St. Leonard Creek, Patuxent River
Click on chart to view at higher resolution

St. Leonard Creek is the prime cruising destination on the Patuxent River if you are looking for peaceful, uncrowded anchorages with beautiful surroundings.  The high shores and deep water also provide a number of very secure hurricane holes.

Immediately to port on entering St. Leonard Creek from the Patuxent River is a small cove adjacent to the Jefferson Patterson Park & Museum.  This cove is a little exposed to the wakes of boats entering and leaving the creek, but it offers great protection from cold northerly winds in the fall and can capture a lot of the southern breezes during the summer.

Give Rodney Pt., the point of land to starboard,  a lot of room as you continue up the creek.  There is plenty of water to within 15 yards of the opposite shore.  From here on St. Leonard Creek has numerous coves and bights on either side that make very satisfactory anchorages.

Our favorite anchorage on St. Leonard is in Rollins Cove on the starboard side of the creek.  Rollins has deep water and a small bar that protects the entrance.  It is open to the west and south west breezes that predominate in the summer and is protected from the northerly breezes of the fall.  The bar also helps to knock down the wakes from boats heading up and down the creek.  When I first started anchoring in Rollins Cove in 1976 there was little sign of development in the creek.  Just a single dock that belonged to the farm on the north side of the cove with a couple of small boats.  At anchor all you saw were trees along the banks, no sign of homes or development.  Since that time a number of additional homes have been built around the cove, and several of those that existed had many of the trees cut down to give them a view of the cove.  It is not as pristine as in the past, but still one of the nicest places on the entire bay to veg out at anchor.


Click on picture to view at full resolutionA fall morning in Rollins Cove, looking toward the west into St. Leonard Creek.
Click on picture to view at full resolutionOn the same morning looking toward the east and the head of the cove.  Notice the steam fog on the water surface.  This is a common occurrence at this time of the year on the Chesapeake.  Steam fog normally forms during the early cold nights of the fall.  The water temperature is still in the 70's, but at night the air is dry and the temperature drops into the 40's.  The result is vapor from the still warm water condenses in the cold air to form a light shallow fog.
Click on picture to view at full resolutionThis is the same view as above, except this is in the summer.
Click on picture to view at full resolutionThe usual suspects in Rollins Cove - Vela Llena (me), Saker (Sweden Yacht 38), and the former Prelude (Wauquiez Praetorian).
Click on picture to view at full resolutionWell sometimes even the best anchorage gets crowded.  Actually there were very few other boats in the cove.  These power boats just decided to get friendly.
Click on picture to view at full resolutionAnother fall shot in Rollins.  Not as impressive as New England or Skyline Drive, but still a very pleasant view
Click on picture to view at full resolutionTypical chillin' in Rollins
Click on picture to view at full resolutionOne of the many "Snowbird" fleet boats heading for the ICW
Click on picture to view at full resolutionSarah and Caurus (Nautilus 40) rafted in Rollins Cove recently (Oct 24, 2002).  Moonstruck (Columbia 9.6) is rafted on the other side of Sarah out of the picture frame.  Thanks to Jeff Bennett for the picture.