Beautiful Baltimore

September 4 - 9: Baltimore, MD

Baltimore is a beautiful city. There is a ton of development right on the waterfront. In fact, they have a water taxi that is $9 for the day to hop on or off at different stops throughout the area. Had a great day exploring...more about that later.

When we first arrived, we stayed at the city docks. It was the least expensive place but was a fixed pier, instead of a floating dock. On Friday morning, the dockmaster came over to tell us they were shutting down the electric that night, because due to Hurricane Hanna, they expected a storm surge of 2 - 4 feet. If they got 2 feet, the water would be over the dock and almost to the top of the pilings. We decided to move to Inner Harbor Marina which had floating docks.

In addition to the storm surge, they were predicting winds up to 50 knots. Bill tied up the boat like a fly stuck in a spider's web! We had 8 lines off the boat in every direction. Luckily, the winds only got up to 30 knots, which wasn't bad at all. Similar to what we've seen in Lake Erie. But it's always best to be safe than sorry.

On Sunday, we took a tour of the city and had a great time. I've posted lots of pics below.

Skyline of Baltimore ... it's a beautiful city.

City docks, where we were originally. You can see the aquarium in the background.

The office of Inner Harbor Marina. The Rusty Scupper is a popular fancy restaurant.

This is one of over 8 huge yachts that came to the marina for shelter from the storm. This one is about 100 feet long. You should see it up close...amazing! Sadly, we were not invited on board.

USS Constellation...from the civil war.

Loved, loved, loved the aquarium. Such an impressive museum! This is a pic of a zebra shark and a pool full of rays. So elegant!


Riding on the water taxi after our tour of the aquarium.



Captain Linda on the water taxi. Turns out she has the same boat that we do! She has cruised down in the Bahamas and gave us lots of great tips about that area as well as local spots.


Fells Point is a quaint little town with lots of shops and restaurants.


When we got back to downtown Baltimore the sun was setting. They have musical groups playing all the time in a center area. This one played Aztec music that was so unique and calming. I bought a CD to enjoy throughout the trip.



Bill and I at a Tiki Bar...surprise, surprise.