Trawling the ICW, day 10-12
The last three days of the trip were studies in extremes, at least as far as the weather was concerned. Friday and Saturday were warm, with non-stop sunshine and light winds. It actually got a little hot in the afternoon. Summer was obviously not far away. The Bay fishermen were everywhere. Our last day on the water, Sunday, was a slog north in rain, wind, and low visibility. Frank said that the worst weather he had on the trip was that last day. Sea Smoke was pounding in the waves so badly that Frank had to throttle back. Di Di was an emotional wreck, cowering next to Frank, and no doubt wondering what she had done to deserve such abuse. Despite the bumpy ride, however, we were relatively comfortable and dry. Not everyone was as well off as Frank and I. The Sunday fishermen, and the sailboat racing fleet, were both out there getting their fair share of abuse. I knew how cold and wet it would be on my sailboat if I had tried to get up to Baltimore that day.Sea Smoke and her trusty engine just kept slowly eating up the miles. For a while, the Bay Bridge at Annapolis was playing "now you see me, now you don't" in the rain showers, but we eventually put the bridge behind us. Traffic increased a little as we entered Baltimore, both commercial boats and pleasure craft. We went under one last bridge, left Fort McHenry off to port, and then quietly slipped into the Anchorage Marina where Frank would spend his summer before returning to the Bahamas in the fall.
I throughly enjoyed the trip northbound up the ICW. Captain Frank was a great skipper, Sea Smoke was a comfortable and reliable trawler, and the ICW was a great cruise. I highly recommend it.
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