It was a quick few hours to Baltimore from Annapolis. We did not have high hopes for Baltimore but found the redeveloped Inner Harbor and Fells Point area completely safe and appeared to be thriving with a mix of history, tourism, residential space, retail space and large downtown office buildings.
Our first afternoon we walked several miles along the Inner Harbor, touring some of the historic ships which are open to the public.
 USCGC Tanny: The last warship floating that fought in the attack on Pearl Harbor. |
 USS Constellation: The last sail-only warship designed and built by the US Navy. Built and launched in 1854 and remained in service for close to a century before being retired in 1954. |
 USS Constellation: Sleeping accommodations for the 265 sailors. |
 USS Constellation: No shortage of firepower. |
 Lightship Chesapeake: A ship that acted like a lighthouse, operated from 1930-1970 (under different names). |
 USS Torsk: Built during WWII and armed with 10 torpedo tubes and carried 28 torpedoes. |
 USS Torsk: Command center. We felt this was the most spacious part of the sub, it was a tight fitting self guided tour from stern to bow. Not very many places you could raise your arms out at your side and not hit something. |
We had planned to leave the following day but then we heard that Jan & Stacy (Ceci Kay) and Mike & Kelly & their kids (INNTW) were coming into the same marina we were already at. We have been trading places ahead/behind with Ceci Kay and had not seen INNTW since we crossed over to the Bahamas with them back in January. There was some catching up we could do so we stayed an extra day.
 Little Italy neighborhood in downtown Baltimore. Several blocks of delicious dinner choices. |
 Little Italy dinner out – Mike, Kent, Jan, Stacy, Kelly (back row). Colin, Haley and Tobin (front row). |
Not everyone enjoyed Baltimore. Penny got a hot spot on her face and scratched at it (despite our best efforts to stop her) until it was far to large and nasty to ignore. We ended up at a pet hospital for an allergy shot, antibiotic pills and some serious wound cleaning.
 Penny is not happy about her new “smurf” colored cone. |
When we left Baltimore with Ceci Kay the weather for the next several days was looking good to travel through the C&D (Chesapeake & Delaware) canal, down the Delaware Bay and up the coast of New Jersey. However when we stopped for the night in Delaware City and gathered at 4 pm for the marina’s weather briefing we realized the weather had changed drastically. There was much more wind expected not just the following day but the next several days, both in the bay and along the coast. This was what we wanted to see/hear.
 Delaware City was very small town of ~2,000 people. It lies at the eastern end of the C&D canal. |
Crossing the Delaware Bay takes the correct planning as conditions can change very quickly. We wanted to ride the current out and be safely through the shallow shoal areas before the winds really had time to build and create chop. We woke at 4 am, checked the weather again to make sure nothing had changed from the night before and shoved off at first light along with Ceci Kay.
 Delaware Bay, you can see the current ripping on the channel marker. We took advantage of the 2 knots and also motored faster than usual to get down the bay quickly before the impending winds had time to pick up. |
Cape May, NJ is at the bottom of Delaware Bay where the bay meets the Atlantic. We were now visiting our 3rd state in less than 36 hours (Baltimore MD > Delaware City DE > Cape May NJ).
We pulled into a marina at Cape May, feeling like we were simply marina hopping at this point (because well, that IS what we were doing). Marinas have their benefits but are also more expensive than anchoring. This past week or two we’ve been in marinas far more often than we would have liked, either due to weather or lack of anchoring options.
 The Canyon Club Marina in Cape May was the only place we could get a slip in Cape May. It definitely caters to the offshore sport fishing crowd. Heartbeat and Ceci Kay (both tugs) were tiny (and hidden) among all the large sport fishing boats. |
We are currently killing time in Cape May and waiting for weather to improve. We are making the most of being “stuck” here.
 Cape May is a National Historic Landmark due to the large concentration of Victorian buildings. |
 Most of these Victorian homes are Bed and Breakfast style hotels/inns. This town is an easy get away for those from Pennsylvania and New Jersey. |
 Fresh donuts from Fishy Cakes. We are not even donut fans and these were delicious. When we chose a place for dinner we had no idea that the AGLCA Harbor Hosts were the restaurant owners. HHs are great resources and know the local waters and we thoroughly enjoyed talking with the HHs here. The food and scene at Fishy Cakes was wonderful, we followed our dinner here with breakfast the next morning. |
 Wildwood boardwalk – a classic Jersey Shore experience. |
 Wildwood boardwalk is lined with what seems to be endless booths of carnival style games, T-shirt shops, food stalls (think cheesesteaks, fudge, salt water taffy) and intermixed are large amusement park rides. It is exactly what you would expect. |
Two new states and the sharing of random facts for each state we pass through continues ….
Random Facts: Delaware
Delaware was the first state to ratify the United States constitution. It did so on December 7, 1787.
Up until 2013, Delaware was the only state without any National Park System units (national parks, seashores, historic sites, battlefields, memorials, and monuments).
More than 50% of all the U.S. publicly traded companies and more than 60% of the Fortune 500 companies are incorporated in Delaware (thanks to business friendly corporation laws).
Random Facts: New Jersey
New Jersey is the most densely populated state in the country.
Atlantic City has the longest board walk in the world.
The first baseball game (1846) was played in Hoboken, New Jersey.
We will continue to wait for good weather and make our way toward New York City. More to come from The Big Apple!