Carter Creek VA USA

Leaving Jutland Creek

After all of the rain it was a bit of a grey day on Mon 21 Oct when we motored out of Jutland Creek.  Our pilot book describes Jutland Creek as “an excellent anchorage in a hard blow”, and we had certainly found that to be the case.

As we left Jutland we saw a local waterman forking up oysters in the traditional way.  Hard work but much better for preserving stocks than more industrial dragging techniques.

Flying our MPS – but not for long

We planned to sail 50miles down from the Potomac River to the Rappahannock River which is a nice distance to cover in a day.

It was markedly colder than it had been recently, so we had our first porridge breakfast of the season.  The forecast was for 10-15knot winds easing off during the day and, with 50 miles to cover and the wind already down at 12 knots, we elected to hoist the MPS.  That got BV bowling along nicely and we rapidly overtook the other yachts in the Potomac River which was most satisfying.

The MPS would have been perfect for sailing downwind when we exited the Potomac but before we got to the turning point the wind started to get up not diminish as forecast.  With the wind now almost on the beam it was also our hardest point of sail to get the MPS down.  Whilst we still had some sea room we bore away and dowsed the MPS in its snuffer before the wind rose any more than the 19-knot gusts that we had already experienced.  We completed the rest of the downwind passage more sedately with a poled out genoa instead.

Approaching the entrance to Carter Creek

Previously our trips up the Rappahannock River had ended up at Bill and Lydia’s house in the Corrotoman River and we had by-passed historic Carter Creek.  Named after the Carter family, the creek was once the heart of the family’s colonial empire.  In the mid 1600s they built a huge holding of over 300,000 acres and most of the tobacco produced on the estate was shipped out through the old plantation wharf in Carter Cove.  Robert Carter also had the historic Christ Church built close by in Weems, which we had visited in late November last year.

Anchored close to the Tides Inn

Little remains today to hint at the historic significance of the creek and, aside from a  small number of seafood businesses, it’s very much a residential and pleasure boat area.  In season The Tides Inn in is a popular haunt and we anchored close by its small marina.  Sadly, it was very much out of season and the only activity at the inn was when the deck lighting switched on automatically as the sun set.  However, it was another very sheltered anchorage and we were able to enjoy a pleasant evening on board followed by a very peaceful night.

Carter Creek, Virginia, USA