Tangier Vs. Smith Island

[rgranger]

Hello:

I'm planning my next gunkholing expedition and I'm considering either Tangier Island or Smith Island. I have never been to either.

I've reviewed the two marina's available (one on each island) using Active Captain but I'd love your input. Smith island looks more remote and therefore maybe more interesting... and I also noticed what looks like two other settlements just south and south east of the main settlement on Smith (Tylerton and Rhodes Point... with the swing keel up....maybe an interesting jaunt for a day trip but no info on Active Captain. Are cruisers welcome at these other towns )? Do they have public tie up?

If you have been to these spots, I'd love to hear what you thought about your visit.

r

 

[Benny17441]

I have sailed into Tangier Island and it is a highly recommended destination. The marina is private but reasonably priced and Mr. Parks will share his knowledge of the Island with you. The island is shrinking and will in time disappear but now is home to a declining in numbers but close knit community. Law enforcement as well as medical services fly-in on an itinerant basis. The watermen display excellent handling abilities of their fishing boats as they back them up into a slip and these are hardy people that bury their dead in their front lawns. There is ferry service connecting the Islands to the mainland and you could sail to one and visit the other by ferry. There is a family owned Hotel that serves the best family style meals and is opened to the public. In the evening it seems everyone gathers at the ice cream shop. To avoid inbreeding locals look for prospective mates among the arrivals at the airport or ferry docks. Golf carts are the preferred method of transportation and can be rented. In the mornings you see people walking around in their pajamas until they change clothes for the arrival of the ferry by 1:00 PM. You spend more than one day and they start treating you like a local. If you need ice walk to the ice plant but do it before the fishing boats come as they usually take all is available. Alcohol is not sold on the Island. Restaurants will allow you to take your own wine bottle and provide the uncorking service free of charge. If you like beer take it in the boat with you. If you get a chance look for the book "An Island Out of Time" by Tom Horton. It is a memoir of Smith Island. And will give you vast information. If you are looking at the differences between the Islands Tangier is in Virginia and Smith Island is in Maryland. Tangier is more developed. The few Surnames of the area are spread within the two Islands. Elizabethan English is still spoken among the locals. We sailed in on a trailerable Starwind 223 just as they were posting small craft warnings for that part of the Chesapeake and had to stay an extra day until the wind and the sea sat down. Well worth it, they love cruisers or any kind of visitors.

 

[rgranger]

Benny

That sound great! I hadn't thought of taking a ferry so that I could do both. Hmmmm... got me thinking.

Thanks.

r

 

[jeb21851]

another alternative

Another alternative is to stay at the Somers Cove Marina in Crisfield, MD which is in walking distance from the ferries to Smith Island and Tangier Island. The marina is state owned and an excellent place to stay. If you decide to do so I am at slip K-4 in the marina. Either way the islands are a great place to visit and while in Smith Island have some Smith Island cake which is the offical State of Maryland Cake...a delicious treat that you will rave about to your friends!!!

 

[rgranger]

Another alternative is to stay at the Somers Cove Marina in Crisfield, MD which is in walking distance from the ferries to Smith Island and Tangier Island. The marina is state owned and an excellent place to stay. If you decide to do so I am at slip K-4 in the marina. Either way the islands are a great place to visit and while in Smith Island have some Smith Island cake which is the offical State of Maryland Cake...a delicious treat that you will rave about to your friends!!!

Jeb
Thanks, I'll check out Somers on Active Captain and see if it makes sense as a staging point. I'm coming from the Virginia side and have to fit the trip into 25 mile chunks on the water to get back home in time for work Monday.

r