In Washington DC - 38:52.67N, 077:01.61W
AJAYA'S CRUISE
Phil & Nikki Hoskins
Fri 14 Aug 2009 21:44
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We arrived in Washington DC at lunchtime today
after spending a very pleasant night in Mattawomen Creek about 30 miles down
stream. It was so peaceful in Mattawoman that we could have been a 1000 miles
away from the capital as the Potomac is not a commercially used river. It
doesn't have enough depth to take large ships. The whole river is rural just
like the Chesapeake it flows into, with the houses on each shore getting larger
and grander the nearer to Washington you get.
We anchored just inside the creek where there is a
constant depth over a large area although that depth is only about 7 foot at
most. It's used a lot by fishermen who motor out of the creek at full speed
until they get to their chosen spot at which point they switch to a small
electric trolling motor to keep them positioned correctly whilst they fish. This
area is apparently good for Bass. Our evening was almost ruined as a
thunderstorm threatened from the north but it was short-lived and didn't reach
us before it broke up completely. The evening turned balmy and
wind-less - Phil even went for a late night swim in the fresh tepid
water.
After another early start we motored the last few
miles to DC where the only early signs of the heaving humanity ahead were the
aircraft on final approach to Ronald Regan Airport which, relative to London is
like having Heathrow airport situated in Kensington High Street! We passed
George Washington's home Mount Vernon on the Potomac then on the opposite bank
we passed Fort Washington before the suburb of Alexandria appeared on the
western bank until finally Washington loomed in all its glory. The
Washington Memorial was the first obvious landmark we saw, until, having passed
Ronald Regan Airport we could see our destination the Washington Channel,
finally anchoring just down from the Capitol Yacht Club. A 39' berth for us is a
mere $58.50 per night so we are booked in from Monday 17th for a few days so
that we can see the sights and hit the museums as well as catch up with some
friends.
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