Cauldrons on the Chesapeake - South to Solomons

We awoke on day five to a beautiful day with perfect wind to make a long(ish) haul south to Solomons MD.  We had been told it was a must-see spot, with a fun bar and delicious seafood.  Done and done.

On our way south!

Screwpile lighthouse

On the sail down, there were butterflies EVERYWHERE.  They were flying east to west, mostly, and kept floating past the boat.  They danced around the rig and generally kept us entertained.  I managed to catch one in a photo by randomly aiming at the sky: 

Friendly butterfly!

The weather was great all morning and we enjoyed a smooth sail under blue skies.

Happy sailboat (I like to think they were taking a picture of us at the same time!)

The view from the bow

Then the wind decided to drop out for a while.

The wind needed a nap.

No big deal; we were almost to our destination anyway.  We turned on the engine and motorsailed the rest of the way.  On our way up the Patuxent River into the harbor, we got buzzed by two fighter jets out for a training run.  It was freaking amazing.  No photos of that, though - we were totally caught by surprise. 

After our encounter with the jets, we arrived at Calvert Marina, and found we had an entire pier to ourselves.  We tied up and headed for the showers; ahh, running water!

Osprey docked at Calvert Marina in Solomons

After getting cleaned up, we took our dinghy over to the main road in Solomons and found the famed Tiki Bar.  I was instructed by a waitress in Eastport that I needed to go there and order an orange crush (which seems to be basically a screwdriver, but with triple sec and fresh squeezed oranges).  I obliged. 

Orange crush!

We walked down the street to Stoney's on the Pier, and proceeded to gorge ourselves on oysters and crab.  Mr. C was flabbergasted by the size of his crab cake sandwich, and proclaimed it more of a softball-sized crab ball.  All crab; very little filler.  Yum.

Now THAT'S a crab cake.

Sunset over the Governor Thomas Johnson bridge was quite picturesque: 

Also called the Solomons Bridge.

What a great day!

Happy Cauldrons!

Cauldrons on the Chesapeake - Exploring Annapolis

We spent days three and four in that same anchored spot in Back Creek.  It was such a nice location, we didn't really have favorable winds to head off to another location, and we also decided that we might as well stick around in order to check out the annual US Sailboat Show, which was starting on day four of our honeymoon.

Osprey at anchor near Eastport

On the morning of day three, we walked across the bridge into Annapolis proper.  The weather had cleared up for us that morning so we took a nice little walking tour. 

Spa Creek, between Eastport and downtown Annapolis

Annapolis Yacht Club

Maryland State House; the oldest state capitol in continuous legislative use, dating to 1772

We also ventured over to the Naval Academy and walked some of the residential streets.   We returned to the boat for a lazy afternoon, which included taking a dip in the creek with soap and shampoo.  Staying at anchor might be free, but it has its drawbacks (no showers!)

I woke up during the wee hours of the morning to this view of the full moon from the hatch in our berth:

Goodnight moon!

On day four, we ventured out to the US Sailboat Show, where many of the new boats make their debut each year.  We weren't in the market for a new boat, but we did enjoy checking things out.

The line to get in...imagine what it would be like on the weekend!

The docks were lined with all kinds of boats.  Mr. C appears to be contemplating catamarans.

Mrs. C is a fan of this cutter rig. 

After spending our morning gawking at expensive boats, we decided to have lunch at a Mexican place in town.  When the waiter asked Mr. C if he wanted a small or a big margarita, he responded "BIG."

He got what he asked for:

Ay yi yi!

Mine was a bit more reasonable (but still pretty big!):

Strawberry, and slightly smaller than Mr. C's bowl-o-tequila.

We eventually stumbled back to the boat and relaxed for the rest of the day. 

Mr. C and Bosley spending quality time in the cockpit. 

Out for a walk on the nearby nature trail.

As the sun set on our days in Back Creek, we contemplated our options for our next destination.  We decided to see what the wind held for us the next day in order to make a call on our next stop, and turned in for the night excited to get back underway.  

Dusk in Back Creek.

Cauldrons on the Chesapeake - Anchored in Eastport

Tuesday morning we awoke to a rather grey day, but perfect winds to get us across the bay toward Annapolis.  

Grey sky morning as we leave Rock Hall.

It was great to be back out on the water, regardless of the grey skies.

Enjoying the ride.

The sail to Annapolis was pretty uneventful, just us and the wind. 

I retrieved a wandering boat hook from the rail.

Overcast days are great for photos, right?  

Mr. C and I alternate steering and trimming sails, so you'll see lots of photos of either one of us at the wheel. 

Mr. C steers us toward the Bay Bridge. 

We decided we'd get under the bridge, then make a turn to go up Back Creek, which would put us near Eastport, just a short walk from downtown Annapolis. 

Approaching the Bay Bridge

Did you know the Bay Bridge is actually two bridges?  They are slightly different, but right next to each other. 

On the other side of the bridge(s)

We decided to drop the anchor in Back Creek, and then took care of some business getting the cabin tidied up and bringing Bosley the dog to shore.

Bosley supervising our progress from the cockpit.

Mr. C and Bosley returning from a quick trip to shore for important doggie business. 

We made friends with a Canadian couple on a nearby catamaran, and they took this photo of us with Osprey in the background, as we were on our way in to the dinghy dock to wander around Eastport. 

That's Osprey behind us.

We spent the evening in Eastport having drinks at the Eastport Yacht Club and dinner at The Boatyard - two great spots to hang out.  

Day Three and Four up next - fun times in Annapolis!

Cauldrons on the Chesapeake!

Hellllllooo hive!  I have to apologize for my month-long hiatus post-wedding...things have been pretty busy around the ol' Cauldron household since the big day.  But, I'm back now, with some fun photos of our Chesapeake Bay honeymoon for y'all to enjoy while I anxiously await our professional wedding photos so I can start the wedding recaps.  (Really, what better way to celebrate our one-month wedding anniversary than by starting our honeymoon recaps?)  So without further delay, here's Day One of Cauldrons on the Chesapeake!

On the Sunday after our wedding, we flew home to New York to pick up our honeymoon bags, our truck, our dinghy, and our dog, and we drove down to Rock Hall, Maryland on Monday.  We had our 34' sailboat delivered to Rock Hall while we were down in Texas getting married, and it was happily awaiting us in a slip at the Sailing Emporium.

Osprey is happy to see us. 

After our arrival, we decided to explore Rock Hall on bikes:

Mrs. C 

Mr. C

The town was quiet, quaint, and pretty; I didn't manage to get any photos though (I was too busy riding my bike!)  We made a stop for lunch, and picked up some oil for Osprey's engine, along with a couple of other random things that hadn't made it to Maryland with us.  Then it was back to the marina for some final preparations for our trip.

Mr. C scrubs our dinghy.  One of the things that didn't make it to MD: our dinghy oars.  Oops.  Good thing the dinghy also has an outboard motor!  We did buy one wooden oar just in case...

One of the stops we made in Rock Hall was at a seafood market where we picked up some freshly caught rockfish (striped bass).  Mr. C whipped the fish up for dinner on Osprey's stove.  Man was it tasty!

Yum!

We felt like we were as ready as we could get, and enjoyed a quiet evening on the boat before catching some z's in order to be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for our departure the next morning. 

Looking at the exit from Rock Hall, just before sundown

Next stop, Annapolis!

Sneak peek!

We got hitched, hive!

Happy Cauldrons! / photo by Lindsey + Beto Photography

And now we've begun our two-week sailing honeymoon - I'm posting this from our sailboat!

More to come, but I just couldn't wait to share that gorgeous photo that our amazing photographers posted this weekend.  Enjoy and I'll be back in a few weeks with more...

xo - Mrs. (!!!) Cauldron

Wrapping it up...

On Wednesday I flew to Austin to wrap up our wedding preparations.  I did a few fun things that day, like pick up our marriage license!

Woohoo!  We're getting married!

I also spent the flight to Austin finishing up the last few table names, and that night I decided to make cute little signs for our chairs:

Table names! Minus the three I finished on the plane. 

Sewing bride.

The last sewing project - signs for our chairs!

On Thursday, Mr. C flew in, and we went to a concert in Gruene, by ourselves (!) before all the wedding madness would start in earnest on Friday. We got him his first pair of cowboy boots for the occasion.

Boots!

On Friday morning, because of the weather forecast, we went to get some essential accessories:

The clear one is for me.  :) 

Friday night we threw a great welcome party, with almost everyone who will be at the wedding in attendance.  More on that later...

And this morning, I woke up to this text from bridesmaid Chicago J:

Yeehah!  The wedding day has arrived!

This view outside our window:

Good thing we bought those umbrellas.

And this surprise delivery from my husband to be:

Yellow roses!

I have no words. 

That's it, hive, it's my wedding day!  Mr. C has gone off for a shooting adventure with all his buddies, and I am soaking up some alone time this morning before the bridesmaids and my mom arrive in my room for hair and makeup.  I know the day will totally fly by - I kind of can't believe it's here.  But stormy weather or sunny skies - I know I am ready to walk down that aisle and marry my love.

Signing off for the last time as a miss (!)  - Miss Cauldron

Rain, rain, go away!

Y'all, this is so not cool.

Boooooo.

The weather for Saturday has been shifting around all week - ranging between 40 and 60% scattered thunderstorms.  But this morning it's now full on 70% thunderstorms.  No sun even in the little graphic anymore.

I talked rain plan with my coordinator over email this morning.  I know it will all be fine, but the vision of the day that I had in my head is slowly disintegrating.

Here's hoping the weather gods decide to clear the skies for us.   If not, I just have to remember that everyone will be there, love will fill the room, we will be married at the end of the day, and our photographers will work some magic to make it all look beautiful.

But right now I'm pretty bummed out.