Tangier Island Plus

Making our way to Tangier – Island

Stopping in a couple quiet spots we headed north to visit Tangier Island – home to the watermen of the Chesapeake who harvest the crabs and other seafood we enjoy from this bountiful bay.

Our first stop was up the East River off of Mobjack Bay where we dinked into the park at Williams Wharf – a former oystering plant – now a sailing and kayaking venue.

From there we anchored in Godfrey Bay behind Deltaville for protection from a late afternoon thunderstorm that blew through – cooling the temps and ruffling the waters.

after the storm!

Our next stop was Tangier Island and Parks Marina.  This historic village on this flat island may not be around much longer.  The land is eroding with every rainfall which we could see from the standing water around town.  Fortunately, the crab houses are built on stilts over the water. There are few actual cars or trucks on the skinny streets here but an abundance of golf carts and bikes. We opted for a walk to see the quaint homes and churches most having weathered the exposure on this tiny island for over a hundred years.

                                 

We enjoyed hearing the stories of Mr. Milton Parks – the marina owner – who built the marina over 40 years ago and continues to grab boaters’ ropes at 83 even though he spent six days in the hospital to get a pacemaker last month! He was not too worried since his mother only died a few years ago at 101. 

The town is full of interesting stories from the hearty folk who have lived here and earned a living from the water. We enjoyed the one in front of the Connorton house – zoom in on the photo to get the details.

 Another quaint custom here is the grave sites in front and back yards not just the church cemetery. We learned that land is at a premium, some grave sites in traditional cemeteries are subject to flooding with high tides and unguarded graves were robed in the past. While some homes had more conventional yard art, most had one or more grave stones.

Steve had to visit the “men’s club” he had read about where the fishermen gather for breakfast at 3AM before heading out for the day. Sadly we didn’t make it up for that meal, but we did get a tasty crab dinner at the Fishermen’s Corner with special discounts and treats for Mother’s Day as a bonus!