Baltimore's Inner Harbor

We arrived in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor on Saturday, June 21. We had anchored out last night just north of Annapolis in Mill Creek, a little tributary off Whitehall Bay. There was lots of boat traffic early, but it died down toward sunset and we spent a very pleasant night on the hook.

The Francis Scott Key Bridge in the first picture makes a beautiful entrance to Baltimore Harbor. On our starboard, we passed the US Naval Hospital Ship “COMFORT”. On our port we passed Fort McHenry. It was here during the Battle of Baltimore (War of 1812) that Francis Scott Key was inspired to write the poem, “The Star Spangled Banner”, which would eventually become the national anthem for the United States. We pulled into our slip at Inner Harbor East Marina within sight of the HarborEast section of Baltimore.

We walked downtown and discovered an Art & Crafts Festival and a large stage set up right in the middle of an intersection with a local group playing. Several artists had made very elaborate chalk drawings on the sidewalk.

Baltimore has done an absolutely marvelous job of urban renewal. They have given new life to many of the old docks and warehouses, when the ship harbor was located right downtown. The Power Plant Building is an old Baltimore Gas & Electric Company building that was a steam powered generating plant. It is now home to many attractions and restaurants including the ESPN Zone, The Hard Rock Café, and Barnes & Nobles to name just a few.

The Seven Foot Knoll Lighthouse is now part of the Baltimore Maritime Museum. The lighthouse is the oldest screw pile lighthouse in Maryland. It was built in 1856 and served the Baltimore Harbor for 133 years. The museum consists of the Lighthouse and four ships that you may tour. They include the Lightship Chesapeake, the Sub Torsk, the USCG Cutter Taney, which is the last surviving ship from Pearl Harbor. The ship was in service for over 50 years. It is the only warship still afloat that saw action during the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor. The last ship is the USS Constellation (1854). This ship was a “sloop of war” that served from 1855 to 1933 and is preserved as a National Historic Landmark here in Baltimore Harbor.

We met another Loop boat here at Inner Harbor East called “Grand Fromage”. Glee and Robert left from Ft Lauderdale and will be cruising on the Loop in stages. Right now they are enjoying the Chesapeake Bay area. We all had dinner together on Monday night at Della Notte, a terrific Italian restaurant within walking distance of the marina. We hope to meet up again on the waterways or in Florida next winter!

Tomorrow we’re off for the C&D Canal (Chesapeake & Delaware).

Our Best to Everyone