"Shellenberger has perfected the art of gunkholing . . . An excellent book for both those who enjoy weekend cruises and those who merely want to know more about Chesapeake Bay." -- Daily Press (Newport News, VA) "With more than 3,000 miles of shoreline, the Chesapeake Bay offers a treasury of cruising spots. Shellenberger's book provides the key to unlock it." -- Virginian-Pilot "An 'insider's' look at the hundreds of places cruisers and weekend boaters love to hole up in. . . . It is also a loving portrait of the bay, its history, its people, its wildlife, and its environment." -- The Mariner "A truly monumental guide." -- Sunday Capital (Annapolis, MD) Dotting its more than 3,000-mile shoreline are creeks, coves, and inlets--or gunkholes in Chesapeake Bay parlance. They are as challenging as they are charming for cruisers to fi nd and enter, sometimes discouraging the less adventuresome. But thanks to author Bill Shellenberger, you will be able to enjoy these hidden treasures like an old pro. For more than twenty years, Bill Shellenberger's Cruising the Chesapeake has been the guide of choice for sailors and motor cruisers seeking to avoid the beaten path. Here Bill shares with you his engaging, heartfelt evocation of the Bay, its shores, history, wildlife, and people. No other guide to the region offers such complete, detailed coverage of virtually every point of interest on the Bay--from the secluded east fork of Langford Creek to the bustling hearts of Baltimore, Washington, and Norfolk. Find your path to Cruising the Chesapeake with A cruise planner with suggested itineraries for cruises of 3, 9, and 16 days, supported by overview charts and planning tips Waypoints for anchorages and key locations that make planning your cruises and integrating navigational data into your GPS unit a snap NOAA charts and aerial photos of key anchorages and tricky passages Updated information on piloting and shoreside facilities Expanded coverage up the Atlantic seaboard from the entrance of the Chesapeake to New York City and its anchorages that make this the ONE guide for the mid-Atlantic boater A comprehensive cruise planner and navigation guide and a vivid celebration of one of North America's natural treasures, Cruising the Chesapeake is a book no Chesapeake boater will want to be without.

As Schmidt circles the Bay counterclockwise from Jamestown, she explores Smith's encounters with Native Americans and the Bay's ecological changes over the past hundred years. On each river and creek, she quotes Smith's journals on matching wits with Powhatan, meeting Pocahontas, surviving thunderstorms, ambush, and a stingray's barb. Anchored on wild creeks, Schmidt observes swans and dragonflies, lightning and sunsets; in port she interviews colorful characters and working watermen about blue crabs and oysters.