Kent Island?

TimKLL

Recruit
Joined
Feb 22, 2016
Messages
4
Hi, brand new to iBoats. Somewhat of a rookie to boating in general, had a small 16' Checkmate for lake skiing & such several years ago. Got a 22' Hurricane Sundeck last year. Looking for places to trailer to from central Pennsylvania area. Did a trip to Deep Creek, MD last year & a couple to OCMD - found a great bayside condo with boat slip. Have that set up again for 1 week this year, but looking for day trips & multi-day trips to add to that, otherwise we keep the boat at Long Level on Lake Clarke/Susquehannah river for the season. Did not do the Chesapeake last year, will almost certainly do a Middle River day trip this year.

Found a nice looking hotel (Hilton Garden Inn) on Kent Island (Eastern Chesapeake) with on-site marina. Really curious about trailering down there for a 3 or 4 day trip. Looks like a decent selection of places to drop in for a bite & a bump right in the Kent Narrows area, but anything else would be what looks to be a little bit more of a run for my size boat. St. Michaels maybe? Chester River? Am I batting out of my league in those waters with the size boat that I have? The Hurricane 2200 DC OB has a little more dead-rise than most deck boats, but it still drops low right at the bow for the forward platform, and I don't want to get to far away & scare the bejeebers out of the Admiral trying to get back.

Thanks!
 

dingbat

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Nov 20, 2001
Messages
15,413
The waters of Eastern Bay and the Chester are fairly protected from wind. Having said that, an outgoing tide will stir things up a bit. Not horrible, but can be unpleasant at times for land lovers.

Boat traffic in the Narrows can be brutal on smaller boats on weekends. Expect to get bounced around a bit
 
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redneck joe

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Joined
Mar 18, 2009
Messages
10,198
Not been on the water there, but have stayed at that hotel often. Nice place lots of good places to eat. But there is one i cant remember the name but an old school type place horrible service with and attitude and badly cook rock fish. Trust yelp. Ive got a couple buddies on another forum that live boat on the bay. Life long residents. Pm me if youneed more info I'll connect you.
 

TimKLL

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Joined
Feb 22, 2016
Messages
4
Thanks dingbat & redneck joe! We're going to look at setting up a weekday trip down there for a couple of nights. Hopefully that will give me a little time to explore without a lot of traffic and getting bounced around. I'll take it really easy with the weather & conditions for some of the potential longer runs. I tend to play it pretty cautiously most of the time. I usually do a decent job of staying ahead of the weather - have been a helicopter pilot for 36 years & can usually make a pretty good read of the resources available on iPad & such. I flew US Coast Guard SAR helos for 12 of those 36, so I have more than a few "dumb boater" stories, and I probably take it to the extreme with the emergency stuff on the boat - even when just out on the lake.
 

dingbat

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Nov 20, 2001
Messages
15,413
Thanks dingbat & redneck joe! We're going to look at setting up a weekday trip down there for a couple of nights. Hopefully that will give me a little time to explore without a lot of traffic and getting bounced around. I'll take it really easy with the weather & conditions for some of the potential longer runs. I tend to play it pretty cautiously most of the time. I usually do a decent job of staying ahead of the weather - have been a helicopter pilot for 36 years & can usually make a pretty good read of the resources available on iPad & such. I flew US Coast Guard SAR helos for 12 of those 36, so I have more than a few "dumb boater" stories, and I probably take it to the extreme with the emergency stuff on the boat - even when just out on the lake.
A word of wisdom about the local marine forecast, they suck.
The wind direction isn't too bad, but they don't have no clue predicting waves heights. Take the forecasted wave weights and add a foot.....or two depending the your location and tide
 
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TimKLL

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Joined
Feb 22, 2016
Messages
4
Thank you for the advice dingbat. It sounds like the local marine forecasts are about as accurate as a normal aviation forecast. I've always said that an aviation forecast is like a horoscope with numbers. It is a regular thing for the forecast to be off, by large margins, and then it is adjusted at the next issuance time to match the conditions. You really have to develop a mistrust of them and come to your own conclusions about what it is really going to do - and, most importantly, always play it very conservatively.
 

arks

Lieutenant Commander
Joined
Nov 7, 2002
Messages
1,929
I highly recommend St Michaels. Launch from Kent Narrows for an easy trip down Eastern Bay to the Miles River. It's a charming little town with lots to do. Two Swans Inn B&B sits right on the water in the harbor. Perfect!

Fron there you can do the Wye River loop- a beautiful day trip exploring one of the most scenic rivers on the Bay.
 

TimKLL

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Joined
Feb 22, 2016
Messages
4
Thank you arks! We'll be looking at setting up the trip & making the run to St. Michaels.
 
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