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Ladies, Gentlemen and Sailors,
Good afternoon. I want to start a new thread in announcements for the raft-up to commit to this.
Let’s give this a shot and set dates for a 424 raft-up/gathering. I am proposing we meet up over the second weekend in June. I intend to anchor out Thursday 11 June at Solomon’s Island MD, which is about half way up the Chesapeake on the Patuxent River. The intent is to stay until Sunday.
I have not completely decided on exactly where we can raft up but I have a connection at Zahnheisers Marina who might be able to get us a deal on mooring balls (or at least a reservation) for those who can make it. They have a small mooring field that is very convenient and I think the fees are about $35.00 a night (I’ll see if we can get a special rate). Z’s has a pool, showers and a fantastic restaurant called the “Dry Dock” that I highly recommend.
Alternately, I have an idea. There is a good spot to raft up right near the Lighthouse restaurant but I need to double-check that the area will work. Either way, we will be right in town and a short dinghy ride to restaurants and town.
If everyone is amenable, I can arrange a tour of the Calvert Marine Museum, set an evening for dinner out as well as a potluck at anchor. If there is enough interest, I can also arrange for a tour of Naval Air Station Patuxent River to include the museum (fee involved) and the Naval Test Pilot School. There will be plenty of time to explore the area (it’s small) as well as get to know one another.
If anyone is interested please let me know. Also voice your opinion about the base tour and raft-up vs mooring ball.
My email is NSW1959@gmail.com you can email if you wish or post here.
Best Regards,
RichRich and Sherry Harris
S/V Forget Knot
1982 Pearson 424 #187 -
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I won’t be able to go that far. My home port is north of Boston. I’ve hosted a couple of rendezvous in the past. Photos of one raft-up is on the 424 website under photos->rendezvous. This was held in Edgartown on Martha’s Vinyard about 20 years ago. We had two there, one in Three-Mile Harbor on LI, one in Green Harbor RI, and one that I didn’t attend near the mouth of the Chesapeake.
If boats are going to be rafted for more than a day, you don’t want them tangling their anchors. There are a few ways to avoid this. The host should make whatever arrangements are needed to provide shore access to the other boats. A picnic area is nice to have. We’ve kept things low-key in the past.
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Rich and Sherry
We will be based in Deltaville this coming season. As us to you list.
Jan and I would love to meet other 424 owners in the area.
Ron & Jan Feigenbaum
S/V Patricia BessI certainly will! Looking forward to meeting,
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Rick,
Got you covered.
I’ve got some pretty cool news about the raft-up. The weekend we will be there the US Naval Test Pilot School will be commemorating its 75th anniversary with a fly-in for alumni. Now I know we’re sailors but most of us have some affinity for things that fly as well. (Fritz Trapnell used his sailing skills to become one of the Navy’s most successful Test Pilots.) There will be aircraft from many eras of flight there.
Anyway, I’ll be able to get those interested onboard to view the aircraft on Friday as long as I can figure out transportation.
Rich -
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Ladies, Gentlemen and fellow sailors,
I have been in some prolonged negotiations with Zahniser’s (Z’s). Mostly prolonged due to my procrastination. Thank you Rick for the prod! Unfortunately, Zahneiser’s Marina has another function going on the weekend of our raft-up. With that, there are options. The Dockmaster, Terry, thinks there will be berths available but is working with the other group to make sure they will. She can’t be sure just yet but assures me that by Wednesday, we should have a definitive answer. Regardless, we should be able to fit at least a few of us there. I was hoping I could use my friend’s influence to get a discount but no dice. BTW, he owns Sail Solomons (ASA) and he has the best group of instructors there. They even have classes for those of you who’ve been sailing for years.
The mooring field’s nine buoys are length limited; 3 at 35’, 3 at 42’ and 3 at 48’. The mooring balls cannot be reserved and they only have 6 that a Pearson 424 can tie up to. If you have any davits then there are only the three. All the buoys are first come first serve and are $40 for the 48’ buoys and the rest are $30.
The rate for a slip is $2.25/ft Sun-Thurs and another .25/ft for Friday and Saturday. To my knowledge there are no other mooring buoys available at Solomons. For those who get a slip or buoy, the fees include, free use of the pool, water, electricity, showers free use of the dingy dock and trash disposal. As long as one of us gets either a ball or slip, we can have a BBQ on the grounds. Plans coming for that. For those who choose to anchor, Showers are $3 each, Dingy Dock use is $3 per day and trash is $1. With that, there is a municipal dock that has free pumpout, trash disposal and dingy dock which is on the main strip through town.
Fuel is available at Calvert Marina, Solomons Yachting Center and Harbor Island Marina.
For those wishing to anchor, there are a number of options. Navionics notes Solomons 1, 2 and 3 as good anchorages.
Solomons 1 is at 38 19.247N 76 27.339W. Depth is 14-15ft and holding is good in typical Chesapeake mud. There is room for four or five boats and it’s very well located near the municipal dock and all the good restaurants. It is my personal favorite because its right near the lighthouse restaurant but can be a bit noisy until the nearby Tiki Bar shuts down for the night.
Solomons 2 is at 38 19.891N 76 27.528W Depth is 7-10 ft and again holding is good in chessie mud. This one is a bit tighter but it’s right next to Z’s and the Calvert Marine Museum.
Solomons 3 is at 38 20.141N 76 27.543W Depth is 6-8 ft a bit towards the channel from the coordinates. Holding is the same as the other two. This one is near Spring Cove Marina and the Holiday Inn.
There are a number of other places to anchor in the area but all get further from our central focal point of Solomons Island and Z’s. My recommendation is to anchor at Solomons 2 near Z’S so we can all be within close proximity of each other. I recommend Solomons 2 as a secondary anchorage.
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