Visited Smith Island

steppinthrax

Active Member
It's a pretty unique place. I want to go again and take the wife daughter but the channel from Point Lookout is temp closed. The 7/8 layer cake was awesome, best I've had in a long time. The resturant there was pretty good. The only thing is we could not venture off too far. Smith Island Road goes to a bridge and we couldn't take the golf cart past that point. Also we only had a few hours to explore, so if you did the restaurant first you won't have much time.
 

vraiblonde

Board Mommy
PREMO Member
Patron
The Smith Island cruise is a nice day. Not a lot happening in that neck of the woods, but the one restaurant is really good and it's fun to wander around the town.
 

Gilligan

#*! boat!
PREMO Member
The 7/8 layer cake was awesome, best I've had in a long time.

My kids had one shipped to me for my birthday this year. Yep..awesome.

It's a short cruise for us in our boat..but always one of those, "yeah..next time..lets hit the lower Rappahannock (Deltaville, Urbanna etc) instead because there are so many more places to go" things comes in to play. Or Kinsale, when that was still open and rolling.
 
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Bonehead

Well-Known Member
Effin boring place to me. The best part was a very rough ride home, I spent it wedged on deck to avoid the puke fumes in the cabin. Got slapped pretty good 5 or 6 times by waves. I had no idea such shallow water could get riled up that way.
 

Gilligan

#*! boat!
PREMO Member
Effin boring place to me. The best part was a very rough ride home, I spent it wedged on deck to avoid the puke fumes in the cabin. Got slapped pretty good 5 or 6 times by waves. I had no idea such shallow water could get riled up that way.

Lots of very deep water between here and there.....
 
Effin boring place to me. The best part was a very rough ride home, I spent it wedged on deck to avoid the puke fumes in the cabin. Got slapped pretty good 5 or 6 times by waves. I had no idea such shallow water could get riled up that way.

Huh. I was up on the bow sprint Titanic style.
 

steppinthrax

Active Member
Could you post more info on cost to go there? How did you book? etc...

I was camping in Pocomoke State Park, MD. I checked out Tuesday and drove to Crisfield, MD. The rule is you need to be there before 12:30 pm. There is only one departure at 12:30pm, that's it!!! So if you miss that 12:30 you are finished. You can buy tickets online and come there with them, but I didn't do that and I don't think it matters, unless I guess if the boat is full.

http://smithislandcruises.com/

Is the website I went to, but didn't buy tickets. Once you get to Crisfield, there is a hotel there (Captain Taylor's or something). There is a little building off to the hotel that says Smith Island cruises. I walked in there and bought tickets (26 for adults and 13 for children). Anyway they board the boat at around 12:00 and the parking lot is around the corner from where you get tickets. Parking is free in Crisfield. There is plenty of parking! I boarded early, you can bring food with you on the boat.
 

Gilligan

#*! boat!
PREMO Member
I thought max was about 40' along that area. Near the target ship etc.

True..I always considered that fairly deep for the bay and Potomac though. The main shipping channel in that area is 55-65'.

I study waves for a living..marine engineer and all that rot. Waves formed in deeper water become much larger/steeper when they travel in to shallower water because the energy entrained in the wave field (which extends significantly below the water surface in "deep" conditions) remains largely constant. So on a trip from Piney Point to Smith Island, for example, the worst seas you may encounter are often going to be those in the shallowest water, depending on wind strength and direction of course. That very effect tears up our island property when storms bring heavy winds from the SE that build "only" 3-4' waves over the several miles of fetch..that then "stand up" to become 6 footers and more when they encounter the very shallow water in cove in front of our shoreline.
 

Gilligan

#*! boat!
PREMO Member
I was camping in Pocomoke State Park, MD. I checked out Tuesday and drove to Crisfield, MD. The rule is you need to be there before 12:30 pm. There is only one departure at 12:30pm, that's it!!! So if you miss that 12:30 you are finished. You can buy tickets online and come there with them, but I didn't do that and I don't think it matters, unless I guess if the boat is full.

http://smithislandcruises.com/

Is the website I went to, but didn't buy tickets. Once you get to Crisfield, there is a hotel there (Captain Taylor's or something). There is a little building off to the hotel that says Smith Island cruises. I walked in there and bought tickets (26 for adults and 13 for children). Anyway they board the boat at around 12:00 and the parking lot is around the corner from where you get tickets. Parking is free in Crisfield. There is plenty of parking! I boarded early, you can bring food with you on the boat.

From the Piney Point area...although he also has a slip in Clarks' Landing.. But Butch only does full-boat charter trips, so for groups only, unless of course you've got some fairly deep pockets.


http://www.northstarcharter.net/
 
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Ken King

A little rusty but not crusty
PREMO Member
Where the target ship is it is probably less than 20', west of the ship, in the main channel, deepest parts are 80'+, but that is a very narrow stretch.
 

steppinthrax

Active Member
Where the target ship is it is probably less than 20', west of the ship, in the main channel, deepest parts are 80'+, but that is a very narrow stretch.

What is a "target ship"? Are you talking about the smaller boat that was riding along us? Why?
 

steppinthrax

Active Member
From the Piney Point area...although he also has a slip in Clarks' Landing.. But Butch only does full-boat charter trips, so for groups only, unless of course you've got some fairly deep pockets.


http://www.northstarcharter.net/

Thanks for the info.

I just called the number on the top of that website, a nice woman answered. This is the way the conversation went.

Q: Hello do you do tours to Smith Island?
A: Yes we do

Q: How much would it be fore 4 people to run to and from Smith Island
A: Oh about $800.00 dollars.

:jameo::jameo::jameo::jameo::jameo::jameo::shocking::shocking::shocking::shocking::shocking:
 

Gilligan

#*! boat!
PREMO Member
Thanks for the info.

I just called the number on the top of that website, a nice woman answered. This is the way the conversation went.

Q: Hello do you do tours to Smith Island?
A: Yes we do

Q: How much would it be fore 4 people to run to and from Smith Island
A: Oh about $800.00 dollars.

:jameo::jameo::jameo::jameo::jameo::jameo::shocking::shocking::shocking::shocking::shocking:

Yep. A great day rate price considering the vessel and the service. But like I posted..for groups typically. We fish with Butch on occasion..rate is still the same. You must not be familiar with charter rates. What is surprising is how little they've gone up over the last couple of decades.
 

steppinthrax

Active Member
Yep. A great day rate price considering the vessel and the service. But like I posted..for groups typically. We fish with Butch on occasion..rate is still the same. You must not be familiar with charter rates. What is surprising is how little they've gone up over the last couple of decades.

I'm not familiar with much of this field, Yeah I understand it's a private boat and if you consider everything involved the price is likely correct or the industry standard.

So I guess that 26 per person boat ride is the welfare rate right :) LOL
 

Gilligan

#*! boat!
PREMO Member
I'm not familiar with much of this field, Yeah I understand it's a private boat and if you consider everything involved the price is likely correct or the industry standard.

So I guess that 26 per person boat ride is the welfare rate right :) LOL

It's a charter fishing boat..one of very,very many we have in this general area. Capt. Butch's just happens to be one of the larger and better equipped and so he does the cruises in addition to "just fishing". There are a couple of other well-appointed charter boats that will do day cruises too.

We typically go fishing with 6 to 8 people in his boat. So around $100 a head plus the mate's tip. Cheap recreation by any standard.
 
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