We are planning a trip to go up the Potomac into Washington DC. My question is, how easy or difficult is it to navigate in the Potomac after dark? How heavy is faster moving traffic? Are there adequate navigation aids for night cruising? Any places to avoid or any places must stop? I figure three days is more than enough but would like to factor in or discard the possibility of doing it in two. Our target average cruising speed will be 4 knots. We are planning to do this in the summer which will give us a good 12 hours of daylight sailing but do require that we stop at a marina with shorepower in order to run A/C.
Sailing up the Potomac.
- Thread starter Benny17441
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Benny a few questions
Been sailing the Potomac for last 5 years. What is your boat, length, width DRAFT. Draft very import once you get above the US 301 River bridge at 38 21 42.12N 76 59 49.36W. You must stay in the channel. Assuming you are sailboat there are not many marinas above the bridge until you get to DC itself. You also must be ready to wait hours depending on mast height before going under the new I495 Wilson bridge at Alexandria. This is still under construction. Channels are well marked but last year the crab pots on the lower river (below US301) were everywhere. Traffic ? the real major problem is the powerboats they are numerous and don't like to give way to sailboats, trust me on this. Be ready to avoid. Places to stay - headed up river from Chesapeake Bay Port side is Coan River 38N 76 27W Yeocomico River 38 02N 76 30W Kinsale Marina about 30mins inside from entrance Directly across Starboard is Smith Creek 38 06N 76 24W Point Lookout Marina decent restaurant St Marys River 38 06N 76 28W Great sailing school Port is Ragged Point 38 08.5N 76 36W marina there with sailboats but I have been in The next real marina after this is Cobb Island on the starboard side Pirates Den Marina. 38 15N 76 50W. This is were I keep my vacuum for my wallet. You might consider leaving you boat here at Cobb and renting a car to continue to Washington if you intend on sightseeing. Cobb is about an 1.25 hour ride by car. I don't know much about the river above the bridge, except in a Capri 14.2 I would run aground alot. Let me know Jim S/V Java
Been sailing the Potomac for last 5 years. What is your boat, length, width DRAFT. Draft very import once you get above the US 301 River bridge at 38 21 42.12N 76 59 49.36W. You must stay in the channel. Assuming you are sailboat there are not many marinas above the bridge until you get to DC itself. You also must be ready to wait hours depending on mast height before going under the new I495 Wilson bridge at Alexandria. This is still under construction. Channels are well marked but last year the crab pots on the lower river (below US301) were everywhere. Traffic ? the real major problem is the powerboats they are numerous and don't like to give way to sailboats, trust me on this. Be ready to avoid. Places to stay - headed up river from Chesapeake Bay Port side is Coan River 38N 76 27W Yeocomico River 38 02N 76 30W Kinsale Marina about 30mins inside from entrance Directly across Starboard is Smith Creek 38 06N 76 24W Point Lookout Marina decent restaurant St Marys River 38 06N 76 28W Great sailing school Port is Ragged Point 38 08.5N 76 36W marina there with sailboats but I have been in The next real marina after this is Cobb Island on the starboard side Pirates Den Marina. 38 15N 76 50W. This is were I keep my vacuum for my wallet. You might consider leaving you boat here at Cobb and renting a car to continue to Washington if you intend on sightseeing. Cobb is about an 1.25 hour ride by car. I don't know much about the river above the bridge, except in a Capri 14.2 I would run aground alot. Let me know Jim S/V Java
This is not a hard trip
It is about 95 n/m from Point Lookout to Washington. It takes me a week, but I poke around on purpose. As Jim points out, the river is "different" north of what is known as "the 301 bridge," the halfway point between the Chesapeake and DC. It is more shallow, but the channels are plenty deep - tugs and small cruise ships run up and down the river all the time. There is also a Navy Base in DC with BIG ships in it. OK, they never leave but they got up there somehow. There is a book entitled "Discovering the Tidal Potomac." I can't remember who wrote it but it is very good, aside from the fact that it is written "south," from the perspective of someone sailing from DC to the mouth of the Potomac. Has lots of sightseeing and fairly up to date Marina information, including phone numbers. Why would you want to do this trip at night? It is a very pretty trip - take your time and smell the roses. I for one would not travel in such close quarters in the dark without "local knowledge," but it is no more or less safe on the Potomac than anywhere else. And FWIW, the bottom is mud - only your pride is at risk. I will respectfully disagree with Jim on the rent-a-car from Cobb Island idea. I recommend you sail in the dark, drinking heavily, before you even consider driving anywhere around Washington, DC. Hotels are also very expensive in DC - you can anchor is Washington Channel for nothing. Google the book.
It is about 95 n/m from Point Lookout to Washington. It takes me a week, but I poke around on purpose. As Jim points out, the river is "different" north of what is known as "the 301 bridge," the halfway point between the Chesapeake and DC. It is more shallow, but the channels are plenty deep - tugs and small cruise ships run up and down the river all the time. There is also a Navy Base in DC with BIG ships in it. OK, they never leave but they got up there somehow. There is a book entitled "Discovering the Tidal Potomac." I can't remember who wrote it but it is very good, aside from the fact that it is written "south," from the perspective of someone sailing from DC to the mouth of the Potomac. Has lots of sightseeing and fairly up to date Marina information, including phone numbers. Why would you want to do this trip at night? It is a very pretty trip - take your time and smell the roses. I for one would not travel in such close quarters in the dark without "local knowledge," but it is no more or less safe on the Potomac than anywhere else. And FWIW, the bottom is mud - only your pride is at risk. I will respectfully disagree with Jim on the rent-a-car from Cobb Island idea. I recommend you sail in the dark, drinking heavily, before you even consider driving anywhere around Washington, DC. Hotels are also very expensive in DC - you can anchor is Washington Channel for nothing. Google the book.
Benny - Drew is correct
You don't want to drive around here. Must be all the pills I'm on, must have had my head up my ... And the mud is sticky as glue and STINKS....and gets all over the place. And you don't want to swim in the water, we see warning about contamination all the time at the marina and avoid contact with the water if you have open cuts. Jim
You don't want to drive around here. Must be all the pills I'm on, must have had my head up my ... And the mud is sticky as glue and STINKS....and gets all over the place. And you don't want to swim in the water, we see warning about contamination all the time at the marina and avoid contact with the water if you have open cuts. Jim
For some good news....
...the chanels are well marked, most buoys are lighted. Depending on river state and tide, you can make it up from Pt. Lookout in a a day and a half and back in a day. But I agree with Drew -- why would you want to? And nobody sane drives up there unless they have to! The Wilson Bridge is no longer the low 40 ft. span it used to be-- I remember waiting until midnight to be able to get through. As of a few months ago the old bridge was turned into fish havens in the Chesapeake, and the new one has a full 75 ft. clearance in the Federal Channel and 83 ft. in Center Channel. Eric Foxfire
...the chanels are well marked, most buoys are lighted. Depending on river state and tide, you can make it up from Pt. Lookout in a a day and a half and back in a day. But I agree with Drew -- why would you want to? And nobody sane drives up there unless they have to! The Wilson Bridge is no longer the low 40 ft. span it used to be-- I remember waiting until midnight to be able to get through. As of a few months ago the old bridge was turned into fish havens in the Chesapeake, and the new one has a full 75 ft. clearance in the Federal Channel and 83 ft. in Center Channel. Eric Foxfire
Thanks guys, I'm familiar with DC and also its traffic
and limited parking. We are planning on spending a couple of nights in DC and would rather do it on the boat than in a hotel. We will be doing it on a trailerable 1985 Starwind 223 with a 9.9 hp 2 stroke Nissan. The draft is 2'4" with a folding centerboard and rudder. If we go aground I'll get out and push. Mast height will not be a factor. The boat will be berthed at Tilghman Island and we would fly in. We are allocating 8 days for the whole trip from a Saturday to a Sunday and either I will stay behind to solo the boat back to Tilghman or we'll get our nephew to do it. As far as traffic we will be doing it on workweek days which may have a lesser volume. Have previously sailed the upper Chesapeake in the same boat but have never navigated the Potomac. I was wondering about tidal currents which may slow us down. The main reason for navigating at night would be to reach a specific marina or make up for lost time. The reason for doing it in three days or less is the limited time we have. I had figured Marinas in the vicinity of Colonial Beach and Quantico but the latter seems to be mostly military. We are carrying a 5,000 btu window unit for a/c but would like to avoid carrying a generator. Heat, humidity and mosquitoes would preclude anchoring out. Got an aireal picture of Cobb Island and there seem to be two marinas, one on the south and the other on the north end of the bridge. Jim I gather you are on the south end. My guide is a little outdated; it says the channel stands to be dredged in October of 1999. Drew, at least with me there is no pride involved in running aground. I have been aground and I well know I will be aground sometime in the future. At home we sail an h320 but every year we take a 7-10 day trip on the Starwind. This year we are going to saddle the boat on our nephew, who is with the USCG and an excellent sailor in his own right. We figure we can go there a couple of times and he can use it the rest of the time.
and limited parking. We are planning on spending a couple of nights in DC and would rather do it on the boat than in a hotel. We will be doing it on a trailerable 1985 Starwind 223 with a 9.9 hp 2 stroke Nissan. The draft is 2'4" with a folding centerboard and rudder. If we go aground I'll get out and push. Mast height will not be a factor. The boat will be berthed at Tilghman Island and we would fly in. We are allocating 8 days for the whole trip from a Saturday to a Sunday and either I will stay behind to solo the boat back to Tilghman or we'll get our nephew to do it. As far as traffic we will be doing it on workweek days which may have a lesser volume. Have previously sailed the upper Chesapeake in the same boat but have never navigated the Potomac. I was wondering about tidal currents which may slow us down. The main reason for navigating at night would be to reach a specific marina or make up for lost time. The reason for doing it in three days or less is the limited time we have. I had figured Marinas in the vicinity of Colonial Beach and Quantico but the latter seems to be mostly military. We are carrying a 5,000 btu window unit for a/c but would like to avoid carrying a generator. Heat, humidity and mosquitoes would preclude anchoring out. Got an aireal picture of Cobb Island and there seem to be two marinas, one on the south and the other on the north end of the bridge. Jim I gather you are on the south end. My guide is a little outdated; it says the channel stands to be dredged in October of 1999. Drew, at least with me there is no pride involved in running aground. I have been aground and I well know I will be aground sometime in the future. At home we sail an h320 but every year we take a 7-10 day trip on the Starwind. This year we are going to saddle the boat on our nephew, who is with the USCG and an excellent sailor in his own right. We figure we can go there a couple of times and he can use it the rest of the time.
Eric, just got your posting.
We are thinking of going straight from Tilghman to the Solomons and then heading up the Potomac. I had read up on the bridge but thanks for the information on the lighted bouys. Sanity may not be one of my best virtues; we intend to do this for the 4th of July week. Love them fireworks.
We are thinking of going straight from Tilghman to the Solomons and then heading up the Potomac. I had read up on the bridge but thanks for the information on the lighted bouys. Sanity may not be one of my best virtues; we intend to do this for the 4th of July week. Love them fireworks.
Been There, done that, dodged the bullets
I used to race in the PYRC Fleet that stretched from Dahlgren to a Fairfax Yacht Club. I have sailed all the way to D.C. We were going under the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and the owner of the boat was partial to a confederate flag. We warned him about that flag in that area. When we went under the bridge we heard a loud boom. It sent us diving for cover in the cabin. It probably was a backfire, but it sure scared the owner enough to put the flag away! Up-river the Mattawoman Creek has a nice ancorage in it. There is a popular event that Tim's River Shore Puts on in early September where they have live bands on barges just out from the restaurant. It is pretty cool and I was ancoring in Mattawoman at night for a place to stay. Just watch your charts in the upper part of the river!!!!!! From Point Lookout to Colonial Beach is a descent sail. Colonial Beach has a nice harbor (if you aren't too deep in the draft) and you can get a slip at the Colonial Beach Yacht Club if you are a deeper draft (just don't go much further in Monroe Bay than the Yacht Club. My boat is way back at Curley's Packing Company and the dept is 5 feet at low tide. From Colonial Beach or Cobb Island you can make a good day's trip to Mattawoman Creek. D.C. is a about 1/2 a day from there. A word of warning, most of the trip past 301 bridge will be by motor unless you are blessed by a lucky wind. The wind loves to blow out of the North West and that is the direction that you will be heading. Finding a place to take on diesel may be hard, but Quantico Yacht club has diesel, if you can go into there. That can be a rough place to go in and out of if the waves are up. There are many places in the lower part of the Potomac River that are worth looking at. There is Saint Mary's River and you can go to Saint Mary's College there, Tall Timbers (they burn a boat every three day weekend and they have a big party), Bretton Bay (nice ancorage), Canoe Neck Creek (located in Saint Clemments Bay), Nomini Bay (The Steamboat Inn is a restaurant that is up there just before the bridge and it is awesome), Cobb Island, and Colonial Beach (it is a small town that you can driver golf carts around). I wouldn't go into Machotic Creek (Dahlgren Marina). It can be shallow and the private marina there will rob you blind! Have fun and enjoy!
I used to race in the PYRC Fleet that stretched from Dahlgren to a Fairfax Yacht Club. I have sailed all the way to D.C. We were going under the Woodrow Wilson Bridge and the owner of the boat was partial to a confederate flag. We warned him about that flag in that area. When we went under the bridge we heard a loud boom. It sent us diving for cover in the cabin. It probably was a backfire, but it sure scared the owner enough to put the flag away! Up-river the Mattawoman Creek has a nice ancorage in it. There is a popular event that Tim's River Shore Puts on in early September where they have live bands on barges just out from the restaurant. It is pretty cool and I was ancoring in Mattawoman at night for a place to stay. Just watch your charts in the upper part of the river!!!!!! From Point Lookout to Colonial Beach is a descent sail. Colonial Beach has a nice harbor (if you aren't too deep in the draft) and you can get a slip at the Colonial Beach Yacht Club if you are a deeper draft (just don't go much further in Monroe Bay than the Yacht Club. My boat is way back at Curley's Packing Company and the dept is 5 feet at low tide. From Colonial Beach or Cobb Island you can make a good day's trip to Mattawoman Creek. D.C. is a about 1/2 a day from there. A word of warning, most of the trip past 301 bridge will be by motor unless you are blessed by a lucky wind. The wind loves to blow out of the North West and that is the direction that you will be heading. Finding a place to take on diesel may be hard, but Quantico Yacht club has diesel, if you can go into there. That can be a rough place to go in and out of if the waves are up. There are many places in the lower part of the Potomac River that are worth looking at. There is Saint Mary's River and you can go to Saint Mary's College there, Tall Timbers (they burn a boat every three day weekend and they have a big party), Bretton Bay (nice ancorage), Canoe Neck Creek (located in Saint Clemments Bay), Nomini Bay (The Steamboat Inn is a restaurant that is up there just before the bridge and it is awesome), Cobb Island, and Colonial Beach (it is a small town that you can driver golf carts around). I wouldn't go into Machotic Creek (Dahlgren Marina). It can be shallow and the private marina there will rob you blind! Have fun and enjoy!
Obsession - Benny needs to know about the firing range
Should not be a problem, hopefully you have more info than I. Haven't been on the water while they are firing during the week. Been at the marina and can hear them firing 10 miles away. Benny, currents are not a major problem on the Potomac. 1 kt or less caveat: I stay below the US301 river bridge so my knowledge is limited above that point. Jim
Should not be a problem, hopefully you have more info than I. Haven't been on the water while they are firing during the week. Been at the marina and can hear them firing 10 miles away. Benny, currents are not a major problem on the Potomac. 1 kt or less caveat: I stay below the US301 river bridge so my knowledge is limited above that point. Jim
Goose Bay, Quantico & Ft. Washington...
...are three good marinas north of 301 bridge that sell fuel and ice and will charge a buck a foot a night if you want to stay. Quantico can be tricky to enter as pointed out but is really not that hard - a very brief and concentrated moment of terror - once beyond the sea wall you are safe and sound. That said, do not try and enter Quantico in the dark unless it is very calm. It is military, but all transients are welcome. You can also walk 1/4 mile into town and get a good dinner. The tidal currents are significant - you want them working for you if at all possible. There are some places, like underneath 301 bridge, where you will not be able to sail against the current at max ebb or flood. Your 9.9 will do the trick, whatever you run into. Benny, 12 hours under way at 4 knots puts you up the river in just over two days, but it is not going to work out that way, trust me. I have found that 20 n/m per day is about right in a sailboat your size. If you must marina, do yourself a favor and get in before dark. If you get lucky with weather, you will never be more than five minutes from an anchorage - any place way out of the main channel.
...are three good marinas north of 301 bridge that sell fuel and ice and will charge a buck a foot a night if you want to stay. Quantico can be tricky to enter as pointed out but is really not that hard - a very brief and concentrated moment of terror - once beyond the sea wall you are safe and sound. That said, do not try and enter Quantico in the dark unless it is very calm. It is military, but all transients are welcome. You can also walk 1/4 mile into town and get a good dinner. The tidal currents are significant - you want them working for you if at all possible. There are some places, like underneath 301 bridge, where you will not be able to sail against the current at max ebb or flood. Your 9.9 will do the trick, whatever you run into. Benny, 12 hours under way at 4 knots puts you up the river in just over two days, but it is not going to work out that way, trust me. I have found that 20 n/m per day is about right in a sailboat your size. If you must marina, do yourself a favor and get in before dark. If you get lucky with weather, you will never be more than five minutes from an anchorage - any place way out of the main channel.
'Hot' Range Info Source
Contact info to get Dalghren firing schedules on Potomac & surrounding areas: Immediate info: 877-845-5656 For add'l info call the Public Affairs Ofc at 540-653-8153. We havve been out on the River when they were preparing to open the Range. Believe me, you'll know it well in advance. They will overfly you so close that the pilot could grasp a brass ring off your masthead if you had one; they will send a pilot boat out to ask you to remain between the shore and nuns/can. All this is done very nicely. We were actually motoring against the current & making little headway; they were very understanding that we were trying tot comply and held off until we could get outside the range, They cannot make you move out of the middle of the River, however; while we were moving out of the way, a group of fishermen refused to move from their position.... elle
Contact info to get Dalghren firing schedules on Potomac & surrounding areas: Immediate info: 877-845-5656 For add'l info call the Public Affairs Ofc at 540-653-8153. We havve been out on the River when they were preparing to open the Range. Believe me, you'll know it well in advance. They will overfly you so close that the pilot could grasp a brass ring off your masthead if you had one; they will send a pilot boat out to ask you to remain between the shore and nuns/can. All this is done very nicely. We were actually motoring against the current & making little headway; they were very understanding that we were trying tot comply and held off until we could get outside the range, They cannot make you move out of the middle of the River, however; while we were moving out of the way, a group of fishermen refused to move from their position.... elle
Watch Mathias Point
Give the point just upriver of the 301 bridge a wide berth. I know that there is a trench carved through the shallows near the point from back in the 90's when I was racing on a boat that ran aground and powered through the mud in the area...yeeha! The only other thing that is annoying is a bug that my Aunt and Uncle call Canadian Soldures. They poop on your boat at night and leave these little green specks on your boat. It is nasty and hard to get off of the boat.
Give the point just upriver of the 301 bridge a wide berth. I know that there is a trench carved through the shallows near the point from back in the 90's when I was racing on a boat that ran aground and powered through the mud in the area...yeeha! The only other thing that is annoying is a bug that my Aunt and Uncle call Canadian Soldures. They poop on your boat at night and leave these little green specks on your boat. It is nasty and hard to get off of the boat.
One More thing!!!! Very important!
Watch the weather when you round Point Lookout! This area is notorious for rough weather. If the wind blows out of the north west at more than 15 knots it is a living hell getting up into the river. In my Hunter 22 I went through there at 20 knots, sustained, and 4 foot waves.....no fun. The waves can come against the current and make these really steep breakers that beat the heck out of you! I have been through that area, by mistake, in 40 knots of wind, sustained, with higher gusts in my Catalina 30. It was hell on earth! That place can really put it to you so watch the weather closely and you really want to watch for a good window to do that part of the river. The closest two places are Point Lookout Marina and the Coan River, each are over 10 miles from the marker at Point Lookout (don't cut the marker by to much because there is quite a bar out there too).
Watch the weather when you round Point Lookout! This area is notorious for rough weather. If the wind blows out of the north west at more than 15 knots it is a living hell getting up into the river. In my Hunter 22 I went through there at 20 knots, sustained, and 4 foot waves.....no fun. The waves can come against the current and make these really steep breakers that beat the heck out of you! I have been through that area, by mistake, in 40 knots of wind, sustained, with higher gusts in my Catalina 30. It was hell on earth! That place can really put it to you so watch the weather closely and you really want to watch for a good window to do that part of the river. The closest two places are Point Lookout Marina and the Coan River, each are over 10 miles from the marker at Point Lookout (don't cut the marker by to much because there is quite a bar out there too).
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