Voyages of Shadowmere, a Hallberg Rassy HR41 Ketch

Ah hammocks, wish I could fit two into this one.
We stop for the night in the beautiful Wye river, one side is a nature reserve, the other side where rich poeople have their houses, stables, boathouses and docks.

The waters are used by fishermen and we actually anchor within the area used for crabbing - the fisherman does not seem to mind, and we leave in good time.

Exiting the Wye river we pass into the main Chesapeake bay and through a shipping anchorage.

As does the big ship behind us - He caught me unawares as I assumed he was abchored whrn I glanced behind me. Note to self, look behind more often!

To get North we have to pass under a bridge, shirley doesn't look

We decide to enter the McGothy river for the night to let us have a short 20 mile run into Baltimore the next morning. It has lots of anchorages and we choose Broad Creek.

And manage to sail into it. Its entrance is not broad!

The anchorage described in the "Captains Mate" phone app suggests anchoring opposite the "glass house"

A pleasent stop - lots of sailing and boating activiity but it stops in the early evening.

After a flurry of wee jobs done - Shirley does here "Mrs Woodcare" jobs - varnish and stain and I fit new navigation lights, retaining the old ones to me made into a feature on the walls of the cottage back home.

I also put up the hammock but shirley doesn;t risk it (she tries one late rin Baltimore so the training is still work in progress. I like it though

Shirley also makes pancakes, I have several pancake mixes on board, not as tasty as you might think but would do as bread in a pinch.

I think we have Rachel to thank for this one (the clue is that it is in French and she lives in Montreal.

Scenery hereabouts is nice - and as usual nice houses and docks, only 15 miles from Baltimore

We head for Baltimore the next morning, passing this rather cute lighthouse getting renovated.

A pusher boat - massive engine used to push the sailboat when engines were allowed to be used - the dredging for Oysters had many strange rules, such as you had to use sail only for 5 days a week but could use the pusher on the other days! the small boat could be hoisted aboud the bigger craft.

The inside workshop

America is blessed with many varieties of wood available in significant quantity. Britain and Ireland did have lots of Oak, and to be fair some other woods, but Scotland and in particular Shetland had little. I recall seeing cargo manifests in a Shetland Museum that listed "flat pack boats being delivered from Norway to Shetland as deck cargo. Boats such as sixereens and foureens were built like Ikea kits - hundreds of years ago, since there weren't enough trees in Shetland. Wood is used everywhere in the states - Docks and houses, roof "slates" as cedar shingles and of course wooden boats! In my later visits to Mystic Seaport boatyards and Museums I see how raw logs arrive at the "boatyard" and the complete planks, frames and knees are cut from scratch.

To build wooden boats you needed to understand everything about wood.

Designs were also in attendance - I will subscribe to an American magazine when I return home - that specialies in Wooden boats.

As well as the boat shed inside there were skilled staff working on bigger projects outside.

These remenants of a boat could be described as a good do-er upper project! In the old days they laid complete logs down as the starting point, When wrecks were dug out of nud, or even brought to the yard after decades sitting in rain sometimes not much was left. They are foing to rebuild this boat! It will almost be as old as a ballymena hammer - you remember that one? it was really old, it has had three new heads and 4 new shafts.