Guest Blogger Sara Ingram Takes the Helm

No boating for me this week, so many thanks to Sara from Premier Ride for picking up my slack, and on the perfect weekend too - PIRATE & WENCHES WEEKEND!  We've been for the last two years and it's always a great time with good stories to tell, not to mention the perfect excuse to break out the early Halloween costumes to donn a sexy pirate or wench outfit!  Thanks again Sara. 
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Pretty Sara

Pirates & Wenches Fantasy Weekend

Rock Hall, MD

August 13-14, 2011

I am honored to be a guest blogger this week. We were disappointed that Harbor Shark would not be joining us for Pirates & Wenches Fantasy Weekend in Rock Hall this year.  All In and Premier Ride had plans to cast off at 10am Saturday morning…but first, Premier Ride’s Captain and First Mate (wearing my pirate hat) commandeered the air floor from Harbor Shark’s dinghy—our first pirate booty of the weekend! (Karma kicked in, and just beyond the Key Bridge we had to momentarily stop because our dinghy was being hit by our own wake which caused it to shift and fill with water.) 

The day was hazy with few boats on the water, making the cruise calm enough that one of the Premier Ride crew studied for the DAT!  The plan was to tie up to Grateful Escape who had already found the perfect spot in Swan Creek. Bob & Barb are the pirates who never age—the world would be a better place if more people were like them! 

Studying for the DAT

Everyone but the Premier Ride crew, who worked & studied a bit more, set off for the first pirate event on the beach.  The land-lubbers returned, just as Premier Ride’s crew, with beads, bandanas, hats, tattoos and swords prepared to venture to land.  We docked and ordered our first shots and sandwiches at Haven Harbor—yum! 

Premier Ride Crew

The rain subsided and the adventure continued.  A Rock Hall Rickshaw (works strictly for tips) approached but was going the opposite direction of Harbor Shack; two minutes later as rain started to fall again, and he returned to give us a ride!  More drinks, pictures & shots—thank you to our bartender who kept my secret when she saw me pour most of my shot on the ground…!

We spotted a boat (Impulsive, Severna Park) without fenders getting damaged by the rough waters.  The piling to which it was tied had broken and bent the rub rail exposing fiberglass.  We and two others tried to reduce further damage by retying the lines and securing a fender on the piling. PFFFT! It had been pierced by the bent rub rail.  A passer-by called the Harbor Shack and Waterman’s to request announcements to be made in hopes to alert the owner.  Note to self:  when tying up to hard objects, use fenders! 

Boat damage from busted fender

All that work made us hungry, and amazingly, John at Waterman’s was able to seat us immediately; steamed crabs, Caesar salad, corn on the cob, and of course, shots (What, what, what, what?  Pirate Rules!)



Scallywags!



Wench of the Year

I saw the Soggy Dollar, so we walked over to thank them for their flamingo beacon that has guided Premier Ride back to BMC countless times.  Noteworthy Sightings include Capt’n Black with his sword, Johnny Depp, a Dundalk Pirate, Justin Beiber, our bartender Carol (thanks for returning the Visa Black Card left behind last week!), and more...  A special congratulation goes to Lana who was awarded Wench of the Year! 

The weather on Sunday made most our raft up decide to get an early start home.  Only All In and Premier Ride stayed a few extra hours.  We decided to stop at Waterman’s for crabs before returning to Baltimore.  It was a ghost town!  Hard to believe the place had been packed full of pirates and wenches just hours earlier.   It was a peaceful quiet ending to a crazed weekend of pirate adventures!  Arrrgh! 

Mixed Company

 Rock Hall
July 24th, 2011

With the temp in the 100's this weekend, we just didn't feel like moving on Saturday and so skipped the relaxing weekend at Still Pond with friends.  Instead, we did something we rarely do and something that Buddy frowns upon strongly.  We mixed friends, family and clients!  We sat at the Dark Horse Tavern Saturday evening and went through our phone list inviting those to whom we've promised trips on the boat.  We're pretty active boaters and usually go out overnight and so getting everyone on board in a summer can be a challenge.  This was the perfect opportunity.

We wound up with six guests on board, plus Buddy and I (and Lexi dog).  We met at the marina gate at 11:30 and set off exactly at noon.  Our mismatched crew consisted of my young cousin and his roommate, two dear friends from MoCo, and a client and his lovely girlfriend - none of which had ever met before this day.  So we had all the generations represented - 20's, 30's, 40's and 50's.  I can see how this could be considered a risky or awkward event, but for some reason, on a boat everything is good.  My young cousin is quite the talker and had everyone in conversation before we even made it out of the marina, so by the time we pulled in between the water towers at Rock Hall, everyone was best friends.  Or something like that.


Harbor Shark Crew



Steve & Ellen hard at work

We pulled in to a slip out front and spent a few minutes debating on whether to sit indoors or out because the heat was still pretty stifling Sunday.  Before we had made up our minds, Michela-MacGyver had already scoped the scene and found the coolest spot on the deck (in the back of the tent between the two fans).  So we braved it and ordered lots of food and drinks and crabs and dug in.  I love it that they are dog friendly.  Our waitress Jodi was fantastic, even in the heat and she loved Lexi.  The ribs were the bomb and the crabs were local.  They only had mediums, but many of them would have been considered large elsewhere, and were oh, so tasty!  They key lime pie was yummy too.



Thanks Jodi!

 We decided to take make a stop at the Tiki Barge on the way back for the city view and some tropical vibes.  My cousin lives in Federal Hill, and just getting near the place we heard his name being shouted from the bar - what a way to make an entrance.  Things were definitely jumping at the barge on a Sunday afternoon.  I must declare that it really is the best outdoor bar in the city on a hot summer afternoon.  I'm not saying that because I'm partial (I admit that), but because up on the 2nd level of the barge, there's always a breeze blowing and it's just such a fantastic view of the city, you actually feel immersed in it.  It's the perfect place to take guests -and they make a pretty darn good orange crush too.

Tiki Barge on a Sunday Afternoon

At this point, my little cousin (well, he's actually late 20's, but he'll always be my little cousin to me) had gone off to find his friends and the rest of us were getting worn out by the heat and the day, so we set off leaving Justin & Kyle behind. 

Donna & Jim (MacGyver)

We returned to our slip, said farewell to our MoCo friends and enjoyed the company of Steve & Ellen on the back deck while the sun set over the marina...  Who says you can't mix business with pleasure? 

Throwing Caution to the Wind

Rock Hall
Saturday, July 9th on board the All In


We had no plans for the weekend and even spent Friday night at home, but headed down early Saturday for boat chores.  Of course once you get there things have a way of evolving... and it wasn't long before we threw caution to the wind and boarded the All In with Captain Kevin and crew members Crystal, Roy, Lynette, Buddy, me and Lexi-dog). 


Bay Watch on the Chesapeake



We drifted near the bridge to wait for Premier Ride and his crew who had been at the Hard Yacht, and then headed past brown rocks in Stoney Creek to Nabbs Creek so they could check out the Nabbs Creek Cafe.  We ascended upon the place, taking over much of the outside deck.  We were a little early for the music - he was still setting up, but once again had friendly service and cold drinks (no meals this time).  The Dreamsicle Crush sounded delicious - I'm trying that next time for sure!  Premier Ride was planning to cruise to Rock Hall for crabs and an overnight stay, and crazy Captain Kevin said why not ?  So we headed out along side them. 


Premier Ride Cruising



Waterman's at Rock Hall

 The Royal Caribbean cruise ship "Enchantment of the Seas" was leaving at the same time, so we cruised with her for a bit before pulling ahead.  She's a beautiful ship. and one on which we'll be on board shortly (we've been watching these cruise ships come and go with wanderlust so often we finally booked ourselves a 5-day cruise to Bermuda!).  The bay was gorgeous, not a lot of traffic, and Waterman's had slips waiting for us upon arrival.  We were front & center, while Premier Ride was tucked in for an overnight stay.  We sat at the high top in front of the bar to accommodate our large party.  Roy was first to sit down, and he knows the owner (or a friend of the owner), so he took it upon himself to order lots of food for the table which was perfect since it took everyone varying amounts of time to get there.  One of the crew members aboard Premier Ride had dropped her sunglasses overboard, and after several unsuccessful attempts with a hook, finally jumped in and retrieved them - FIRST TRY.  Way to go Angel!  By the time we sat down we had ribs and corn and soup waiting and crabs on the way.  Fantastic!  Good food, crazy conversation, lots of laughs and a couple of pops before the sun started to set and we needed to start thinking about making our way back across the bay.  First, I had to walk the dog (of course), where I found an interesting jalopy. 

I think it's either from the set of Water World or left over/in preparation for Pirate Weekend (always an experience!).  The band was setting up, Buddy tried out his first "plank" to submit to BMC Plank Wars on Facebook, and then we headed out toward the sun.

Years ago we did a lot of day boating and would see the most incredible sunsets.  This day was just like that.  The inner harbor is directly west of Rock Hall and sets up an unbelievable ride home.   It's mesmerizing to watch the sun go down on a warm summer day from the water.  It was cloudy as the sun was setting and we didn't think we'd get a sunset, but the last few minutes, she dropped down out of the clouds.  It's quite an experience, and if you've been boating at sunset, you know what I mean. 



Setting Sun on the Chesapeake