Bay Creek Boating Weekend

The last time I posted about the boat, I mentioned that I was just coming around to the idea of owning it.  Well I am now a 100% enthusiastic fan.  Every time we go out on her, I feel a sense of calm and peace and it is the perfect escape from work and reality.  The weekend after Bank School was over, I needed a break so we drove down to Suffolk as fast as we could, hopped on the boat and hoped that we would make it the hour and a half boat ride to Bay Creek Resort on Virginia's Eastern Shore before nightfall.  

Anyone who knows me well knows I can be very nervous and uptight.  Well this side of me REALLY shone through as we were traveling on the open water with no other boats in sight as the sun was rapidly setting in the sky.  We weren't 100% sure where Bay Creek was once we reached shore, I am not experienced using the spotlight and the waters were quite choppy.  I screamed more than once, but once we got into view of where we thought Bay Creek might be, I kicked into co-pilot mode and helped Jeff navigate into the marina just as the sun officially set.   As we pulled into slip #32, our neighbor for the weekend, Frank, and his crew jumped up and helped us pull in and tie up.  He then immediately offered us a cocktail and some samples of the food they were munching on.  I officially love boaters.  They are just as friendly as RVers.  

We quickly changed clothes down below and headed up the docks to Aqua-the marina restaurant.  We feasted on steamed shrimp and fish tacos and a cocktail or two.  During dinner, a giant storm arrived bringing thunder, lightening and lots of rain.  So we stuck around Aqua for a bit longer and enjoyed more cocktails-what else were we going to do.  When the rain subsided enough to run back to the boat, we did just that and sprinted from Aqua, down the docks, to the safety of our boat cabin.  We relaxed for a bit and then hit the hay and slept surprisingly well.  One side of the sleeping quarters is longer than the other so Jeff put his legs on that side and I put my legs on the short side and we turned on my fan from college and slept like babies.  We awoke around 8am and went to work getting ready for the day and for mom and dad's arrival.  We rented a golf cart and drove into little Cape Charles, VA for some breakfast, some beer and some bait and enlisted the help of mom and dad to buy the lunch food and ice.

When they arrived, we were ready for a day fishing and swimming on the bay.  The temp was perfect and even though we didn't catch any fish, we had a great time just relaxing on the water.  On Saturday evening we pulled back into slip #32 and Frank and friends met us at the docks again.  This time they shared with us some crabs they had trapped and steamed earlier in the day.  Dear Frank, we love you.  We enjoyed the crabs and some wine/beer before heading up to the showers to get cleaned up for dinner. Mom and Dad picked us up at the Marina and we headed to Stingrays, a restaurant attached to a convenience store in Cape Charles.  I had read about Stingrays in Rachael Ray Magazine and it was just ok.  The atmosphere though was priceless with lots of fisherman and Cape Charles locals.  

After dinner we returned to the boat for an after dinner drink before mom and dad headed back to their hotel and we hit the hay once again.  We awoke just as mom and dad arrived back at the Marina on Sunday morning.  I had requested our pre Camp Morehead drop off breakfast of healthy powdered doughnuts and orange juice boxes and mom delivered.  Yum.  After breakfast, we headed back out on the boat for another day of fishing and swimming and a visit to the Tiki Bar which I have named the Redneck Yacht Club.  Over 50 boats were anchored in the water in front of the Tiki Bar and loud music echoed from the loudspeakers as people drank beers, brought trays of shots back to their boats and danced to the cha cha slide.  See why I named it the Redneck Yacht Club?  On the way to the Tiki Bar, we anchored out in the middle of the bay and took a long, refreshing swim.  While out there, we saw a GIANT turtle with a head bigger than my dad's and lots and lots of dolphins.  So cool.

We returned to the Marina around 3:45, said bye to mom and dad and then headed back across the bay to Suffolk to dock and clean the boat before returning to Richmond.  I officially love Bay Creek Resort and cannot wait to return.