Candy and I walked the town of Reedville several times a day. Yesterday we stopped at the Fisherman’s Museum. Captain Elijah W. Reed founded the town and started fishing for Menhedan. Reedville is home to the fishing industry for Atlantic menhaden, a small oily fish found in great abundance in Mid-Atlantic coastal waters. At one point in history there were 39 processing plants in the Reedville area. According to a Reedville resident, because of the tree huggers the fishing for Menhedan has been curtailed to the extent there currently is only one processing plant left. Yesterday was a dedication to the chimney remaining from one of the plants that survived a fire that destroyed the Plant. The chimney was struck by lightning and the town raised $350,000 to restore the stack to it original condition. 150 people showed up for the dedication.
We started our cruise late today because we had a short run to Smith’s Creek VA. This is a small creek off the north side of the Potomac, just West of the Chesapeake Bay. As I was checking the Active Captain Website for tonight’s marina, it did not look good as the docks were fixed height and the last report was there was a few missing boards. So we decided to skip Smith’s Creek and go to the next stop, Solomon Island MD.
The wind was still out of the Northwest and at Reedsville it was pretty strong. I checked 4 different weather sites and about the only thing they agreed on was that the wave height would be 1′. We decided to leave and see what the water was like once we got out to the Chesapeake (approx. 5 miles). The waves were about 1′ when we got out on the Bay and we headed northeast to follow the buoys marking the shallower water. The ride was a little rolly and when we changed course to the North, or almost into the waves, the ride was better. Once we got to the Potomac the crossing is about 12 miles and the wind seemed to pickup and the waves were a little larger but the ride did not change much.
Once past the Potomac, the wind and wave calmed down a little and we picked up the speed to 14 mph and it was a decent ride. The Solomon Island is on the Patuxent River and the wind was gusting pretty good as we entered the river but there was protection from the land so the waves were pretty small.
We are staying at the Solomon Harbor Marina which is all the way in at the end of Back Creek, about 2 miles up the River. Solomon Harbor is a small marina but it is attached to a Holiday Inn so we get to use all the perks of the Holiday Inn. They have a pool, fitness room, and showers. There is a West Marine in the shopping center out front and Candy and I visited it during her dinner walk.
There is also a larger shopping center with a Walmart and a Target that is a couple of miles away but there is also local bus transportation. We will stay here a couple of days and then move on to Annapolis where Donna and Jon will be visiting later this week.