July 2006
Back in the Chesapeake Bay and looking forward to some cruising. It took us three days to finish sorting out Lady’s bottom, including making up some copper epoxy from resin and copper powder to cover a few small bare patches. Back in the water we stocked up the freezer and store cupboards and prepared to leave. Sadly we found that our lightening strike had damaged a bit more of our radar setup - something we could only tell when the scanner had been replaced. The screen unit will be repaired shortly and only then can we check the last unit! Generation III Marina have been very helpful and we will use them again.

A Chesapeake skipjack moored by 'Lady' in Cambridge - the skipjacks were used for oyster dredging on the Bay
The huge day-markers showing the entry to La Trappe Creek - very shallow!
The anchorage behind the sand bar in La Trappe Creek with Great Blue Heron and others
The ornate clipper bow on the skipjack
Jelly fish are a problem in summer and if yoiu want to swim you can buy a netting swimming pool with inflatable edging to put by your boat!
Young osprey perching on motor boat...
...and getting anxious about me

The Chesapeake Bay is full of quiet anchorages in secluded corners of an endless number of rivers creeks and inlets. These are useful in the frequent, violent thunderstorms which punctuate the hot and humid days and nights. They are very shallow however and you need lots of courage to negotiate the entries and best spots. The two towers in the above picture mark (Red Right Returning) the entry to La Trappe Creek where you can shelter behind the sandbank. Tidal ranges are only 2 feet but we went firmly aground between these markers when we left at low water. A passing motor boat ran round us in a circle to provide wash while we motored hard to un-stick ourselves. OK in the end though!

Osprey safely transported to foredeck but yet to be disentangled from blanket
Young osprey who accidentally landed in our cockpit - anyone fancy picking him up?
Very anxious osprey movie from safety of cabin - you may need to enable active content to view this

The ospreys have been an endless source of fascination for us and we have been patiently working on getting closer to them and taking better pictures. It is now the season when the adolescents are learning to fly and being taught how to fish. They are less wary of human contact and the youngster on the left was perched on a motor boat in Solomons where we had gone to see the museum.

He was one of two youngsters - very noisy! He posed warily and we snapped him.

Anchored in the shallow calm of Plaindealing Creek near Oxford we had a rather closer encounter than we had bargained for! The osprey family were living on a pole about 30 yards from us and the two youngsters were learning to fish. Instead of swooping skillfully on a fish like the adults they trailed their feet through the water in hope of running into one. The parents were showing signs of wanting them to leave home and were not bringing them a steady supply of food.

Tired from his efforts one of these ‘babies’ tried to land on an aerial on the back of the boat and slid gracefully to the cockpit floor next to us. One look at the beak and talons and we fled!. On advice from the Natural Resources Police we let him calm down and then covered him with a blanket. The skipper carried him to the foredeck and uncovered him. He stayed there for two hours with mother checking on him. Length 2 feet, wingspan 5 ft. 3 in. he found it hard to take off but eventually went home for supper. Phew!!

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