Following the fireworks has been a dream since I read an article about it in Spin sheet last year. So HHSA cruisers Callisto and Assignment (Jen and Doug Luzader) kept an eye on the weather and at the last minute pulled off a Follow the Fireworks cruise for a holiday weekend packed to the gills with joy. I had been keeping my eye out for Fireworks dates in Talbot county but St. Michael’s was the only event posted until the last minute. Next year we’ll probably call the hosting organizations or just make tentative plans earlier. Cambridge opens the weekend with fireworks on the 4th. However, Cambridge Yacht Club closes to the public so it would be a good idea to reserve spots at the Cambridge Yacht Basin in advance for a reasonable $2/ft.
We didn’t make reservations in time so we started our adventure in Oxford on the 5th. The sailing was positively delicious. We made it all the way to Oxford (through Knapps Narrows) without a single tack. Given the heat advisory we grabbed a couple of last minute spots at Safe Harbour Marina. It is almost twice as expensive as the Tred Avon Yacht club but they never returned our call and may have been closed to the public as well. After some pool time we cobbled together a tasty dinner between our stores. The camaraderie in that cockpit was even better than the kielbasa mac n’ cheese. The marina was right across the street from the Strand (or beach) at Oxford. It was the perfect place to see the fireworks from and if you can fit folding chairs into your boat they would be a plus. The show was spectacular. We were impressed with the length and wowed by the finale.
The thunderstorm predictions were looking much improved the next morning so we decided to head over to St. Michael’s via the “backdoor” in San Domingo creek . We had a beautiful cove all to ourselves northeast of red day marker 6 that would be excellent for a group of HHSA cruising boats next year. With 2 knots of wind anticipated overnight we rafted up together and enjoyed a couple dark and stormies before heading into town. Dinner was at an up-and-coming self-serve beer and wine bar called the Fool’s Lantern and was of course followed by ice cream at Justine’s. The wind died down by the time the fireworks started so a little bug spray and personal fans would have been nice. The view was great at the forward starboard end of Muskrat Park by Foxy’s Restaurant. The moment at the end of the finally when all of the boats in the harbour sounded their horns in salute was pure magic. If you haven’t seen “the rocket’s red glare” over the water I would encourage you to give it a try next year.
