCLE

The best way to begin is to make a list, or use someone else’s comprehensive list, and customize it to suit your own requirements. One size does not fit all, and yet if you rely on your own ideas only, you will probably miss something. There are many winter ization guides out there, and one of the best is offered by BoatUS. Simply Google “The Boater’s Guide to Winterizing” and you’ll have everything you need to know to comprehensively winterize your power (or sail) boat and systems.

It stands to reason that the more a boat is used in-season, the more comprehensive the end of season winterization process should be. That way, come spring, she’s mostly ready. If your boat is a hard-work ing boat driving tourists around a water way, and on top of that is nearly 100 years old, then winterization is an extra-detailed job. TEMMA, a wooden 42-foot moto ryacht built in Boothbay, ME, in 1928, is powered by a Perkins 632 diesel and gets extra care from her skipper, Capt. Tom Bradford. Such procedures as changing her fuel filters, sea strainer, and tending to her many needs and quirks keeps that classic running all season and set up to survive the cold winters without worry. “You absolute ly have to make a good list specific to the boat,” Bradford says, “And don’t ignore a single detail. Also make sure that sched uled maintenance procedures are done correctly and at their listed times.” #

Many thanks to Capt. Tom Bradford and Ken Hudson of the classic 1928 Motor yacht TEMMA. TEMMA takes sightseers around Newport, RI, Harbor and other local waters every summer. For more information, visit Newportclassicyachtco.com or email info@newportclassicyachtco.com

# 1928 wooden tour yacht TEMMA requires more meticulous maintenance and winterization procedures than modern pleasure boats.

Lifelong Friendships Built Around Boating

Back in college (the 70s), a bond was set for life with a few guys who were both fraternity broth ers and roommates in a succession of apartments after we all moved out of the dorms. Our alma mater, Old Domin ion University, is blessed to have the Chesapeake Bay as both a classroom and playground.

In those days, one of us had a sailboat, a venerable Cape Dory 25. I can’t tell you the number of classes we skipped to be out on the water—definitely playground!

I lived on a houseboat in Norfolk for a year or so post-graduation. So, the “boys” and I enjoyed a little extended boat time. But eventually the jobs, marriage, and kids took their rightful place in our lives. For a while, the pursuit of happiness did not include a boat.

In 1992 I pulled them back together for a “boys sail.” It was the first of what has become an annual, and sometimes more than annual, event.

We have cruised the Chesapeake on six different sailboats, owned or char tered for the purpose. About seven years ago, like so many sailors before me, I

By Mike Pitchford

converted to power. In a succession of three powerboats, the boys and I have cruised the Bay and the ICW to south Florida and back.

My fraternity brothers/roommates turned crewmates are Dave Sampson, a retired high school teacher; Kevin Hoff man, a retired civil servant; and Skip Gibson, a retired consultant. Collec

tively they have thousands of Bay miles and thousands of ICW miles under their belts. Okay, yes, they also have a few thousand adult boat beverages under their belts, and it is starting to show.

In our 30 years of Bay and ICW cruising we have had some memorable and some wish we could forget experi ences, all part of boating.

One such memory was a leg from Norfolk to Reedville on my thenboat, an eight knot North Pacific trawler. We were pushing to get to Annapolis, so we headed out into the Bay under dubious conditions. We had a mixed sea with waves out of the north and remnant waves from the east. The result of this was what I would call the “washing machine” effect.

Not far past Mobjack Bay, the inevitable mal de mer set in for two of us (who shall go unnamed). Two of us managed to keep breakfast down and navigate to our back-up destination of Reedville. As we turned towards Reedville, the motion got temporarily worse and one of the bilge alarms announced high water. With no available crew to look in side the engine room we just plowed on to calmer water. It seemed like forever but was likely only a few min utes. The entrance to Reedville was a blessing in more ways than one. The calm water had an immediate impact on the sea sickness sufferers. It also afforded me the opportunity to turn over the helm and look in the engine room where I found the bilge alarm was just a float switch stuck in the up position.

Another great memory, almost cata strophic but with a happy ending, was along the ICW. One of us (not me) was at the helm in a real “ditch” section of the Ditch. They call the ICW the Ditch for a reason as some sec tions are merely wide enough for two boats to pass, with high mud banks on the sides.

When navigating the ditch sections, the autohelm is very handy. The helmsman can navigate a fairly straight line and follow the deeper water course by touching the auto helm buttons for one degree left or right turn.

Some autohelms are also set up for a 110-degree sail boat tack. This was the case on my trawler. The helms man needs to hit both the one-degree and ten-degree buttons at the same time to tack.

Yes, as fate would have it, an intentional one-degree shift left became a 110-de gree command when both buttons were unintention

ally hit. The hard left turn was abrupt at eight knots. I was in the galley making lunch. I set a land speed record scur rying up the steps to the pilothouse, reaching for the autohelm to go to manual steering, while slamming the boat in reverse. We narrowly escaped planting the bow in the mudbank side of that section of the ditch.

Fortunately for us we were relatively alone in the Ditch at that moment. With no other boats observing our strange maneuver, we backed away and restarted our true course while breath ing a collective sigh of relief. The unin tentional tack became known as the “fat finger move,” F2M for short. Not long thereafter, and to this day, the reference brings a smile to our collective faces.

In 2022 we have one boys sail on the Bay under our belts and one to go. The boat will winter in south Florida, so an ICW delivery leg is scheduled for October.

The recently completed first of the year boys sail started with a trip from Annapolis to Baltimore for an over night downtown at the Inner Harbor Marina and an Orioles game. Cruising is now at 20 knots on my downeast

# Kevin Hoffman. What started out as “boys sails” eventually shifted to powerboat cruises.

# Collectively this group has thousands of Bay miles and thousands of ICW miles under their belts.

style Back Cove 37, the third pow erboat since converting from sail. We got to Baltimore in a couple of hours! The marina was great, but the O’s game was rained out. The rain, however, did not keep us from finding a great dinner in Federal Hill.

Our next stop was Georgetown, MD, which is 10 miles up the Sas safras River. I had not been there since my 30-something sons were young teens. Our chosen marina, Skipjack Cove, and Georgetown itself had not changed much in the intervening years. Everything looked the same except that I could not find the rope swing on the edge of the Sassafras, near the marina, that the kids played on 20 years earlier. Their pool however was a welcome relief on this hot Au gust cruise (adults don’t look good on a rope swing anyway).

From Georgetown we headed to Deale and Herrington Harbour North. The marina is huge! Let me just observe that they nearly run out of alphabet naming the piers. You can get your daily 10,000 steps walking the marina grounds. Most importantly they had a pool!

This boys sail, like many of our cruises, featured a ballgame. In this particular itinerary we planned a second game, ending the cruise back

in Annapolis so that we could drive to a Washington Nationals game on Saturday evening. The weather was finally a little cooler and this game was never threatened by rain. And the Nats won, a not so common occurrence for a struggling last place team.

The final event of the cruise was our visit to Chick & Ruth’s Deli in An napolis. Chick & Ruth’s is a more than 50-year-old Annapolis institution. It is

a favorite of the legislators and staff in this capital city. The walls are lined with photos of notable guests and the menu items are named after legend ary lawmakers.

It was Sunday morning and our visits to Chick & Ruth’s are often a religious experience as one among us worships their breakfast potatoes. And so, worship (and overeat) we did! #

# Winsome Winn in Isle of Hope, GA, on the ICW in fall of 2020.

# Left to right: Dave Sampson, Kevin Hoffman, Mike Pitchford, and Skip Gibson in Jupiter, FL.

Destination Lake Anna, VA

Story and Photos By Craig Ligibel

It’s not the Bay, but it is a pretty nice body of water, nonetheless.

Lake Anna is a 13,000-acre man-made lake located ap proximately 72 miles southwest of Washington, DC, and 120 miles southwest of Annapolis. Measur ing 17 miles long, it is one of the largest lakes in the commonwealth of Virginia, boasting 200 miles of shoreline and dozens of quiet anchorages, all devoid of nettles.

Okay. Okay. I know. Lake Anna is not on the Chesapeake Bay. So, what’s a story about it doing in the Bay’s pre mier powerboating magazine? Call me a rebel, but sometimes it pays to stretch your nautical legs and explore other wa

tery destinations that are a short hop via land yacht from the friendly confines of the Chesapeake.

The lake is home to four major spe cies of gamefish: striped bass, large mouth bass, crappie, and bream. Its dozen or so marinas offer a variety of services, most important of which are powerboat and pontoon boat rentals by the hour, day, or week.

Lakefront homes available from Airbnb and/or VRBO offer weekly rentals to fit all budgets, and the Lake Anna State Park offers accommoda tions ranging from two- to threebedroom cabins, six-bedroom lodges, campsites, and yurts (dcr. virginia.gov/state-parks/ lake-anna). Boats can be launched from the park for a modest fee.

The area boasts sev eral boat-up restaurants if you’re tired of home cooking, while additional amenities are available a short drive away in the nearby towns of Mineral and Culpepper. There’s even a brew pub and nearby winery if your tastes run towards adult beverages.

History and Location Lake Anna was created in the 1970s by Domin ion Energy’s prede

cessor, Virginia Electric and Power Company, to provide cooling for the company’s North Anna Power Station. The company purchased 18,000 acres of land in 1968 and cleared it to create the 9600-acre Lake Anna reservoir and the 3400-acre North Anna Waste Heat Treatment Facility (WHTF). The lake was formed by damming the North Anna River.

The northernmost parts of the lake are comprised of the North Anna River and two major watershed tributaries: Pamunkey Creek and Terry’s Run. These two tributaries join the North Anna River at an area called “The Splits.” The North Anna River flows downstream past the dam until it joins the South Anna River near the town of Doswell, VA, to form the Pamunkey River. The Pamunkey River flows south and joins the Mattaponi River at the town of West Point to form the York River. The York River flows into the Chesapeake Bay.

The lake is divided into two sides: the public side (also known as the “cold” side) and the private side, work ing as a cooling pond (also known as the “hot” side). The public side is known as the “cold” side because it provides water to cool the generators at the power plant. The private or “hot” side receives warm water discharge from the power plant.

The public side is roughly 9000 acres while the private side is roughly 4000 acres. The private side is formed of

# The author with daughter Katie Grey and granddaughters.

Destination Lake Anna, VA

three main bodies of water, connected by navigable canals. The public and private sides are divided by three stone dikes. The private side has no marinas or public access ramps; only prop erty owners and North Anna Power Station employees have access to the waters of the private side. The public side has several marinas and boat launches, including a boat ramp at the state park.

All the marinas on the public side of the lake have public boat launches. Several are located in the mid-lake area on the eastern side of the 208 bridge. There are several launch sites upstream on the North River and Pa munkey Creek and several downstream on the southern part of the main lake. All the marinas charge about the same amount for a daily boat launch and parking.

Harry Looney of the Water Quality Project Office, Lake Anna Civic Asso ciation, tells PropTalk, “Water quality is best in the lower parts of the lake (at or below the Splits). There are many deep areas where the stripers like to go in those portions of the lake. You can find good fishing reports in The Cen tral Virginian, our local newspaper, and Lake Anna Life. Both of these media resources have good online resources for anyone visiting the lake.

“Water quality in the upper parts of the North Anna River, Pamunkey Creek, and Terry’s Run is not as good as the mid and lower parts of the lake. PH levels are higher and dissolved oxygen levels tend to be lower. The upper lake is stratified so fish tend to stay closer to the surface where dissolved oxygen levels are higher. Dissolved oxygen below the thermocline can be almost zero in upper parts of the lake.” Terry ought to know. He logs hundreds of hours each year taking water samples at various points along the river.

Getting There and Exploring

Late last summer, the Ligibel clan, in cluding my wife, daughter, her husband, and their two children, booked a long weekend at a four-bedroom Lake Anna house complete with firepit, floating dock, and plenty of beach and goofing around space. Our lakeside retreat was just around the corner from Hunter’s Landing, convenient to The Cove Restaurant, Shipwreck Boat Rental, and Hunter’s Landing Convenience store, a great place for local news and ice cream.

# Rental retreat.

# The Grey family on Lake Anna.

# Proud grandparents and kids. Photo by Katie Grey

We packed up our two SUVs with SUPs, kayaks, fishing gear, and water toys. Not to mention boxes full of prerequisite junk food for the girls and yoga mats for my wife Colleen and daughter Katie. Son-in-law Eric and I were content with a little red meat for the grill (in case we didn’t catch any fish; we didn’t!) and some snake bite medicine, aka Tito’s vodka.

Our trip down via Highway 301 and smaller state roads only took a little under three hours. An alternate route would have been via I-95, which is al ways risky when encountering Beltway traffic during rush hour.

After some exploring around the neighboring town of Mineral, where Eric and Katie discovered the Lake Anna Taphouse—a great boat-up spot for an afternoon toddy—the girls made a Food Lion run to stock up on goodies for our three-day sojourn. They reported that supermarket shelves were well stocked with favorites.

Eric made arrangements with Shipwreck Boat Rentals for a rental of a 23-foot Avalon pontoon boat (shipwreckboatrental.com). We picked it up our first full day on the water and enjoyed putting around the Lake with an occasional drift swim well offshore. Eric and I also tried our hand at fishing off the dock and under the bridges. No luck. Must have been the wrong phase

of the moon. The one-day rental was reasonable: $330 off-season, mid-week rates. Gas not included.

A fishing license is required to fish in Lake Anna. They can be obtained at: license.gooutdoorsvirginia.com

We voyaged by pontoon boat 15 miles downriver to the southern arm of the lake to Tim’s for a delightful lunch including house specialties rockfish, cod, and Po’ Boy shrimp sandwiches (timslakeanna.com). The wait at Tim’s is significant, usually about an hour. Not to be deterred, Tim’s offers a full bar and 44 off-the-wall specialty drinks like Peaches Cream (heavy on the peach schnapps), The SharkBite (a nice twist on Cuervo Silver), and the Rainbow Trout (not what you think—gin and blue curacao). Not far from Tim’s is a popular on-water party spot, the Sand bar. Lots of boats rafted up. Not for us!

We enjoyed the first (and hopefully annual) Ligibel family water Olympics which amounted to a series of kayak, SUP, and innertube races off the beach right below our house. I was accused of cheating, subterfuge, and illegal substance abuse. I never expected my grandkids to be sore losers! Guess they couldn’t stand the thought of being humiliated by their almost 75-year-old grandpa!

What a hoot. Sandy bottom, warm water, and nothing to worry about

except getting too much sun. We also played marathon games of cribbage (I won); poker (Caroline, aged 8, won) and Quarkle (Emmy, aged 10, cleaned our collective clocks.)

In case you missed the gist of this trip, it was all about relaxing in a beautiful spot far from the roar of Jet Skis and gofast boats with the setting sun our only timepiece and the lap of the waves our nightly musical entertainment.

We celebrated our last night at Lake Anna with s’mores by the campfire and giant sparklers left over from Katie’s wedding 12 years ago. Who says love, and fireworks, don’t last?

We packed up the next day and headed home as Colleen and I made a fortuitous detour to enjoy lunch at one of our favorite Virginia wineries, Early Mountain. It’s only a stone’s throw (40 miles northwest) from Lake Anna and a very worthwhile stop if you are in the mood for a crisp chardonnay served with simple accoutrements in a beautiful hillside setting.

We got home to our South River domicile just in time to hear the nightly parade of Jet Skis and go-fast boats make their noisy run under the Solomons Is land Road/Highway 2 bridge. We settled into our screened-in porch and toasted our three-days of solitude on Lake Anna. And vowed to return for a longer stay sometime down the road. #

# Off we go to explore.

# Sparklers on the beach.

# Ligibel-Grey Olympic winners.

Don’t Fear the Blue Water DeltaVille t o Groton, Part ii

By Joe Roberts

Question, what happens when an offshore fisherman buys a 41foot trawler? Answer, you bet he’s taking it offshore.

Previously I wrote about my solo delivery of my trawler Pelican from Deltaville to Chincoteague, VA, over a two-day trip with a stop in Cape Charles (published in the September issue of PropTalk and at proptalk.com/ deltaville-chincoteague-beyond). That was just the sea trial.

I am a navy chief, and I took an as signment to Groton, CT, for two years. With housing and rental prices where they are, I found it was more economi cal to buy a trawler to live on at the base marina with my dog. The only issue was getting the boat from Chincoteague to Groton in a timely manner. So, I asked three of my best friends—Manny, Jesse, and Jim—to help. Manny is a navy corpsman, so we were covered in case of a medical emergency. Jesse is a retired navy cook, who was very helpful in planning our menu for the trip. Jim is a younger guy working for Daisy Island Tours who holds a six-pack license, and I am a machinist mate who’s been fighting with the Coast Guard over what “qualifying” sea time means for getting a 100-ton license.

The week prior to departure I serviced the engine and believed that I fixed the generator. Thursday, July 14, my friends and I did our grocery shopping and drove down to Chincote ague from Middletown, DE (shout-out to my other friend Mike for driving us down and bringing the car back to Delaware). We took on 250 gallons of fuel from PEP-UP for $4.18/gal. and were underway from Chincoteague Fisheries by 0930.

Once we cleared Chincoteague Inlet, we set a course aiming for the Hudson Canyon and set out four trolling lines.

We caught two Spanish mackerel fairly quickly; however, the generator lasted 10 minutes before cutting out. So we were without AC, microwave, stove, and oven. Luckily we brought two camp stoves and so were still able to cook. Jim had first watch, and we couldn’t ask for a better weather window for this trip. Winds were less than 10 knots with a south easterly swell. At 1600 rpm, we made about six to seven knots. Dinner was a sausage and vegetable stew made by Jesse, and the one rule was no alcohol eight hours before or while on watch.

Being the owner, it was difficult to sleep because it’s my boat and I was hyper-alert for any issues. I did get a couple of hours down before my watch from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. I watched the sunset, stars come out, and the moonrise. Watching a moonrise offshore is one of the most majestic experiences one can see. I saw a cruise ship and played chicken with a commercial fishing boat (I couldn’t make out the boat’s running lights with its outrigger lights on). At about 2 a.m. I was starting to fade, so I woke up Manny

to take my last couple of hours before Jesse woke up.

Saturday morning, we cooked scrambled eggs over the camp stove. We caught a small yellowfin tuna which became Poke in 20 minutes. Poor Manny was out for the count with seasickness the entire day, and Jesse also was seasick, but still functional. Even I was a bit seasick at times, with the way we rolled with the southeast swell on the flybridge. Jim was a rock though. With Manny out for the count, I took his watch from noon to 8 p.m. We reached the Hud son Canyon around 2 p.m. and I got my deep drop gear out, made a couple of drops in 600 feet, and caught three small golden tilefish. We also took a couple of minutes to check the running gear and scrape off any growth on the rudder and prop, which made a difference on our fuel consumption. We set our course for Montauk, Jesse took the bridge watch, and I made a fish stew with the tilefish over the camp stove. We had an escort of dolphins throughout the rest of the afternoon and into the evening. Jim had the 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. watch, and I was woken up twice for the autopilot want

# Meet the crew: Jim, Manny, Jesse, and the author.

ing to do a “Crazy Ivan” (a U.S. Navy term for a Soviet submarine maneuver, characterized by any number of sudden and sharp turns).

Sunday morning, Jim had a hard time waking me up. But once I was on the bridge, I could already see Block Island and Montauk lighthouses. We started to fight an outgoing current from Block Island Sound coming around Montauk and there were a lot of fishing boats around the rip. The water temperature had also dropped from the high 60s at the canyon to 55 degrees. Getting through the fish ing fleet, I realized that if you put a steering wheel in a New Yorker’s hand, they are pre-programmed to be jerks whether on land or sea. Mind you that we were only going six to seven knots, but several boats crossed in close prox imity to our bow as we puttered along.

Once we cleared Montauk, our speed picked up, but we were soon fast approaching the “Race,” a deep-water channel where water is exchanged from Long Island sound, Fisher’s Island Sound, and Block Island Sound. Depths in this stretch of water can be as deep as 300 feet, and the current go ing through is wicked strong. To make matters more complicated, there was a fog bank that made pea soup look thin that morning. Manny and Jim were on the bow trying to spot anything that might be in front of us; we could hear fog signals from Fisher’s Island lighthouse, ferries, and any other boats in the vicinity, and I was sounding my horn about every two minutes or in response to any horns I heard close by. With visibility maybe 50 yards, I

had to navigate by my radar charts and prayer. We passed by a little skiff which we didn’t see until we were maybe 50 feet from them.

The prayer worked because we came upon the Thames River Entrance buoys dead center, and there were two Navy escort boats waiting for a submarine to come into port. The fog lifted once we were past Pine Island Marina, and we were able to see Thames Yacht Club, Pfizer, Electric Boat, and the 95 bridge. It felt nostalgic passing by all these places that I hadn’t seen in 13 years. There was hardly any wind docking at the Thames View Marina at the base, and we docked around 10 a.m. A 49-hour trip with only minor issues. Once we had water and electric hooked up, we got cleaned up, and a fellow chief gave us a ride to the New Lon don Train station for our ride back to Delaware where Manny and Jesse live, and I still had a couple of things to finish packing in Chincoteague.

Would I do this again? Ab solutely! If I had the time off, I would help my new neighbor sail from Groton to Summit Bridge Marina in the fall. A couple of things I would do differently would be to get the generator and water system issues fixed. According to my Flowscan, the fuel burn for the trip was 230 gallons, which seems a bit high, but I have determined that my boat is about two inches over pitched.

To others who may be cruising to New England from Norfolk or Cape May and would

consider offshore versus hugging the coast, consider the different stress factors. Yes, being offshore has that constant worry that you are several hours from help if you have an issue. However, you can mitigate that with ensuring your boat is well maintained and by watching the weather. On the flip side I didn’t want to hug the coast and go through New York and into Long Island Sound because it would have taken longer, there would have been more shipping and boat traffic, and I am not familiar with the channels getting through the East River. Finally, I had a crew, and I paid for their food and transportation back to Delaware.

Happy cruising!

# Tilefish chowder.

# The author and captain/engineer.

A Sample BVI Itinerary

By Kaylie Jasinski

We hope you’ve enjoyed our three-part charter series this year. As mentioned in part one (proptalk.com/planningfirst-powercat-charter), the British Virgin Islands (BVI) are a great place for newbie charterers. Why? As Ian Pederson at The Moorings says, “This is the most user-friendly charter destination due to minimal tides, ready availability of mooring balls as opposed to anchoring, abundance of support in the way of marinas, restaurants, and grocery stores throughout the area, and minimal reefs or shallow areas to worry about throughout your stay.”

So, with that in mind, I wanted to share a sample itinerary that was tested by yours truly a couple of years ago. When it comes time to book your own charter, make sure to ask the charter company for their recommendations as well.

• Day 1: Norman Island

• Day 2: Cooper Island

• Day 3: Virgin Gorda, Prickly Pear Island

• Day 4: Dog Islands

• Day 5: Jost Van Dyke, Sandy Spit

• Day 6: Jost Van Dyke, Sandy Cay

• Day 7: Norman Island, Return to base

Day 1: Norman Island

Depending on where your charter base is, you may want to adjust your starting point, and there is no shortage of options. Of the more than 60 islands that make up the BVI, only about 15 are inhabited. Our base with MarineMax Vacations was on Nanny Cay, Tortola, so Norman Island, just a short cruise across the Sir Francis Drake channel, was an easy choice for day one.

The Bight on Norman Island is one of the BVI’s largest mooring areas. Said to be the inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson’s “Treasure Island,” this place has it all: hiking trails high on the hills, a protected anchorage for overnight moorings, beachfront dining at Pirate’s Bight, natural sea caves which make for

an amazing snorkeling experience, and of course, the Willie T party barge. Just off the entrance to Norman Island, you’ll find The Indians, a landmark rock formation, which is another amazing snorkeling spot.

Day 2: Cooper Island

Cooper Island Beach Club is a family owned eco resort on the sandy northwest shore of Cooper Island. Mooring buoys are available in Manchioneel Bay, and from there you can take the dinghy ashore for a bite to eat at the beachfront restau rant or a cold beer from the solar powered Cooper Island Brewing Company. The Beach Club is also home to The Rum Bar. With a collection of over 280 rums, they have the largest selection in the Virgin Islands.

While on Cooper Island, don’t forget to take the dinghy over to Cistern Point for some snorkeling. Equipped with smaller blue mooring balls for dinghies, this snorkel site offers sloping bottoms, varying depths, and plenty of undersea activity to keep you busy while exploring your way around the point.

Day 3: Virgin Gorda

The Baths National Park is a dramatic area on Virgin Gorda’s north shore, com prised of towering boulders and sheltered sea pools on the beach’s edge. Be sure to

# The Dog Islands are a small group of uninhabited islets northwest of Virgin Gorda.

#

off Jost Van Dyke.

arrive at the mooring field early to secure a spot. After taking the dinghy to shore, you will find an otherworldly trail through the boulders that will take you to a pris tine white sand beach and sheltered swim ming cove known as Devil’s Bay. Some sections of the trail require climbing over boulders and up or down small ladders through the caves.

We unfortunately encountered jellyfish on our visit. Lots of jellyfish. But everyone I have since told that story to, who have also chartered in the BVI, had a com pletely different experience. My only bit of advice would be to bring a first aid kit with Benadryl (just in case).

Prickly Pear Island

Prickly Pear Island is a beautiful unin habited island that is part of the BVI National Park system. It is named after the flowering prickly pear cactus that populates its shores.

Here you’ll find hiking trails, beautiful beaches and snorkeling just off the shore, and the Sandbox Bar and Grille.

Day 4: Dog Islands

One of my surprise favorites of the trip were the Dog Islands. Comprised of Great Dog, George Dog, West Dog, East Seal Dog, and Little Seal Dog, they are a small group of uninhabited islets north west of Virgin Gorda.

These islands are said to have received their names from sailors who heard barking when they moored here many years ago. What they assumed were dogs turned out to be seals, but the name stuck nonetheless.

If you’re looking for a secluded, unin habited shoreline, you have a good chance of finding one at the Dog Islands. We spent the afternoon moored off George Dog, a 15-acre islet and the third largest of the five Dogs, and walked along the deserted, rocky shoreline, climbed atop boulders, and snorkeled off the beach.

Day 5: Jost Van Dyke

Though one of the BVI’s smaller islands, Jost Van Dyke has no shortage of beauty and activities. Here you’ll find Foxy’s, the best-known bar in the Caribbean Islands, and the Soggy Dollar Bar, home to the original Painkiller, among other restau

Jost Van Dyke

Tortola

Sandy Cay

Anegada

Prickly Pear Island

Dog Islands

Norman Island

Cooper Island

Virgin Gorda

rants. And of course, there’s the Bubbly Pool, a naturally occurring “hot tub” style swimming hole on the northeast shore.

Sandy Spit is an uninhabited islet just off Jost Van Dyke measuring less than half an acre in size. It has been described as one of the most spectacular and re mote beaches in the BVI.

Day 6: Sandy Cay

After our day at Sandy Spit, we took our paddleboards and explored the grass beds between Jost Van Dyke and Little Jost Van Dyke. If you have the option to rent paddleboards from one of the islands or as an add-on with your charter, I highly recommend it. We saw an abundance of fish, sting rays, and even sea turtles among the grass beds.

A short cruise from Jost Van Dyke is Sandy Cay, a veritable tropical paradise comprised of 13 acres of sugary sand beaches, palm trees, hiking trails, high bluffs, and the bluest, clearest water I have ever seen. Once owned by the Lau rance Rockefeller Estate, the island has since been transferred to the National Parks Trust of the Virgin Islands. You can easily spend a full day here (if you can get a mooring ball, so again, best to arrive early).

Day 7: Norman Island

Because of Norman Island’s large moor ing field and short distance from Tortola, it makes for a great first and last night before returning to the charter base. If

there was anything you missed on the first day (Sea caves? Snorkel the Indi ans? Grab a drink at the Willie T?), now is the time to get those in before the sad cruise back to base which signals the end of the trip.

Missed Opportunity: Anegada

With more than 60 islands making up the BVI and only a week to charter, you will have to make some decisions about which places to skip. Personally, I really regret bypassing Anegada, but while most of the other islands had relatively short cruising distances between them, Anageda is more of a hike.

According to BVI Tourism, An egada is one of the archipelago’s most unique islands, given its nearly level coral and limestone topography (in contrast to the volcanic origin of most of the region’s other islands). In fact, Anegada only rises 28 feet above sea level at its highest point. It is home to a largely isolated ecosystem that incorpo rates several interesting native species, such as rock iguanas, wild orchids, lush tropical vegetation, and colorful exotic birds.

The island is surrounded by striking reefs, ancient Arawak conch mounds in the East End, underwater caves, tunnel formations, and wreckages of numerous Spanish galleons, American privateers, and British Galleons in the surround ing waters, making it a popular spot for snorkelers and scuba divers. #

series at proptalk.com/category/chartering

Explore the Bay with Argo

Upg RADE to pRE mi U m t o DAy!

As you’ll read in these pages, Chesapeake Bay powerboat club members enjoy many fun cruises, social events, and educational opportunities. Share your club’s fun excursions and other benefits of membership. Send appproximately 350 words (sometimes longer) and clear photos of pretty boats or happy people to beth@proptalk.com. Remember, our editors are willing to help your team craft submissions that highlight club activities and attract new members. Again this season Argo navigation and social boating app (argonav.io) is sponsoring this section. Thank you, Argo!

Return to a Busy Cruising Season

With at least two Back Creek Yacht Club (BCYC) weekend cruises or gatherings every sum mer month, this year felt like pre-pandemic days.

To include as many members as pos sible, BCYC’s many events featured both land and sea arrivals. August featured a cruise to Oxford, MD, to see the fascinat

ing log canoe races, and on Labor Day club members took a cruise to Lankford Bay Marina and Rock Hall, MD. We concluded the cruise with a wonderful crab feast.

September found us on the banks of Cattail Creek for a shrimp and crab feast. In early October we held our Annual Meeting, and for November we are plan

ning a wine tasting at Cascia Vineyards and Winery in Stevensville, MD.

Our club is composed of friendly people who enjoy each other’s company on or near the water. Join us at a future event and see for yourself. Interested potential new mem bers are encouraged to check out back creekyc.org and contact us via the website to arrange to join a scheduled event.

Download Argo Boating App for FREE!

Outstanding Classic Boat Show

By Chris “Seabuddy” Brown

It was a great day for award-win ning boats, displayed in the water and on land Saturday, September 17 as the Mid-Atlantic Chapter of the Antique and Classic Boat Society (ACBS) presented the 38th an nual Antique & Classic Boat Show at Johnson Bros Boat Works in Pt. Pleasant, NJ. The location is where the Pt. Pleasant Canal connects the At lantic Ocean’s Manasquan Inlet with Barnegat Bay. The bright sun and low humidity were perfect for viewing the interesting variety of classic power and classic sailboats in this juried show at the historic boatyard.

One of the oldest boats at the show was built in 1896. This launch was the starboard tender to the yacht Margarita and ran on electric power even back then. Between 2017-2020 she was transformed from being a tender for a large luxury yacht to an easy-going launch (or runabout), with a new Elco 40-hp electric motor. The four years of restoration work, coupled with replacing the electric motor, was handled by Schell Custom Boat Works in Andover, NJ. Today she’s named Segar, a take on her owner’s love of cigars.

Another award winner was Mis Leading Lady, a 1928 E-Class Race Boat owned by George Wimberg, a sixth-generation undertaker from Ventnor, NJ, and lifelong resident of the city. This race boat was restored by the Independence Seaport Maritime Museum in Philadelphia, PA. It was a longtime project including the modi fied higher sheer of the entire boat to the 1928 racing specifications. Cedarplanked, mahogany trimmed, and oak framed, she is quite the lady now and a real crowd pleaser. She was designed and built by Adolph Apel, the founder and owner of the Ventnor Boat Works that was in operation from 1902 to 1958. The company built custom racing hulls for private customers.

In the 1930s, Ventnor’s Adolph and Arno Apel, the father-and-son team, popularized the idea of a race boat that rode on two pontoon-like running surfaces (called sponsons) and a submerged propeller. That configura tion is now known as a three-point hydroplane. The sponsons were unique because they were actually water skis. The Apels didn’t originate the threepoint design, but they’re the ones who made it work. And powerboat racing hasn’t been the same since. The Apels originally built Mis Leading Lady with a 250-hp Lycoming airplane engine. Her engine was eventually replaced with a 1932, 678-cubic inch, 200-hp Scripps Marine engine from Detroit, MI, which has also been totally rebuilt. (Find a Classic Boat article on this boat at proptalk.com/classic-boat-ventnorraceboat).

The Mid-Atlantic Chapter of ACBS hosts this event every year. Mark your calendars for next September if you want to check out this boat show. Parking and admission to the show are free!

# Segar

# Mis Leading Lady

Rumble Seat Roadster Delivered Boat Supplies From Fawcett Boat Supplies

By Ralph Cattaneo

Maryland Maritime Heritage Foundation club members participated in the 2022 Annapolis Keels & Wheels event held on September 17 at the Annapolis Yacht Club (AYC). It was a picture-perfect day, and the event was well attended, with wooden boats displayed both on land and in the water for all participants and guests to admire. The AYC parking

lot was full of beautiful classic cars on display for up-close viewing, and owners were on hand to field questions about their pride and joy!

One such display was a 1929 Ford Model A originally owned by Arthur Fawcett, founder of Fawcett Boat Supplies, formerly located on Compromise Street in Annapolis and now on Bay Ridge Road. He used the vehicle from 1948–1958 delivering boat supplies to working marinas in the area. This Rumble Seat Roadster was presented by the Minerva Collection along with the

1931 Chris Craft 20-foot Model 200 boat that was hooked up to it.

People’s Choice Award votes were cast based on overall appearance and level of preparation from bumper-to-bumper and bow-to-stern. The awards were presented to the winners at the conclusion of the day’s event. Congratulations to Don Schaff, as

his 1982 Staudacher runabout won Best in Show.

Our thanks to all AYC membership, management, and staff for permitting us to enjoy a day at AYC. A great time was had by all! Special thanks to Josh Mazer, Rod Jabin, and Hank Reiser for their hard work in making the event happen. Learn more at mdmhf.org.

Got a New Boat?

Smith Island Crab Skiff Association 5th National Hard Crab Derby

The Smith Island Crab Skiffs were back in action Labor Day week end supporting the 75th Hard Crab Derby in Crisfield, MD. The crab skiffs that made the trip to Crisfield were Muddy Oyster, Slippery Eel, Fat Oyster, Sea Ya Later, Gone Crab Skiff Krazy, Rock My Fish, and Swamp Rat.

The Hard Luck award goes to Peyton Emely in Fat Oyster as battery issues kept the engine from running, ending its day before it had even started.

After the green flag fell for Race 1, organizers noticed that one of the turn buoys had come loose and was drifting. The race was stopped, and the buoy reset. Race director Paul Emely decided that Race 1 was a scratch due to time constraints and the field was lined-up for Race 2.

Race 2 saw Ralph Justice in Muddy Oyster work his way through the field for the win. However, it was Steve Evans in Sea Ya Later coming from the back of the pack to take the wins in Race 3 and Race 4.

Competition mid-pack saw Joe Strohmer

in Rock My Fish, Tuffy Garrett in Swamp Rat, and John Pepe in Slippery Eel mixing it up all day.

Both the fans and competitors enjoyed the racing. This year’s trophy presenters from the Miss Crustacean pageant were Jessica Wilson, Second Runner-up and Miss Photogenic, and Erika Hurwitz, First Runner-up. The Smith Island Crab Skiff Association would like to thank the City of Crisfield, the National Hard Crab Derby committee, and the Miss Crusta cean pageant for all their support.

# Steve Evans in Sea Ya Later holding off Ralph Justice as they were approaching the finish line.

Recap and Photos By Paul Denbow

# Ralph Justice in Muddy Oysterpreparing to pass the field.

# Steve Evans is presentedthe Dickie White Memorial Trophy for his win in Race 3.

# John Pepe in Slippery Eel and Tuffy Garrett in Swamp Rat battling for position.

Turtles, Jellyfish, Beautiful Weather, and Great Racing

By Tulio Vulgaris

Pity the poor Cocktail Racer who wasn’t at the Kent Island Regatta on September 10. Meteorologically speaking, Kent Island was even closer to heaven itself than last month’s Nationals. The breeze never exceeded five knots and the peninsula upon which the Kent Island Yacht Club resides sheltered the racing area from the breeze and the wakes of boats transiting the Kent Island Narrows. Throughout most of the racing day the water was absolutely flat. Sun with a few clouds was the order of the day with the air temperature in the low 80s; sweet relief from the summer’s heat and humidity.

Nine boats, eight drivers, and a mul tiplicity of engines made 19 entries in six classes, with four boats and three drivers from Florida come to test the locals. Ray Crowley and Rick Loewen made their first Mid-Atlantic showing at Camp David and were back, accompanied by Terry Loewen with: #38 Double Shot, #500 It’s 5 O’clock Somewhere, #407 Neat, and # 37 Chaser. Ray tells us that there is yet another new boat, Rocks, a companion to Neat, under construction back in Florida.

The race committee—Keith Carew, Tara Carew, and Todd Steffes—set out a clockwise course familiar to anyone who has raced Kent Island before. The first three turns made for some very close and exciting racing. Turn three especially seemed to collect wakes and pile them up in unpredictable ways. Mother Nature added in a bit of spice, forcing us to share the Bay with a gazillion small jellyfish or “sea nettles” as we say in the Chesapeake. Remarkably, only your humble reporter was stung, and then not very badly. Add alcohol (the rubbing kind) and meat ten derizer to your racing kit.

For the first time this season, the Tohatsu 6-hp class was the smallest of the meeting with only two entries. In her first appearance in a Mid-Atlantic race, Terry Loewen in Double Shot chased Todd Stef fes in #20 Hot Toddy three times to garner her first trip to the podium. Likewise, Russ

Bowler in #40 The Flying Kiwi led Ancient Mariner Tom Kerr in #46 Rajic around the course three times to take Early Classic. Bowler picked up another hat trick in Late Classic leaving Kerr to fight it out for second with Zach Ditmars’s #67 Molotov. Ditmars was entered in Late Classic Heavy, but for lack of competi tion he raced in Late Classic Mixed. Kerr prevailed by one point. Ray Crowley was fourth in Chaser.

In Post ’79 Heavy, Ditmars’s Molotov led Steffes and Terry Loewen to the finish line three times, giving Loewen a thirdplace finish and her second trip to the podium.

The Flying Kiwi again proved dominant in the 8-hp bash taking two firsts and a second ahead of Hot Toddy with two seconds and a first. Rick Loewen guarded third place in It’s Five O’clock Somewhere.

Without a doubt the most entertaining race (and the largest class) of the day was Post ’79 Mixed which required five starts to complete three sprints. In the first sprint Crowley in Neat and Rick Loewen in It’s Five O’clock Somewhere immediately jumped into the lead with Bowler, Tom Kerr in Rajic, and Lou Linden in #66 Mrs. Smirnoff in hot pursuit. Things soon went awry when the leaders both headed off the course in different directions after turn one allowing Kerr, Linden, and Bowler to complete the lap 1,2,3.

Crowley later explained, “Neither of us had ever been in first place before, and when we didn’t have someone to follow, we got lost!”

The second sprint started with three boats abreast at the first turn and only separated by less than a boat length at turn two. It ended at turn three when

# Todd Steffes in #20 Hot Toddy, followed by TerryLoewen in #38 Double Shot.

# Turtle Club inductee Rick Loewen in #500 It’s Five O’clock Somewhere towed in by Keith Carew in the safety boat.

Racing News

Linden, sliding sideways, dove inside Ray Crowley, caught a large wake sideways and was thrown from his boat, black flagging the sprint. Mrs. Smirnoff floated placidly by, a monument to the effective ness of kill switches, while the safety boat retrieved Linden and put him back aboard. Several wags suggested that there should be a Catapult Club for those who leave their boat without capsizing.

In the restarted second sprint, the entire class thundered to the start line with Mrs. Smirnoff barely in the lead when Linden balked just before the line, and the rest of the herd went over early. Linden had only to make it to the finish line to win the sprint on points and he did. The Flying Kiwi failed to finish due to mechanical problems. After the third start, Mrs. Smirnoff was in third place behind Rajic and Neat rounding turn three when Loewen, who was making a wide turn trying to find clear water, crashed into Mrs. Smirnoff’s stern and capsized, bringing out the black flag. The crash took a chunk out of It’s Five O’clock Somewhere’s starboard bow rail which apparently encountered the port edge of Mrs. Smirnoff‘s transom which was un

damaged. The Urbani built boats are strong as well as fast. Neither Loewen nor Bowler managed to restart for the third sprint. Kerr led Linden and Crowley around the final lap leaving Kerr and Linden tied on points for first place. The tie was resolved in Kerr’s favor with Bowen taking third and Loewen being inducted into the Turtle Club.

After awards, an adult beverage or two, and slaps on the back for all present, racers

rolled out under darkening skies, a prelude to Sunday’s all-day rain. Crowley and the Loewens headed to Tennessee for racing on September 24, and all present intended to be at the season finale, Oktoberfest, at Great Oak Landing in Chestertown on October 15.

Kudos to Todd, Tara, and Keith for putting on a great day of racing and thanks to our hosts, the Kent Island Yacht Club. For full results, visit ccwbra.com

Hampton Cup Regatta

Photos by Dennis Falkowski

A

t print time, results for the Hampton Cup Regatta, held September 17-18 in Hampton, VA, had not yet been posted. Stay tuned for full results at proptalk.com

# Russ Bowler in #40 Flying Kiwi andRick Loewen in #500 It’s Five O’clockSomewhere approach the starting line.

Hampton Cup Regatta

BOaT New Again!

Classic Boating on the C&O Canal

By Chris “Seabuddy” Brown

Have you ever taken a cruise along an historic local canal? I did. There’s a canalboat cruise between Locks 3 and 4 of the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal in Georgetown (adjacent to down town Washington, DC) that runs several days a week.

The C&O Canal cruise takes about an hour. On a recent Saturday, I joined a full ship of tourists, seated two to a bench. Although canalboats are simplistic, there is a head aboard. Everyone enjoyed the personable and historically knowledge able young woman who delivered a witty performance as she narrated our cruise.

Before the C&O Canal was built, vari ous efforts were undertaken to improve transportation along the Potomac, since it was the only river on the East Coast that bisected the Appalachians. That’s why the Potomac was the preferred route for western trade.

During his career as a land surveyor, George Washington was among the first to champion the idea of building a canal that would make the Potomac more navigable. Once he threw his energy into winning the Revolutionary War, followed by running our young country as the first U.S. President, he obviously had bigger issues to address. Although he never gave up on the idea, no real progress had been made when he died in 1799.

The canal’s construction kicked off with a groundbreaking ceremony on July 4, 1828, attended by our sixth U.S. President, John Quincy Adams. Sawmills sprouted along the route to support the canal’s construction effort.

Clearly it was an arduous task during those 22 back-breaking years of construc tion. The canal was mostly hand-dug by Irish immigrants, some Germans, and African Americans. “The workers job was

to dig a canal six feet deep and 60 feet wide at the assumed water surface, and 48 feet wide at the canal bottom.”

These laborers lived under difficult conditions (often with their wives and children) alongside the canal as the dig ging progressed. Fights were common, usually based on ethnic heritage or work effort.

Once the canal was finished in 1850, the 184.5-mile trip from Cumberland, MD (at the base of the Appalachian Mountains), to Georgetown in Washing ton, DC, typically took seven days. Com munities in western Maryland sprouted up along the waterway as trade increased and flour, grain, building stone, and whiskey began to move down to Georgetown.

Once the canal reached Cumberland, the tonnage being transported increased substantially. Large quantities of coal were shipped, and by 1871 (the canal’s peak year) over 850,000 tons were carried down the canal. Trade was so brisk that at times over 500 boats were operating on the C&O Canal.

Using buckets, some coal was unloaded directly into the Georgetown coal yards. Coal was also unloaded onto four-masted ocean sailing vessels bound for Massa chusetts (which brought ice and returned with coal).

Other cargo transported along the canal included everything from pre-owned furniture and pianos to fish (like herring) and watermelons. Provisions were also delivered to lockkeepers.

Some “poled” across the Potomac River at Dam No. 2 to get wood, crossties, bark

BOaT New Again!

(used in tanning), and grain. Other loads, often carried upstream, included 600 empty barrels in a boat that was used to transport cement, lumber, fertilizer, and general merchandise for stores along the canal.

Cement from the Round Top Mill near the Maryland-Pennsylvania border was shipped to Georgetown. In fact, the Mill also shipped cement to the Washington Monument and the U.S. Capitol.

In 1889 everything changed. After a disastrous flood, the canal’s manage ment entered receivership with courtappointed trustees. The trustees—who represented the majority owners of the C&O Canal Company bonds issued back in1844—were given the right to repair and operate the canal under continued court oversight.

The Baltimore & Ohio (B&O) Railroad tussled in court with the C&O Canal as early as 1828, when both companies were competing to buy land along the Potomac. Although the B&O

owned the majority of the 1878 bonds, it did not own a majority of the 1844 bonds in the immediate aftermath of the flood. But by 1903, the B&O acquired sufficient bonds to become “a majority holder.”

In 1938, the U.S. Government purchased the C&O, which is managed by the Dept. of the Interior. Today, it’s a U.S. National Historic Park. #

Looking to see Team PropTalk in action? Subscribe to ourchannel!YouTube

# Canalboat interior.

Marine Engine Sales, Parts & Service

# The newly commissioned CY55 at the dock in Trappe, MD, ready to leave for the Annapolis Powerboat Show.

By Capt. Rick Franke

# The control station on a Composite Yacht 46 at Composite Yacht in Trappe, MD.

Fall is really upon us. The powerboat show has come and gone, the geese are flying south, and “shrinkwrap for sale” signs have replaced the “live crabs” signs on country roads. The winter lay-up season appears to be a good one for local shops. Builders are reporting lots of interest and order books are filling up. Supply issues do persist, mostly in overly long wait times, but that does seem to be slowly improving. The most intractable problem continues to be the shortage of labor, especially the skilled labor needed in boatshops. But, despite these challenges, the general mood is optimistic and the return to “normal” seems to be continuing into the winter season.

Jake Glover at Ferry Point Marina in Trappe, MD, starts us off with this update. “We’ve completed an all over AwlCraft/Interlux application on a Composite Yacht 46CB. Her bottom was blasted and new InterProtect barrier applied with a couple of coats of Interlux antifouling. The entire exterior received a fresh AwlCraft application, and boy does she shine again! A Sabre was in for an extensive work list after finding a rock pile. The entire driveline required attention as well as some fiberglass and gelcoat repairs. We’re taking orders for fall/winter services. We will be offering indoor storage again this year.”

This report is an excerpt from a recent Soundings Magazine article by John Wooldrige featuring a 1998 Thomas Point 34 built by our own Joe Reid of Mast and Mallet.

“David Godwin and Carol Buchman have been on the water for many years. They first raced Cal 25 sailboats around Annapolis, MD. When they were ready to leave racing behind, they purchased a fast cruiser, the C&C 37. Later—after buying a house on Cockrell Creek in Reedville, VA, in 2002—they bought their first powerboat: a Mako 26 center console with twin 200-hp outboards. On the Mako, they explored the many creeks

and river destinations in their locale. ‘Still, we always knew that at some point we would get a coastal cruising powerboat,’ Buchman says. In 2020 they bought a 1998 Thomas Point 34 and named her Katana.

“Katana is a 1998 Thomas Point 34 designed by the naval architect Mike Kaufman and built by Joe Reid at Mast & Mallet Boatworks in Edgewater, MD. Reid and his craftsmen build five versions of this design, ranging in size from 30 to 44 feet in length. The wood en hull of Katana is cold-molded with two overlapped layers of western red cedar laid fore-and-aft. West System

epoxy seals every component. The hull is further strengthened and sealed with two layers of 10-ounce fiberglass cloth. The construction is stout, and proven.

“Katana was in good shape when the couple took ownership, but it needed updates. Because the existing electron ics were older, the couple replaced them with an integrated suite of new Garmin electronics, including a chart plotter with AIS, radar, and autopilot. Attention then turned to the hull. ‘Before we could cruise efficiently, the bottom needed work. It was blasted clean of its original 23-year-old bottom paint, removing layers to the bare hull,’ Godwin says. ‘We started with three coats of Interlux barrier coat, then a single layer of black guide coat, and finished with three coats of Sea Hawk water-based ablative antifouling. As for the boat’s running surface, it starts with a sharp 60-degree V and finishes with nine degrees at the transom. A splash rail forward develops into hard chines that run the full length

of the boat. The couple says their boat runs very dry. ‘Top speed is about 22 knots, which we seldom do. Katana’s sweet spot is closer to 16 knots, turning 2200 rpm at 80 percent throttle,’ Godwin says. ‘We’re getting 8.6 gallons per hour with a full load.’ The boat’s 330-hp Cummins has less than 2000 hours. For air conditioning and reverse-cycle heating, there’s a Next Gen 5.5-kW genset.” (Find the full article at soundingsonline.com/boats/thomaspoint-34.)

summer’s race series. The final weekend of the series was the September 17-18, and Magic finished a respectable fourth overall for the weekend.

R

B

rittney Parish from Higgins Yacht Yard in St. Michaels, MD, sends us the following.

“We haven’t had any major projects going on at the boat yard the past two months, just busy with repairs/emergencies with the transient boaters in the harbor. We will start winterizing soon, and begin our big winter projects around the begin ning of December.” What Brittany didn’t mention was that a lot of the time this summer their shop was refinishing and preparing their log canoe Magic for this

ob Hardy of Composite Yacht in Trappe, MD, reports that the supply problems are easing somewhat, but lead times are still not what they used to be. Skilled labor is still very hard to come by, but things are slowly getting back to normal. Rob details what’s going on in his shop. “The CY55 went home this spring, but she has come back for some minor cosmetic touches to get her ready for the boat show. We are also sending a CY46 to Annapolis for the show. We have another 46 that is about halfway finished. I’m excited about this one because she’s going to be a little more fishing oriented, with a single C-18 Caterpillar in her. We’ve got a 34 walkaround that is getting close; we’re fitting pipework and fitting a hardtop, things like that. We have another 34 to build as a center console. We’ve been getting a lot of inquiries. I

Authorized d e A ler. Certified t e C hni C i A ns.

# A rare gathering of Bertram 31s at Higgins Yacht Yard in St. Michaels, MD, during a rendezvous organized last summer by Rod Jabin.

# A custom 29 foot, extra beamy, center console taking shape at Broad Creek Marine in Bozman, MD.

# The interior and custom deck layout being installed on a roomy custom 29-foot center console being built at Broad creek Marine.

# The 1894 log canoe Magic getting new varnish on her deck in the shop at Higgins Yacht Yard in St. Michaels, MD.

think we’re about to start on a Chesa peake 26 for light tackle stuff down the Bay. That design is perfect for that because it draws nothing.

“We also have a lot of the routine stuff. We’ve got a big Buddy Davis here for paint and some rot repair. We just did a full rehab on a mid-80s Mako 286. It’s got a dual console and forward seating; it’s a really neat rig. These

boats came with big block Chevys. We pulled them out and put a pair of 250 Yanmars in it. We included new tankage and basically a complete refit. The paint shop’s been very busy as well. We have an Albemarle 28 that had twin gassers to I/Os. We are going to pull those gas engines out and reinforce the stern and mount twin outboards on it. A lot of those Albe

marles and Carolina Classics came through with big block Chevys and you can’t buy them anymore. So we hope we can do some more outboard conversions. We’re also working in conjunction with Metalshark down in Louisiana. They have a lot of govern ment contracts and we make fiberglass masts for them that are articulated so they can get under bridges and such.

a 1998 Thomas Point 34 built by Mast and Mallet in Edgewater, MD. Photo courtesy of Soundings

We are really busy now and it looks like a busy winter,” Rob concluded. Ronnie Haddaway at Broad Creek Marine in Bozman, MD, describes a project in his shop. “We are building a custom 29-foot center console. Our cus tomer was looking at what was available in center consoles, but he was looking for something that was a little wider than was out there. So, we wound up making

1952 Chris-Craft 19-foot racing runabout ready to go after new varnish and gold leaf at Wooden Boat Restoration in Millington, MD.

her 10.5 feet wide. That’s what he wanted, at least 10 foot. She’s a little different than anything else. We built her with devinecell, sandwiched with fiberglass on both sides. We are putting a single 250 outboard on her and will mount it on a bracket. She’s got a huge center console. We’re in the later stages. We are designing the hardtop to go on it, and the seats are

a four-year restoration, this 1961 Owens Cruiser is going back in the water at Wooden Boat Restoration in Millington, MD.

in. The console is in and we’re down to the fairing and painting, so we are pretty close.”

So, as the boating season winds down and winter begins, we are all planning and looking forward to another good year come spring. It will be here before you know it. Stay safe and warm, and we’ll see you next month.

F ISH N E w S

By Lenny Rudow, FishTalk editor

Next Project: James Island

The Corps of Engineers and Maryland DOT have announced a partner ship agreement to target James Island as the next restoration project to dispose of dredge material. With the Poplar Island expansion completed last winter, the facility’s dredge containment areas are expected to be complete ly full within the next decade. Dike construction is expected to be complete at James by 2030, creating 100 million cubic yards of dredge capacity over 2072 acres shortly before Poplar is completely filled. That’s expected to allow the Corps to keep the channels to the port of Baltimore open until 2067. A much smaller project is also in the works at Barren Island, restoring 72 acres that will be ready to accept dredge material as soon as 2024.

Angling Absurdities

Several incidents involving aquatic antics made headlines this summer, starting with a pair of men caught by the Maryland DNR while spear fish ing—yes, spear fishing—in Gunpowder Falls. After DNR officers observed the men shining a flashlight into the water and then shooting a spear gun, they approached and upon searching them found a striped bass, two smallmouth bass, a catfish, a creek chub, and six crayfish. The incident would have topped our Crazy Chart, but the Delaware Natural Resources police have it beat: early this September they responded to reports of a water rescue in progress on the beach at Cape Henlopen State Park to discover a 48-year-old Newark man had driven his car down the beach and right into the ocean. Yes, he was charged with DUI (among other things).

Bay Hypoxia Gets a Break

Data from midsummer shows that in both Maryland and Virginia por tions of the Chesapeake, hypoxic (dead zone) water volume was far below average in late June and early July, and although it crept up in late July, remained near the historical mean. Hypoxic volume was down to 0.66 cubic miles and restricted mostly to Maryland waters in early July (as compared to an average of 1.63 cubic miles), before expanding south into Virginia and hitting 1.74 cubic miles later in the month. A combination of low freshwater flow and reduced nutrient runoff is credited with the reduced hypoxic volume.

Power to the Pamunkey

Virginia has a new state record in the archery department. This summer bowfishing angler Jason Emmel was prowling the waters of the Pamunkey River when he hit the bullseye on a three-foot, six-inch blue catfish. Tipping the scales at 66 pounds, five ounces, the fish beat the old archery re cord set just last year in the Occoquan by four pounds plus an ounce. We note that last year a bow record for gar (23 pounds) was also set in the Pamunkey—this river is on a hot streak.

# Dredge containment at Poplar Island has created a fantastic hotspot for Middle Bay anglers, and it looks like James Island will be next.

A men T n ew S

Cure for Your Fishing Itch

Saturday, November 5 the Fish For a Cure competi tors will hit the water. This year the format is catchphoto-release for stripers, along with Slam, Perch, and Invasive Species divisions. Remember, this fishing competi tion is all about raising funds for the Cancer Survivorship Program at Luminis Health Anne Arundel Medical Center’s Geaton and JoAnn DeCesaris Cancer Institute, and these funds have a direct and significant impact on cancer patients and their care. There simply is no better reason on the face of the planet to go fishing! Team FishTalk/PropTalk will compete in the event and if you’re thinking about joining in, we’d like to point out that that the captain’s swag buckets are awesome, the Portable Party Pack is full of mouth-watering food, and winning this tournament earns you some serious bragging rights not to mention cool prizes. More importantly, we hope you’ll visit fishforacure.org and make a Captain’s Chal lenge fundraiser donation for Team FishTalk/PropTalk—or any team, for that matter.

Got a New Boat?

Find the BEST people to take care of her at

CCA winter Pickerel Championship Is ON

November 1 marks the start of the annual CCA Winter Pickerel Championship, which runs clear through February. This four-month com petition included a whopping 72 anglers last year, with 437 fish logged via the catch-photo-release iAngler app. Chase Savage took top honors with an amazing 82-inch stringer for his top three entries as well as winning largest fish with a 27.5-incher, and FishTalk’s own Eric Packard scored second place for a 79.95-inch stringer, plus first place in the kayak division with a 26.75-inch pickerel. Herb Floyd scored third place, just a half an inch behind Packard. The tournament also has prizes for youth, lady, and fly divisions, plus longest crappie and longest perch. Visit ccamd.org to get in on the fun.

Help Us Fish For A Cure!

Bassmasters Wrap-up

The 2022 St. Croix Bass master Northern Open brought a whopping 179 boats to the northern waters of the Chesapeake this summer, and JT Thompkins took first place with a three-day total of 39 pounds, 12 ounces. Fishing was described as “challenging,” with abnormally high tides and a massive area of competition, but after locating grass beds in two to nine feet, Thompkins found a chatterbait and a wacky worm did the trick. The win earned him $42,267 and a ticket to compete in the Bassmaster Classic in Knoxville, TN, next March. The event drew competitors to the Bay from all across the nation, and these ambi tious anglers ran as far as 90 miles from the launch in their search for the winning fish. The Bassmas ters haven’t fished Bay waters since 2015, and the organization described the staging grounds of North East, MD, as “a small beautiful town, with lots of areas to explore between the take-offs and weigh-ins.”

Bassmaster

Big Rockfish in the Ocean

By Eric Burnley

When I proposed this article, it was with the idea that maybe we might see a return of big rockfish along the coast from Delaware to Virginia. That was before last spring when those fish did appear for the first time since Super Storm Sandy, and they stayed around much longer than anyone thought they would.

However, this does not mean big rockfish will be back this fall. It does give all of us hope that they will, and so I am going to give those too young to remember what it was like before the big storm the following tips on how to catch a big rockfish from the ocean should they return.

First and foremost, all striped bass or rockfish under 28 and over 35 inches must be released. It is also against federal law to catch or possess a rockfish or striped bass outside the Three-Mile-Limit.

Since you will be releasing most of the fish you catch, it is a good idea to crush the barbs on your hooks. When using bait, it is the law that you must use circle hooks. When using circle hooks, make sure the point is clear and not obstructed by the bait. I have replaced all the treble hooks on my metal casting lures with single hooks.

The most popular technique for catching rockfish in the ocean is to troll for them at the mouth of Delaware Bay. There are a series of shoals that form rips here and the rockfish gather down current from these to feed on whatever washes down to them. Big bucktails, Stretch 25s or 30s, or any other deep diving plug will get down to the fish. Troll along the top of the shoal and allow the current to wash your lure into the deeper water down current.

Years ago, there was one captain who fished from a 13-foot Boston

Whaler. He held his boat in place at the top of the shoal while his anglers worked lures from both corners on the stern. It was very effective, al though you could not see the boat on most days, and it looked like the guys were standing on the water.

Also, live eels were another good technique. These were drifted either along the rips or in deep water areas such as the Valley or the 8s. The eels were hooked up through the lower jaw and out the upper jaw with a circle hook and allowed to swim in the strong current. A fish-finder rig was used to get the eel to the bot tom. When you felt a pickup, you allowed the fish to run off with the eel until he stopped to swallow the bait. When he began to move again, you engaged the reel and allowed the circle hook to do its job.

The one thing we have now that we didn’t have back in the day are millions of menhaden close to the beach. If this bait draws in the rock

# Let’s hope the big rockfish return this fall. Photo by Ric Burnley

fish, we should see some fantastic ac tion with birds diving on feeding fish.

When fishing this exciting activity, you don’t want to bust into the main school of fish. Troll around the edges or cast into the school. Troll with pretty much any plug that looks like a hurt menhaden. The same goes for casting.

When casting, let your lure sink to the bottom and then use an up and down retrieve to imitate a wounded bait fish. With luck, this will attract one of those big fish that hold close to the bottom to pick up scraps left by the smaller ones up top.

In Virginia, the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is a magnet for big rockfish. Work the pilings by holding the boat stern-to and allowing your anglers to work bucktails back in the current. Not every piling holds fish, but when you find the one that does, it’s Katy, bar the door

Let’s hope we all get to try out these techniques this fall. #

KiptopeKe Fishing Adventure

By Kaylie Jasinski

Many of my great fishing stories from the past year or two begin the same way, with an excited call from FishTalk angler in chief Lenny Rudow. And when Lenny calls you with an idea for a fishing adventure, how can you say no?

This particular excursion began with a text from Lenny on a Tuesday:

“So…. I just talked Zach (Ditmars) into hauling the skiff to Kiptopeke to morrow eve, crash in an Airbnb, fish the cement ships Thursday, then drive home. Eric Packard will probably go, too. Want to join in the adventure???”

How can you say no to that?

Kiptopeke State Park in Cape Charles, VA, is about three and a half hours from Annapolis, located on Vir ginia’s Eastern Shore. We packed up the truck and trailerable boat on a Thursday after work and stopped into Anglers in Annapolis for bait. Sand fleas were our primary target, but since they are not a typical Upper Chesapeake bait, there was only one bag still in stock. In fact, the bag was so old, the folks at Anglers didn’t charge us for it.

After Anglers we drove south towards Cape Charles, crashed in a lovely Airbnb about 30 minutes away in Nassawadox, VA, and then woke at o-dark-thirty to hit the boat ramp at first light.

If you’re not familiar with this state park, Kiptopeke is most famous for its fleet of concrete ships, the Kiptopeke Breakwater. Nine concrete ships are lined end to end just west of the former Chesa peake Bay Ferry Terminal and not far from the fishing pier and boat ramp (it’s close enough that you can paddle to the wrecks, though preferably on a calm day).

In 1942, the U.S. Maritime Commis sion ordered 24 concrete ships to be built due to a steel shortage, as concrete was inexpensive and readily available. After the war ended, nine ships were scuttled off Kiptopeke in 1948 to form a breakwater. All the scuttled ships served as transport and training vessels in the South Pacific, and two even saw combat.

Today, the ships make for excellent fishing structure. So excellent in fact, that we caught 12 different species of fish in one day: toadfish, flounder, kingfish, bluefish, Spanish mackerel, weakfish,

puffer fish, grunt, croaker, black sea bass, red drum, and sheepshead.

But what we really came for was sheeps head. That was what started this adventure in the first place. When Lenny heard reports that Sheepshead were being caught at the concrete ships, a plan was formed.

The four of us settled into Lenny’s 16foot Flounder skiff with a variety of bait and rigs. Shrimp and sand fleas were our primary choices, fished on bottom right up against the ships using fish finder rigs. That’s where we caught the majority of our species, all generally smaller catch and release fish. In the morning we worked the side of the ships facing the fishing pier and by afternoon moved around to the other side.

In the afternoon, the Spanish mackerel bite just off the far side of the ships was on fire. The water, so calm in the morning, became a frenzy of leaping fish and diving birds. I lost track of how many macks we caught. Casting spoons in silver, white, and olive green were the hot ticket, though be sure to keep your casts low. Remember when I said we caught 12 species? Techni cally we caught 13 if you count the gull

# When a friend asks you to drop everything andgo fishing, there’s only one right answer: YES!

was safely released but not without a few chomped fingers.

After we had caught our fill of Spanish mackerel, we headed back towards the ships, still on the opposite side from the fishing pier, and finally caught what we had come all this way for. FishTalk con tributor Eric Packard reeled in a sheeps head, caught on bottom using a sand flea. If you’re not familiar with these fish, they have a beautiful striped body and some of the creepiest teeth you’ve ever seen. We

actually done it.

Just a few minutes later, Lenny hooked up. What we thought was an other sheepshead turned out to be a slot red, also caught on bottom using those ancient sand fleas we mentioned earlier. As Zach said, the fleas must have aged liked a fine wine because somehow, they caught the two biggest species of the day.

And what a spectacular day of fishing! When Lenny Rudow says it was the best fishing day of the year, you know

it’s good. We should all take more op portunities to play hooky and get out on the water when we have the chance. And even if you’re not an avid fisher man, Kiptopeke State Park is a beautiful place to go boating. The history of the concrete ships is fascinating, we saw dol phins and even a sea turtle in just a few hours of fishing, and there’s also a lovely white sand swimming beach.

Moral of the story, when a friend asks you to drop everything and go fishing, there’s only one right answer: YES! #

# Award for creepiest teeth goes to the Sheepshead.

# The afternoon Spanishmackerel bite was on fire.

# Zach Ditmars with a weakfish caught using aTin Man Lures floating jig.

# Lenny’s slot red.

# Eric with a beautiful sheepshead, the fish we had drove all this way for!

Put it Away Clean

Most folks don’t do much fishing in the winter. I will go out on a head boat if I get a chance to fish for cod out of New Jersey with my son Roger or go tog fishing in Delaware or Maryland. Both activities only require a mini mum amount of tackle, so the majority of my stuff still remains unused until spring.

Once I have made my last trip on the year, I will pick a day and devote it to cleaning and storing my tackle so that it will be in good shape come spring. I will check and pack up all my various rigs and put each one in a plastic sandwich bag so that they don’t become tangled up into one awful mess.

Next, I will go over my lures look ing for bent or rusted hooks. Those get replaced.

I carry a small selection of leader material, so I will inventory those and replace the ones that I find in

low supply. The same goes for hooks, snaps, swivels, sinkers, and various decorations such as blades, beads, and feathers. All of this sort of tackle is in one plastic box. I keep it sprayed with WD-40 and all the contents remain rust free.

Next come my rods and reels. I have a few. The ones I use on a regular basis get sprayed with WD-40 after every trip. The excess is wiped off, but enough remains to protect the reel from rust. I never spray my reels with water. Water dissolves the salt and makes it easier for it to enter the reel. I continue wiping the rod with the WD-40 rag leaving a coating on it as well.

Fishing line is always a big ques tion. How long does it last? It depends on what type of line you use, how you store your reels and how you fish.

Monofilament line does not last as long as braid. Change it out every two

years. Braid will last much longer, but only if you use a mono shock leader to protect it against abrasion.

Put everything away clean and you will be set to go in the spring.

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Acquisition

Iconic Marine Group (IMG) announces the acquisition of NauticStar Boats of Amory, MS. A successful and time-tested builder of bay boats, hybrids, deck boats, and offshore center consoles, NauticStar will join Fountain Powerboats and Donzi Marine as part of the rapidly expanding IMG boat division. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. “We moved at breakneck speed to acquire NauticStar,” said IMG managing partner Fred Ross. “From the time we got wind of a possible deal with previous owner MasterCraft, it took less than 45 days to put it all together.” “This was a high priority for IMG,” continued Ross. “NauticStar has an experienced manufacturing team, a solid dealer network, and an outstanding line of boats. Their 19 boat 2023 fleet extends from 18 to 28 feet which fits perfectly with Fountain and Donzi that rank as top tier brands in the 32- to 43-foot size range.” A major employer in the Amory area, NauticStar, posted sales over $70 million last year and has more than 100 dealers including One Water and Marine Max. Asked about IMG expansion plans and additional acquisitions, Ross wasn’t specific but did say, “Stay tuned. We’re not done yet.” iconicmarinegroup.com; nauticstarboats.com

Electric Outboard

The French-based company TEMO, manufacturer of the first portable, electricpowered outboard motor TEMO.450 is entering the US market. The pioneering start-up has had great initial success in its domestic market. Only three years after the launch of the TEMO.450 engine, it has already delivered more than 3000 elec tric motors all over Europe and is now looking towards rapid international expan sion by tackling the North American market. The Waterford, CT, headquartered company Defender Industries has been appointed as the official US dealer and the TEMO.450 motor will be revealed at the Annapolis Sailboat Show in October. Defender Industries supplies a wide range of high-end marine products. Defender managing director Stephan Lance said he is delighted to welcome TEMO.450 to Defender’s portfolio. He said: “Since Defender began offering electric motors over 10 years ago, the demand for clean, safe, and efficient propulsion has grown signifi cantly. The TEMO.450 brings a new power option for small tenders and boats to the table. One that is lightweight, stows easily, and is easy to operate.” Designed for dinghies, tenders, and small boats, the portable system includes a 450W mo tor, 110V charger, rowlock fitting kit, and security device. It weighs just under 11 pounds, has a propulsive power of 200W, and produces 12 kg of maximum thrust from its motor. defender.com/temo.jsp

Launch

New Business

Jim Dean announces the formation of his new business, Dean Yacht Company. Dean says, “I have been bringing a higher level of personal ized service and management to the brokerage business for the past five years (and service industry for the past 16 years), and I am excited to now open my own business where I can bring my expertise to my clients’ individual needs even more!” For more information, contact Dean at jim@deanyachtcompany.com or (410) 353-8888.

SailTime announces the launch of Sea Style Yacht Partners, the first fractional yacht ownership program that offers multihull power and sailing yachts. The Annapolis, MD, based company is part of the Sea Style Acquisitions (SSA), a leader in fractional yachting for the past 20 years and is the innovator of well-known boat sharing programs such as SailTime, PowerTime, and Embark Scheduling Software. Seas Style Yacht Partners offers a sensible path to yacht ownership by offering their clients the option to buy a 25 or 50 percent share in a fully crewed yacht or a large luxury catamaran, focusing on the market between 60 and 150 feet. “We recognize many potential yacht buyers are seeking a higher level of service and a turnkey yachting experience from the moment of purchase to the time they are underway in the most desirable boating destinations,” says Mathias Chouraki, president of Sea Style Yacht Partners and veteran yacht broker and licensed commercial captain. “Our company is capitalizing on the clear trend of the past decade that shows exponential growth in luxury shared goods, from private aviation to extravagant villas and yachts.” Operational costs are shared by each client based on percentage of ownership. Sea Style manages the accounts for the vessel and provides the owners with an easy-to-read monthly expense statement. Sea Style Yacht Partners handles all operations from crew management, insurance, and dockage to regular maintenance and repairs. Depending on the level of ownership, owners are guaranteed a minimum of seven to 14 weeks a year. Owners plan their vacation well in advance or last-minute (48-hour notice) if no other owners are onboard. Sea Style Yachts may be in locations from the Mediterranean Sea to the Caribbean and East Coast USA (Florida, Hamptons, Rhode Island…). Yacht relocations are planned before each season with the input of the owners. seastyle.net

b ay business news and high-resolution photos to kaylie@proptalk.com

BOATs4HEROEs.ORg

Donate Your Boat, Planet Hope is a local 501(c)(3). Teaching youth from DC, Maryland and Virginia to sail for over 15 years. 800.518.2816 www.planet-hope.org

Yacht Brokers of Annapolis A native of the Annapolis area, Matthew Sansbury has always had a love for being on the water. Prior to opening Yacht Brokers of Annapolis, Matt worked as a marine service technician as well as a commercial electrician. His passion for boating and his technical expertise make him a trusted resource for both buying and selling quality yachts. Phone: 410.206.2755 Email: Matt@YachtBrokersofAnnapolis.com

S&J Yachts Full-service yacht brokerage. 5 offices, 10 locations from Maine to Florida. 23 full-time, experienced brokers to promote your boat & get her sold. S&J Yachts has established an outstanding reputation for integrity and service! We work to meet the goals of each of our clients by taking time to get to know what they want. Our wide reach helps find top buyers. Whether buying or selling, our services are professional and effective! Dealers for Makai Catamarans 37’-45’ and Bavaria Sail & Power 30’-55’. Ask us about free storage for brokerage listings! 410.639.2777 info@sjyachts.com www.sjyachts.com

Composite Yacht Sales Offering personalized service from Capt. Rob Hardy, who is a Chesapeake Bay native and spent his entire life in the maritime industry, with a focus on boat building, service and repair. Backed by the knowledge and experience of Composite Yacht, you are ensured thoughtful and thorough representation for both Buyer and Seller. Contact CYS now to learn how we can help you: 410.476.4414 or rob@compositeyacht.biz

Yacht View Brokerage, LLC announces our new 8% commission, which may include complimentary Annapolis dockage (for yachts above 100K and up to 80’ in length) and 10% co-brokerage listing commission! We will successfully market your yacht from her current East Coast location or arrange delivery to our secure dockage for yachts from 30’-80’ (Power/Sail). Located 20 minutes from BWI airport, our listings are easily inspected and demonstrated to prospective buyers. Targeted print advertising & Yachtworld.com MLS internet exposure with wide angle/high resolution photos and video. 30 yrs proven customer service! Call/text Capt. John Kaiser, Jr. @ 443.223.7864. Email your yacht’s details for a full market appraisal to: john@yachtview.com www.yachtview.com

YaZu Yachting With a career in construction equipment rental and sales, thirty plus years boating on the Chesapeake Bay, and a twenty-year Gwynns Island resident, Bob Hoefer has taken his sales talents to the water with a new career at YaZu Yachting. “Understanding the importance of relationship building in any sales arena, I am eager to meet and get to know new people. Whether in the acquisition of their new boat or the sale of their current boat, it all starts with a relationship.” 804.241.8924 bob@yazuyachting.com www.yazuyachting.com

Yacht Brokers of Annapolis From cruising the Potomac River in his powerboat to racing sailboats on the Chesapeake Bay, Drake Bowers loves all aspects of boating. A native of Northern Virginia, he recently graduated from The College of Charleston, where he continued to enjoy life on the water. After returning home, Drake joined the YBOA team working to help clients realize their own boating dreams. Phone: 703.869.8162 Email: Drake@YachtBrokersofAnnapolis.com

Brokerage & Classified

2016 Robalo R222 Center Console

UPGRADED Yamaha V-Max 250, Only 45 hours, GPS, Trailer in Nice Condition. $62,900 Waterfront Marine 443.949.9041 www.waterfrontmarine.com

2018 Robalo R222 EX Center Console Yamaha F200 O/B, Garmin GPS, BOATEL KEPT. Great Condition. $61,997 Waterfront Marine 443.949.9041 www.waterfrontmarine.com

2021 Sportsman Tournament 234 VF250XA SHO Yamaha Outboard, 76 hrs, warranty until 02/27/2026, 2021 Venture Boat Trailer, Shark Gray with White Bottom, Polar White Upholstery, Platinum Package, Mooring Cover, Spray Shield Canvas, Bow Cushion Set, Premium Dual Chair Leaning Post with Flip-Up Bolsters, Yeti Cooler with SlideOut Track, Under Leaning Post Tackle Storage and LOTS of bells and whistles featuring Garmin! $109,000 Riverside Marine 410.686.1500 sales@riversideboats.com www.riversideboats.com

24’ Port Carling Seabird 24 ‘37

Classic boat, professionally maintained. Lift/Shed stored and trailer/indoors out of season. 454Fresh everything. This boat is a LOOKER! Call Rob Summers 443.771.4467 or www.seattleyachts.com

26’ Pacemaker FB ‘86 New 350Hp Merc, Very Nice. $29,900 Upper Chesapeake Yacht Sales 610.299.3598 www.UpperChesapeakeYachtSales.com

23’ Boston Whaler Vantage ‘16 New to the market and super low hours, this Whaler Vantage 230 is the perfect family and fishing boat for the bay and beyond. Fresh full detail, wax and oil change. Asking $112,000 Call Jeff Nicklason for details; 410.353.7423 or email jnicklason@annapolisyachtsales.com www.annapolisyachtsales.com

2011 Chaparral 246 SSi Volvo 300Hp V-8, LOW Hours, GPS, LIFT KEPT, One Owner. $41,997 Waterfront Marine 443.949.9041 www.waterfrontmarine.com

Cutwater Boats C-24 DC 2021 $149,987 She boasts a very beautiful, comfortable, and useful set of options. Lovingly cared for by her first owner and a change in plans makes her available at a significantly lower price. Call John Osborne at 410.490.6250 or john@pocket-yacht.com www.pocketyachtco.com

(Dream Catcher) 27’ Rinker ‘05 $34,900 Wayne Smith 516.445.1932 wayne@curtisstokes.net www.curtisstokes.net

27’ Ocean Master 2014 $86,400 Clean, late model, nicely cared for. Never bottom painted. Plenty of rod holders! Must see this one! Won’t last long. Call Scott 757.570.3944 or sjames@bluewateryachtsales.com www.bluewateryachtsales.com

24’ Grady White 2008 $74,900 This well-maintained, Boatel kept gem is a rare find! Turnkey and ready to fish. Low hour 350 Yamaha. Trailer included too! This one won’t last long. Call John 301.991.3308 or jprather@bluewateryachtsales.com www.bluewateryachtsales.com

Ranger Tug R-25 2021 $189,937

Ranger Gray “like new” Ranger 25. Many extras include; EVA foam decking with Ranger logo, FusionMS BB100 Black box radio that displays on Nav screen, Balmar Battery monitor, and much more. Call John Osborne at 410.490.6250 or john@pocket-yacht.com www.pocketyachtco.com

26’ Bluefin Custom Sportfish CC ‘07 S Diesel, tower, Mint Cond. $64,900 Upper Chesapeake Yacht Sales 610.299.3598 www.UpperChesapeakeYachtSales.com

27’ Cherubini ‘13 $195,000 Jack Kelly 609.517.2822 jack@curtisstokes.net www.curtisstokes.net

27’ Rinker EX Express ‘18 Low hours, great for family and entertaining, well taken care of. Asking $114,999 Call Jeff Nicklason for details; 410.353.7423 or email jnicklason@annapolisyachtsales.com www.annapolisyachtsales.com

Read boat reviews online at

26’ Hacker-Craft Triple Cockpit Hull no “7” recently restored by the manufacturer, and a true head-turner. $76,900 Call Matt Weimer for details; 410.212.2628 or email matt@annapolisyachtsales.com www.annapolisyachtsales.com

27’ GRAND G850 L ‘21 One owner, lift kept, low hours, enclosed head. This is the ultimate RIB and provides comfort, speed and safety. 12V fridge, freshwater shower & amp; cockpit sink, extended platforms and extra storage lockers. A real sexy boat with a 350Hp Suzuki! Inquire today and grab a deal on a fully warrantied vessel! $120,000 make an offer! Call Charles Herbert for details and demo; 443.995.4800 or cherbert@annapolisyachtsales.com www.annapolisyachtsales.com

2018 Crownline 285 SS 6.2 MAG B3 350Hp Mercruiser, Mercury Extended Engine Warranty until 04/01/2024, (no trailer), Onyx Black, Champagne Interior, Driftwood Woven Mat-Floor, Black Aluminum Wakeboard Arch with Suntop, LED Lighting Package, Trim Tabs, Cockpit Galley, Windlass, Ray Marine GPS, Transom Shower, Low Hours, Pump-Out Head - Electric, (2) Coolers, Lift kept since new, dealer maintained. $105,995 Riverside Marine 410.686.1500 sales@riversideboats.com www.riversideboats.com

2019 Sportsman Open 282 CC Twin F300XCA Yamaha Outboards w/ Optimus Electric Power Steering, Yamaha Extended Warranty until 0523-2025, Engine Hours - 389, (no trailer), Garmin Reactor 40 Auto-Pilot, Second Garmin GPSMAP 1242xs, Garmin GMR Fantom 18, Airmar B175M Chirp Thru-Hull Transducer, On-Board Battery Charging System, Full Mooring Cover, Taco Grand Slam 280 with 15’ Outriggers. $179,995 Riverside Marine 410.686.1500 sales@riversideboats.com www.riversideboats.com

27’ Nimbus T8 ‘22 Hull # 185Walk Around Dayboat w/ Euro Modern Styling. Single 250Hp Marc, Bow Thruster and more.. Swedish design and quality build. Call Seattle Yachts 410.397.7323 or www.seattleyachts.com

2021 Cobia 280CC Upgrade to Yamaha F250NSB with fully electric steering, Only 28 engine hours and extended warranty until 4/28/2026, Custom Ameritrail welded aluminum trailer, Upgraded JL Audio Sound System w/ 2 subs and amp, 4 batteries w/ on-board charger, Black acrylic dash, Garmin 8616 - 16” touchscreen w/ sonar, Recessed through hull anchor windlass w/ stainless anchor, Underwater LED Lights, 2 covers: full mooring cover and a console drape. $214,995 Riverside Marine 410.686.1500 sales@riversideboats.com www.riversideboats.com

34’ Beneteau Swift Trawler 34 ‘13

Single Cummins 425Hp engine, Flybridge, Bowthruster, Stern thruster, Aircon, Generator, 2 helm stations, 2-cabin 1-head layout, wide side decks. Deltaville, VA. Call Jon Hutchings 804.567.0093 or jon@yazuyachting.com www.yazuyachting.com

36’ IP Packet Craft Express 360 New Listing - Downeast look. Luxurious interior w/ centerline forward. Outstanding sea-keeping ability. Attention to safety & comfort. Twin Yanmar dsls. $254,900 S&J Yachts 410.571.3605 www.sjyachts.com

2012 North Pacific 39 Pilothouse

An excellent cruising platform for the Great Loop - meticulously maintained. Contact Chris Beardsley at 804.885.4090 or Chris@NorthPointYachtSales.com www.NorthPointYachtSales.com

2021 Tiara Yachts 39 Open Don’t miss this opportunity to buy a like-new Tiara 39 Open with Axalta painted hull, helm air, 42” swim platform, and more! Contact Bob Oberg at 410.320.3385 or Bob@NorthPointYachtSales.com www.NorthPointYachtSales.com

2022 Contender 39FA LOADED! Triple 300 Yamaha’s. NOW $759,000 Waterfront Marine 443.949.9041 www.waterfrontmarine.com

2022 Tiara Yachts C39 Coupe

2012 MJM 40Z “Lolly” is a rare find in today’s market stored on a covered life and gently used with regular care. Contact Grady Byus at 410.280.2038 or Grady@NorthPointYachtSales.com www.NorthPointYachtSales.com

2013 MJM 40Z Downeast “Moxie” loaded with options and upgrades and ready to take you on your next adventure. Contact David Malkin at 410.280.2038 or David@NorthPointYachtSales.com www.NorthPointYachtSales.com

34’ Custom Carolina 1987 $87,000

Many, many updates! Available with all tackle! An offshore fisherman’s dream. Twin 330Hp Cummins engines rebuilt in 2017. Bring all offers! Call Jeremy for a tour at 410.507.4150 or jblunt@bluewateryachtsales.com www.bluewateryachtsales.com

37’ Makai Power Catamaran New Boat Available for 2023 Delivery!

Exhilarating Performance. Breathtaking looks. Unprecedented driving experience. Remarkable space & comfort w/ 2 large cabins. Call now for more details. S&J Yachts 410.639.2777 www.sjyachts.com

Purchased as a holdover (May 2022), this is your opportunity to own a like-new 39 Coupe. Contact Grady Byus at 410.533.9879 or Grady@NorthPointYachtSales.com www.NorthPointYachtSales.com

40’ Nimbus T11 ‘23 New Arrival - T11 #167 - Twin 300 Mercs. Joystick, Thruster, Open day boat layout with yacht construction quality. 2 Cabins and enclosed head. $455,000 Well equipped! Call Seattle Yachts 410.397.7323 or www.seattleyachts.com

39’ Legacy 12 ‘23 Spring Delivery, brand new model - Twin Outboard 350s, Air Con, Genset, Thrusters, Loaded and ready for cruising 2023 season! Call Seattle Yachts 410.397.7323 or www.seattleyachts.com

34’ Mainship 34 Trawler ‘80 Fly Bridge Trawler Model. Perkins 160Hp Engine. Cruising or live aboard on a budget! PRICE REDUCED $43,000 Call Rob Summers 443.771.4467 or www.seattleyachts.com

37’ Pursuit 3370 Express ‘06 Wonderful fishing and entertaining boat, well taken care of. Asking $150,000 Call Brenden Tillman for details; 410.941.4849 or btillman@annapolisyachtsales.com www.annapolisyachtsales.com

34’ Nordic Tug 34 ‘14 Beautifully equipped and maintained. One owner, shed kept, shows like a 3-year-old! Cruise ready - low hours, Perfect Looper! Asking $375,000 Call Dan Bacot 703.813.0460 or www.seattleyachts.com

2004 Cobalt 360 Very clean, low hours, and very well maintained. Exciting to run and all maintenance is up to date. Contact Chris Beardsley at 804.885.4090 or Chris@NorthPointYachtSales.com www.NorthPointYachtSales.com

38’ Fountain 2003 $149,000 Center console with cuddy cabin in excellent condition! Powered by triple Mercury Optimax 225Hp outboards. Fast and efficient! Call Mark now for more information 757.406.1673 or mconnors@bluewateryachtsales.com www.bluewateryachtsales.com

2018 Tiara Sport 38 LS Low hours on her triple Yamaha 350’s, full canvas enclosure for helm, dealer maintained and well cared for by sole owner. Contact Jack McGuire at 401.290.7066 or Jack@NorthPointYachtSales.com www.NorthPointYachtSales.com

39’ Mainship 390 ‘99 Aft Cockpit Trawler Twin Volvo Penta 200Hp Diesels. AC - Garmin - Island bunk forward/ Genset and more... Asking $99,000 Reduced. Contact Rod Rowan 703.593.7531 or www.seattleyachts.com

40’ Nordic Tug ‘23 New Build - Just starting production - opportunity to tweak specs. Cummins Engine & Genset specs. Air, Thrusters and more! Call Seattle Yachts for more info at 410.397.7323 or www.seattleyachts.com

(Game Hog) 40’ Robbins ‘99 $139,000 David Robinson 410.310.8855 david@curtisstokes.net www.curtisstokes.net

40’ Regal Commodore 402 ‘95 Twin Cummins Diesels, Westerbeke Genset, Air - Ready for cruising adventures! Asking $94,900 Call Rob Summers 443.771.4467 for a showing! www.seattleyachts.com

40’

Read boat reviews and find more used boats online at proptalk.com

equipped and maintained.

newer canvas, quality

-

Dan Bacot 703.813.0460 or

$425,00

(Fuels Rush In) 2004 Silverton 410 Sport Bridge Two Owner, Twin Low Hour Cummins 450Hp Diesel Engines, Two Stateroom, Head with Sink and Vanity in Separate Room than Shower Stall, Complete Electronics Refit 2020, New Purasan Hold-N-Treat System 2022. $189,950 Urbanna, VA. Call Bob Hoefer 804-241-8924 or bob@yazuyachting.com www.yazuyachting.com

42’ Cruisers 2013 $189,000 Express motoryacht layout on upperdeck. Aft cabin, 2 stateroom, 2 heads and full galley. Yanmar diesel engines. Call Hawk to view this exceptional offer 240.383.8128 or hawk@bluewateryachtsales.com www.bluewateryachtsales.com

45’ Hatteras 1971 $110,000 Rebuilt classic yacht with all the upgrades! Twin Cummins 6CTA 8.3 450Hp engines. She’s ready to fish, cruise or live aboard! Call Roger 410.456.3659 or rmooney@bluewateryachtsales.com www.bluewateryachtsales.com

47’ Monte Carlo ‘11 NEW LISTING

Luxurious, Performance Top of the line Power Cruiser. Twin Volvo Penta Turbo IPS 600 Diesels 435Hp. Electric dinghy garage. Beautifully appointed salon and staterooms. Numerous areas indoors and out for gracious entertaining. Table converts to a lg sunbed. Contact S&J Yachts for more details 410.639.2777 www.sjyachts.com

(Sea Cloud) 41’ Mainship ‘90 $54,900 Jason Hinsch 410.507.1259 jason@curtisstokes.net www.curtisstokes.net

Grand Banks 42 Classic ‘89 Hailed as the perfect long-distance cruiser. For nearly 4 decades this recreational trawler was one of the most popular semi displacement 10-knot speed 1200 Mile range vessels built for as a near perfect coastal cruiser. $195,000 S&J Yachts 410.639.2777 www.sjyachts.com

2020 MJM 43 Volvo IPS 600 boats top speed of 40mph. Duoprop provides easy joy stick docking - extended warranties. Contact Jack McGuire at 401.290.7066 or Jack@NorthPointYachtSales.com www.NorthPointYachtSales.com

2022 Bavaria SR41 Coupe Award Winner! Lightly Used. Owners moving up to larger yacht. Upgraded Twin 380Hp Volvo Penta’s. Large retractable GRP sunroof. Spacious cockpit w/wet bar. Convertible aft table/sunbed. Large bathing platform. Sun pad fwd. Spacious interior w/galley, 2 large cabins, 2 heads. $720,000 S&J Yachts 410.639.2777 www.sjyachts.com

43’ Tiara 4300 Sovern ‘09 High quality workmanship and performance & hard to find. Meticulously maintained w/ all service records are available to a serious buyer. IPS-600 Volvo, Joystick controls make her a joy for shorthanded yachtsman. Inquire for price. S&J Yachts 410.639.2777 www.sjyachts.com

41’ Menorquin 120 ‘03 Old world charm, hand craftmanship but modern materials and technology. Low hours & in impeccable condition, upgraded and full maintenance records. Great two cabin cruiser, flybridge, twin diesel engines, generator & much more. $230,000 S&J Yachts 410.639.2777 www.sjyachts.com

2022 Contender 44ST Tower w/ Triple 425 Yamaha, Dealer demo. SeaKeeper, Excellent Electronics, MAJOR Price Drop to $849,000 Waterfront Marine 443.949.9041 www.waterfrontmarine.com

find more used boats,

(Coriolis)

2005 Seahorse Charles Neville CN44 47’ LOA, 16’ Beam, Steel Hull, 3500 Mile Range, Single John Deere 220Hp, Bow thruster, Two Stateroom. Deltaville, VA. Call Bob Hoefer 804.241.8924 or bob@yazuyachting.com www.yazuyachting.com

1990 Tradewinds 47 MY Impeccably maintained & updated, turn-key & ready to cruise. Used as a display for Tradewinds at many boat shows. Has done the ICW from the Chesapeake to Panhandle of Florida. Fully capable of completing the Great Loop. $127,000 S&J Yachts 410.639.2777 www.sjyachts.com

(Oceans 48) 48’ Ocean Yachts 2000 $319,500 Never fished, only cruised with wide beam for soft ride. Large upscale 2 stateroom/2 head interior. Spacious salon. Twin 3196 Caterpillar 660Hp diesels with approximately 1550 hours. Call Roger for your tour 410.456.3659 or rmooney@bluewateryachtsales.com www.bluewateryachtsales.com

(Pokie Hokie) 2006 Seahorse 52 Pilot House Trawler One owner. Twin John Deere 135Hp Diesel Engines - 2500 hours on each. 2 stateroom, 2 head. All systems serviced, full of fuel and ready to cruise! $469,000 Burgess, VA. Call Bob Hoefer 804.241.8924 or bob@yazuyachting.com www.yazuyachting.com

(Cygnus) 56’ Jakobson & Peterson ‘30 $195,500 Curtis Stokes 410.919.4900 curtis@curtisstokes.net www.curtisstokes.net

(Sea Trader) 60’ Hatteras ‘05 $990,000 Lin Earley 757.672.2778 lin@curtisstokes.net www.curtisstokes.net

(Stella) 50’ Cranchi 2003 $269,000 Spacious and beautiful! Reliable Volvo D12 power. Lovingly cruised and ready for new home. Call Chuck for a personal tour 703.999.7696 or cmeyers@bluewateryachtsales.com www.bluewateryachtsales.com

52’ Monte Carlo 52 ‘20 Rare & nearly new. Fully loaded, ready-to-cruise, engine has fewer than 100 hours. Attractive options: upgrade to the IPS 650 propulsion, SeaKeeper stabilizer, joystick controls, transom windlass, hydraulic bathing platform, and two galleys on deck. $1,300,000 S&J Yachts 410.639.2777 www.sjyachts.com

Read boat reviews online at proptalk.com

Marine Dynamics Yacht Delivery 50 years on water experience with

& Power. US East Coast

EQUIPMENT

FINANCE

Caribbean.

EQUIPMENT

H ELP WANTED

Are you on a search for a full-time sales position that requires you to get out and enjoy the water, where all your co-workers are super cool, and where flip-flops and shorts are considered business casual? SpinSheet, PropTalk, FishTalk, Start Sailing Now, and PortBook magazines are in growth mode, and we are looking for that special advertising sales rep who understands the marine industry and knows how to work and play hard. If you think you will excel in creating sales and marketing solutions for advertisers, then we would love to chat with you. Send your resume, a description of your boating experience and interests, and a cover letter telling us why you’d be a great fit for our team today! info@spinsheet.com

Hiring Boat Loan Processor Full time, M-F, 9-5, proficiency in data entry required, attention to detail a must, excellent communication skills necessary. Send resume to dave@sterlingacceptance.com www.sterlingacceptance.com

P/T Delivery Driver Wanted for three-day-a-month magazine distribution route in Baltimore City. Compensation based upon quantity of stops. Must have a valid driver’s license in good standing, reliable vehicle, and be able to lift up to 25 lbs. Contact Beatrice at 410.216.9309 or beatrice@spf-360.com

S&J Yachts Looking for an experienced Full-time Yacht Broker. Great opportunity to work with a large, professional company - 5 offices from the mid-Atlantic to Florida. S&J Yachts are Dealers for: Bavaria Yachts Sail & Power and Makai Power Catamarans, specializing in quality Brokerage yachts. Boating experience and team player a must! Friendly, professional working environment. Inquiries confidential. Contact Jack at 410.971.1071 or info@sjyachts.com www.sjyachts.com

H ELP WANTED

Yacht Sales - Curtis Stokes and Associates, Inc. is hiring new salespeople for our Chesapeake area operation. Candidates must be honest, ethical and have boating experience. This is a commission only position. Contact Curtis Stokes at 410.919.4900 or curtis@curtisstokes.net www.curtisstokes.net

ARINE S

& STORAGE

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Dock Box For Sale TaylorMade Fiberglass Dock Box. Gas Shocks, Dimensions: 24” x 72” x 23”. $450 Call John May 410.212.1539

Rent or Sale: Magothy River Boat Slip Boat slip for sale or rent in beautiful condo marina in Severna Park on Magothy River. Gated, pool, complete bathroom, laundry facilities, fuel dock. 26’ x 12’ deep water. Call Holly 301.325.7427

Preparing to Unplug and Go Cruising

m ee T Pe T e mAT hew S

After nearly 30 years at the helm of MathewsBros, builders of boats in the true Chesapeake tradition, Pete Mathews knows the long hours and dedication it takes to build a strong team and a loyal client base. He’s done both while forging a thriving business that builds, maintains, and stores custom-made boats in Denton, MD. Now, as he prepares to sell his company, Pete and his wife, Annie, imagine the next phase of life, a time in which they unplug and go cruising.

Tell us about your introduction to boating and the type of boating you currently do.

My first boating experience was sailing aboard my father’s Contest 30, which had a home base on the Tred Avon and sailed in and around the Chesapeake Bay.

Today we have a Mathews 18 that we’ve had for years. Over the years we’ve owned several boats. In the 1980s we had an old Hobie 16, bought a 22foot Anacapri, and had a 24-foot Sea Ray. We even lived aboard on a Cheoy Lee 48 in 1988, but found living aboard was more than we were up for. We’ve also had a few project boats before MathewsBros, but now we have the 18, a couple of runabouts, and we are working on a new Mathews 24 model. In addition, we have ideas of joining the trawler fleet later in life.

For the most part anymore, to me boating means spending time with friends and customers and moving boats for work-related purposes. I enjoy boating on all bodies of water, even when it is work related, and I love fall boating the best!

MathewsBros

We hung out our shingle in 1995 when my brother, Bob, and I started MathewsBros. Annie, my wife, has been involved since day one. In the beginning she was part-time and helped

on the shop floor. We had one other employee that first year. Today we are still small, but we have 14 full-time incredible people with three young people working part-time, two of whom are second generation.

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Annie has been very instrumental in getting the business to where it is today. She has the position of back-office sup port—really the CFO, CEO, and just a magnificent team player. We have two children who are now parents themselves, and we have five beautiful grandchildren. Our son, Spencer, has worked in the shop from a very young age. He has worked in the business on a full-time basis since he returned from the Air Force. He has amassed quite a bit of boat-related knowledge and is strong in customer relations and sales. Our daughter, Kerry, is an elementary school teacher, and has helped out on a part-time basis through the years.

Tell us about the artistry, attention to style, form, and detail in a MathewsBros boat.

In this business we start as artisans. From the beginning it has all been about function with heavy emphasis on form

all at Herringtonharbour.com

and style. We won’t build an ugly boat just to build one; it’s not in our makeup. Fortunately, our customers and our team agree on what constitutes a good-looking boat. As in a lot of different things in life, one must try and find a job they love to do. I am grateful to say I’ve loved doing this. Rewards come from seeing this incredible team create what they do. I still enjoy watching these boats of all sizes grow from the shop floor and know that this crew is dedicated to continuing the exceptional standards and reputation we all work tirelessly to maintain.

Of the boats MathewBros has built, do you or your customers have a favorite?

No favorites; I have enjoyed being part of all of them in some aspect. The most popular has been our 29-foot Patriot and Blackwater models. Based on the very popular Cecil Robbins workboat hull, we are currently building our 30th 29-foot boat. Right now, we are building four

boats—a 40, 29, 24 and 18, which will bring us to 90 boats built. This includes 19 Hampton One Design sailboats and a couple others built for other compa nies.

Why is it important for your customers to be involved during the building process?

For most of our customers, one of the reasons we believe that they come to us is that we are really building more than just a boat. Being part of the build, as much or as little as they like, lets them learn their boat before they take posses sion. We also find that the relationship built along the way between customer and crew tends to grow year after year as the boats return for storage and mainte nance. A new boat owner is welcomed into the MathewsBros family and is treated like family.

Learn more about MathewsBros and its boats at mathewsboats.com. #

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