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Baltimore area "Sailabration"


Laura Weishaupt

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We're planning on going down to Baltimore for some events during the "Sailabration". In particular we're

interested in seeing the tall ships upon arrival OR for departure. We're looking at the on line schedule and

area maps. We've been to Baltimore a few times and are familiar with the water taxi. We also plan to be there

overnight, on week days.

 

To those of you who are familiar with the area, do you have suggestions for good viewing/photo taking of the tall

ships? Would there be good viewing at some location on the Chesapeake? Ft. McHenry will be good, but crowded,

though I think anywhere will be crowded. I can think of others, but some of you are very close and know the

landscape. The arrival is spread over the course of the day, while departure is more tightly scheduled. I think

it would be very cool indeed to see these ships with some sail unfurled on the water.

 

We appreciate whatever guidance is offered.

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<p>I've never been to these, but you can also try Fort Armstead Park (difficult to find), Hull Street Park, and Frederick Douglass-Isaac Myers Maritime Park (http://www.douglassmyers.org/) . They much less well known and might not be as crowded. I believe the last one charges admission, but is quite close in. I'm not sure at what point the ships furl their sails, but this might be another consideration. </p>

<p>HTH,</p>

<p>Tom M</p>

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Tom,

 

Thanks for the information. I think Sandy Point is further south than I'd like to be, but we looked at Ft. Armstead and that has potential. It's really quite tucked in under the bridge, as you say, difficult to find. We looked at shipping channel maps to help in thinking about position. I'll take a look at the other parks you mentioned. I wish the bridge there had foot access. What a view that would be.

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<p>If there is some way to find out, you should get an answer to Tom's question about the point at which these ships will furl their sails. Of course, that will be dependent on the weather that day, but my experience with tall ships is that the sails come down a long way out from any harbor they are visiting. The channel in the Bay is not very wide, so they be on motor-power from well out from the city.</p>
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Dave, thank you for your comments about the ships. Yes, where the ships will set sail is a good question to answer. To that end we've been looking at the channel maps and we figure the ships would minimally need to get in the main channel of the Chesapeake. They may want to get south of Kent Is. I'm going to check with the Coast Guard. They may have a good idea about this.

 

Tom, we haven't ruled out Sandy Point by any means. We need to be mindful of where we are as we'll have a long ride home in the other direction and traffic in the area is no picnic. I'll spend a lot of time with maps this weekend. Even if we don't get to see a lot of sail we'll still have a great time.

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<p>I would say having grown up and lived in Annapolis, MD for 20+ years, If you want one good place to watch, that would definitely be Sandy Point. The bay is narrower there and the backdrop of the bridge and Sandy Point light would probably be nice. And if you are really inspired you can even rent a boat to get closer to them. <br>

As far as getting to and from Baltimore on I-97/rt 50, traffic can be a nightmare on the weekends in Summer. But, you will probably be going the opposite of traffic most of the time. Have fun!! That area is a nice place to visit.</p>

 

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I have put Sandy Point on the list of places to go. We'll make it work.

 

I did write to the USCG as they have a tall ship that leads the procession. I have not heard from them yet, but a reply from them may take some time. I also wrote to the Lynx and they did reply. While they didn't address the question of sails, they did send some very good information.

 

William, thank you for joining in. I appreciate your comments. We don't really need to go back through Baltimore. After checking the map, from Sandy Point it looks like going to the eastern shore then to rt. 301 will get us back. Yes, longer, but easier on the nerves. I'm more familiar with the northern reaches of Chesapeake Bay. It's a wonderful place and I'd like to know it better. This looks like an opportunity to that end.

 

Getting close sure would be nice. That sounds like something to plan for next time. Back in the 80's I lived in San Diego and had the chance to be on a boat out in the bay when the 12 meter yachts were racing prior to the Americas Cup. It was amazing.

 

Apparently one can reserve a spot on a class B tall ship for a fireworks evening cruise in the Inner Harbor. OK, they don't give it away, but jeez. That would be fun.

 

We're going to have a great time. I really appreciate the help you folks have offered. Thanks.

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  • 2 weeks later...
<p>I have no real new suggestions for seeing the tall ships under sail, but wanted to add to some of the places already mentioned.<br /><br />Ft. Armistead Park is a bit sketchy ... at least for my tastes. I would be worried about who would be rolling in and wouldn't really be able to relax there honestly.<br /><br />Hull Street Park, mentioned by Tom, is in Tide Point (Locust Point), and is just a small patch of grass with a rickety pier, but right next to it, is a wonderful promenade with deck chairs looking across the harbor to Fells Point.<br /><br />The Frederick Douglass Museum has a wonderful promenade (free) and is basically in the heart of Fells Point. There is a new restaurant right on the water in the museum (Waterfront Kitchen) and the Living Classrooms Foundation has a workshop for repairing schooners there too.<br /><br />There really are promenades and parks more or less all around the harbor from Canton, through Fells Point, the Inner Harbor, Federal Hill, to Tide Point and Fort McHenry, but of course they're all too close to see the ships under sail.<br /><br />Sandy Point (entrance fee), has a wide beach, but it's really hot and bright and crowded on a weekend. There is a wonderful park across the bridge from Sandy Point, called Terrapin Nature Area, which is really wonderful.</p>
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Jay,

 

Thank you for the details. They are really helpful. Since my last post on this thread we had a scheduling kink tossed into the works that impacts when we can all go. We're likely only going to be able to get down there on the weekend. Yes, big, huge crowds, but ce la vie. We can roll with this.

 

The water taxi is not selling day passes on line for the duration of Sailabration. One will have to get it at the taxi.

 

If we can't see ships under sail we have other interests that can be pursued. I am a chef and teach food preservation. Provisioning navies played an important roll in the development of preservation techniques. I believe there will be historic food demonstrations that will be of great interest. These ships are beautiful and full of details that are wonderful to photograph. We will get out for a ride on the Lynx. The last time I was in Fells Point I found a shop with a pretty good fried oyster sandwich that was inexpensive. We'll probably pack most of our food and drink. We have a teenager with a strong back.

 

As you point out there will be a LOT going on. I hope we can figure a way to make it down to Sandy Point for the departure. We'll see.

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  • 2 weeks later...

<p>This posting has been a tremendous help as I've been trying to figure out the right place and time to be to capture the tall ships when arriving to Baltimore.<br>

Since they will be coming from Norfolk, I deduce that they will be coming under the Bay Bridge, and hopefully under sail here.<br>

I was able to find this timing for estimated time of arrivals:<br>

Ships from the Americas will begin arriving for the Star-Spangled Sailabration at 8 a.m. Wednesday, June 13, starting with US Navy ships. The USS Fort McHenry and the Pride of Baltimore II will arrive together at 11 a.m., followed every 15-30 minutes by majestic tall ships.<br>

I saw the someone mentioned some telephoto lens rentals. I'm assuming that a 100-400mm zoom should be more than adequate to capture the ships. Now to decide by land or by sea!<br>

Would love to hear from others with what they've decided to do for arrival day.</p>

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I live in the area and was also planning on Sandy Point... We won't be in town for the weekend, but I was hoping to take my kids to see the ships coming up the bay. I know they "arrive in Baltimore" between 9 and whenever" on Wednesday, but when would be the best time to go to Sandy Point... Wednesday morning? Would ships be rolling in Tuesday to wait? Any ideas appreciated!
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The day is here and the ships are on their way. Good luck to all heading out for arrival. We even have great weather.

 

Bella, I'm glad that this thread has helped you. Thanks for posting the times. As far as reach on a lens, take a look over at Canon Thursday. Sarah Fox posted a beautiful shot of 3 ships. If you have or can rent the reach, that will probably be good. However, I think this is one of those times when one should remember to take the moment to look, watch, and soak in the experience.

 

Have a great time. Please, post some shots or links to them.

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Hi Laura ! We tried to go out by boat, but the 3-4 foot swells were just too much for us, so ran back home and jumped into a car to get to Sandy Point Park.

 

I just submitted a post on my blog with photos and comments of this morning's expedition. Not as successful as I would have liked it to be. Two more field trips planned though to get on-site shots.

 

http://bellaremyphotography.wordpress.com/2012/06/13/sailing-under-the-bridge/

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<p>Unfortunately, I couldn't get out to Baltimore or Sandy Point today, so I just flipped through a few pages of pictures of the ships submitted by John Q Public to the Baltimore Sun.</p>

<p>I must be spoiled by the generally high quality of photos on photo.net as I didn't anticipate the poor quality of pictures submitted to the Sun. Every error that you can imagine was represented -- exposure problems, focusing problems, silly / terrible composition, camera shake problems, noise/grain, vignetting by thumb, lens glare, use of Instagram and similar efx on images that should never have seen the light of day, dirty lenses, etc.. I just didn't think it was possible to have pix come out this bad with modern point and shoot cameras and smart phones.</p>

<p>I don't want to sound elitist, but that's my long way of saying that I can't wait to see the pix shot by some of our members! They will probably look like manna from heaven compared to the pix posted on the Baltimore Sun website.</p>

<p>Cheers,</p>

<p>Tom M</p>

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Very excited about a planned sunrise shoot at the Harbor Saturday a.m.

 

My husband is planning a shoot on Tuesday for the departure...hadn't thought about the possibility that the ships wouldn't have their sails

up when they left. Do you think it's possible that they'll motor out with their sails unfurled just for the pomp? Boy I hope so!

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<p>Hi Wendy, I remember that they do a song and dance (literally) on the masts when leaving the harbor up to Key Bridge. Thus, the sails are down, and they are under motor.<br>

Did a night shoot last night, and am working on the photos now. Great way to really showcase the ships!<br>

Tom, were you able to see the few photos I posted on my blog?<br>

<a href="http://bellaremyphotography.wordpress.com/2012/06/15/funky-sailabration/">http://bellaremyphotography.wordpress.com/2012/06/15/funky-sailabration/</a></p>

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Bella, that's quite the chop on the bay. Sounds like you're having an exciting time.

 

Wendy, early morning shooting sounds nice. Perhaps we'll be out there early Sunday morning. We'll be heading down very early tomorrow morning and are staying at a hotel. Fireworks Saturday night will be a great end to a long day. I'm frying up chicken and packing up picnic meals. We're going over what gear to take, but plan on keeping things simple. We'll probably post when we get back Sunday evening.

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<p>Hi Bella - Sorry, I've been so busy for the past week that I forgot to reply to you. ... Yes, I did see the photos on your blog. They look great. Thank you for sending the URL.</p>

<p>In case you are interested in posting an image her, I started a thread in the "No-Words" forum on the Sailabration. We've had some nice contributions thusfar.</p>

<p>Best regards,</p>

<p>Tom M</p>

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