What’s Your Chesapeake Bay Dream?

BayDreaming is all about the joys of experiencing everything the Chesapeake Bay and surrounding lands have to offer. The region’s history, economy, and heritage are all tied to this majestic estuary. Over 11,000 miles of shoreline wrap the Chesapeake and its tributaries, providing so many opportunities for people to live, work, and play along its waters. If you’ve visited the Chesapeake, you’ve no doubt dreamed of returning. If you’ve never been but long for a place where history, heritage, and natural beauty combine, the Chesapeake may be the place you’ve been dreaming of.

Travel

We provide information on over 30 towns and cities to visit in the Chesapeake Bay area.  The places we’ve picked to feature are all accessible from the water.  You can get there by car, of course, but since this site is about the Bay, we wanted to feature the waterfront destinations.

You’ll find everything from the urbanized areas of Baltimore, Norfolk, Hampton, and Portsmouth, with all the entertainment and activities they have to provide, to tiny little towns with a wharf and a small collection of shops on Main Street.

If you take the time to visit, you’ll find that each of these places has its own charm and something to offer the visitor.  That offering might not be much more than a chance to relax in a place that operates at a pace that’s a little slower and calmer than you’re used to.  In today’s hurry-up world, that’s something to treasure.

Use our map of the region to navigate your way around the Bay and explore all it has to offer.

Explore Chesapeake Bay Towns

Boating

The Bay’s calm waters and many sheltered tributaries make it a great place for all kinds of boating.  All the waterfront towns scattered up and down the bay are destinations for cruisers, and you’ll see the marinas filled up with both motor and sail boats during the warm season.  Most fishing boats on the Bay are relatively small with a shallow draft.  These are best for navigating the shallows and marshy areas close to shore.

Kayaking is popularity in the Chesapeake Bay region.  Paddling in a kayak gives you a nice close encounter with the water and is great for easing up on wildlife.  You’ll get closer to a heron and other birds in a kayak than you’re likely to be able to do in a motor boat.

Kayak rentals and guided tours are available in some Chesapeake Bay towns and there are kayak launching facilities located throughout the region.

Fishing

The fishing in the Bay is fantastic.  Stripers, drum, bluefish, flounder, and the ever-present croaker are some of the fish to be caught in the Chesapeake Bay. The Bay is so nice and calm (most of the time) that even if you don’t catch anything much, it’s a nice day out on the water.

Fishing is good just about anywhere in the Bay or its tributaries but the hot spots change with the seasons as you’ll see from the fishing reports.   Visit our fishing page for regulations, links to reports, and fishing charter information.

Learn About the Chesapeake Bay

Chesapeake Bay Information. How much do you know about the Chesapeake Bay?  Did you know that the Chesapeake is the largest estuary (a place where salt and fresh waters mix) in the United States?  Did you know that the Bay supports 348 species of finfish, 173 species of shellfish, and over 2,700 plant species?   About the Chesapeake Bay

Links to more information about the Chesapeake Bay:

The Chesapeake Bay Program
A partnership of the conservation and restoration of the Bay.

Wikipedia’s Chesapeake Bay page.

The Chesapeake Bay Gateways and Watertrails Network.
The National Park Service’s guide to the Bay