By 2:30 p.m. we were in clear air, tied to a piling dock at Park's Marina, Tangier Island. We had no sooner tied up then the 80 year old owner, Milton Parks, whisked us away in his golf cart (all 3 of us in the front seat) for a tour of the island.
We were fascinated with the uniqueness of this tiny island: population, 605 living in a total of 244 homes, mode of transportation: golf carts, motor-cycles, bicycle or foot, no ATM's or banks, no booze, extremely limited internet access, relatives buried in front yards as no where else to put them. We had no choice but to settle down to the islander's pace of life and enjoy.
We arrived with no cash but still managed to dock ($30 per night - we mailed him a cheque when we got back home) and to rent a golf cart to sight-see (payment also by cheque). We used our credit card to enjoy a scrumptious fresh flounder dinner at a restaurant, provision and to buy souvenirs.
We enjoyed touring the island's museum, walking the 1 and 1/2 mile beach and learning all about the soft shell crab industry.
We heard of their troubles: 1. the island is shrinking due to global warming, 2. the watermen's lively hood is threatened as the government has put restrictions on crab fishing (locals here not educated enough or up to the culture shock of moving to the mainland), 3. many of the young people are leaving the island as they see no future there, 4. when bay freezes in the winter they're cut off from supplies on the mainland, 5. hurricanes (storm surges) causing extensive flooding (land barely above sea level)
Two days later and much wiser for our visit we manoeuvred our way off the pilings in the stiff wind and stiffer current and set sail back across to the west coast of the bay (Maryland).
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