We took the boat out into Deep Creek Lake a couple of times. DCL has a size limit of 25' for boats. Ours is 22', so it was one of the bigger boats out there, definitely the biggest sailboat.
We sailed it around for a bit and that was fun, but there were a few things that were pains in the butt. Stepping the mast is a chore, but one I was able to simplify over time and with some research on the Internet. Trailering the boat is a chore. It's heavy, at the upper range of my vehicle, and it's wide. Getting back to the DCL ramp requires travel on some small, hilly roads. You can't really spend the night on the boat at DCL unless you get a slip somewhere. That means putting in and taking it out on the same day. DCL is not that big, especially the part accessible from the ramp on a boat with a mast (i.e. getting under bridges). It was OK to learn how the boat works, but you can only sail up and down the lake so many times.
Given all of that, we decided to find a bigger stomping ground, that of the Chesapeake Bay. We shopped around several marinas down there. We were looking for something affordable and with some amenities. We also wanted something within a couple hours drive from us (Western Maryland). That left Middle River, Patapsco River, and Magothy River. We looked at a dozen marinas in each place and finally settled on Cutter Marina on Middle River. The picture above is the view from our slip there.
They are usually booked solid but we lucked into a slip with uncanny timing. Our slip contract starts in March. I'm planning on trailering the boat down to Cutter as close to March 1 as possible. Cutter looks to be a great place. It's well-protected, very clean, 24-hour lounge, nice showers and bathrooms.
Right now I have all of the teak trim from the outside removed and I'm sanding and refinishing it. I'm just about done and I'll be putting everything back together between now and March. Once I get it together I'll post pictures.
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