Reviews from Thomas Whitehead (5)

Marina Review for National Harbor Marina

Reviewed by: Thomas Whitehead on Apr 5, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 31'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 5

Great location and a great marina. Arrival was easy and the dockmaster was helpful. I came in after they had departed for the day (pro tip: contact the marina during their operating hours). But, we were meeting some friends who had arrived earlier in the day that talked to the dock master and had already arranged for a slip next to theirs. Docking was easy and the electric and water hook ups worked well. The National Harbor area is great and looks awesome at night with the Ferris wheel lit up. There are lots of food options. If you want to eat at a restaurant, make sure to get your reservations in advance. The Maryland COVID restrictions are still pretty tight and they hit capacity quickly. There are a number of more casual options that don’t require restaurants and Uber Eats can deliver to the pier. We did not make use of the lounge or restroom facilities while we were there. The bathrooms did not look to be very close, but I also did not try to find them.

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Anchorage Review for Mattawoman Creek Bight

Reviewed by: Thomas Whitehead on Mar 17, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 31'
Draft: 4.0'

Spent a day here on the hook with my family back in the fall. There were about twenty boats anchored when we arrived and about the same number when we left, although I do not think many remained overnight. This is a nice area off of the Potomac to get you out of the boat traffic. As you get further back, the water quickly gets shallow, pay attention to your charts and depth sounder. It was a very calm day when we were here with little wind and we did not deal with much wake coming from boats on the river. I was able to live stream football games from my cell phone to my TV. The water was calm enough that my wife and kids enjoyed some paddle boarding. Although this is not our favorite spot, it is conveniently located off the Potomac River and we will probably go back.

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Marina Review for Colonial Beach Yacht Center

Reviewed by: Thomas Whitehead on Mar 17, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 31'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 3

Marina is in a great location. The restaurant and tiki bar located there is a big plus, although the marina and restaurant are outdated and a little rundown. This seems to be how things are in Colonial Beach, so it fits for the area. The gas dock is in a terrible location at the entrance to the Colonial Beach inlet with a fair amount of boat traffic and a fairly strong current that changes direction with the tide. We hailed the marina on VHF with no answer and we’re not able to get our slip assignment in advance. I walked to the office from the fuel dock to check in and the slip assignment I received had a boat already in it. When I let the dock manager know, he had to come down to the dock to find us a new slip and was helpful through the whole process, although very disorganized. I still give the marina three stars for location, onsite restaurant and tiki bar, beautiful views of the water, and accessibility to the area. We called ahead and rented a golf cart to explore the town. The golf cart was waiting in the marina upon our arrival and provided us access to this great beach town. The pace of life in Colonial Beach is just slower than it is further up the Potomac River, be ready for that and enjoy it.

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Marina Review for The Wharf Marina-DC

Reviewed by: Thomas Whitehead on Mar 17, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 31'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 4

Incredible location in DC at the Wharf. This marina puts you within walking distance to incredible restaurants and shopping. There are events in the are and it is just a short trip to the National Mall that can be done by Uber, scooter, or walking. The floating docks we were at were nice and new. The dockhands were very helpful as we approached in identifying a slip, taking into consideration our preferences for slip location, helping us locate our slip, and were available to help with dock lines. They also made themselves available for questions about the area and gave us a welcome packet with information about the area. We did not try to take advantage of laundry facilities. The WiFi was good enough to stream videos for my kids on their iPads. The restrooms/showers were on a floating platform with just two units. They were clean, but are likely not adequate when the docks are full on a big weekend like the 4th of July. It looked like they had pumpkin facilities, but we did not take advantage of that.

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Marina Review for Prince William Marina

Reviewed by: Thomas Whitehead on Mar 17, 2021
Vessel Type: Power
LOA: 31'
Draft: 4.0'

Rating: 5

Incredible full service Marina. Not for transients. Marina has a fuel dock, pump out station, floating docks, pool, restaurant/bar, boatel, incredible staff, and a great community. The other boaters are extremely friendly and if you have a wet slip here, you will quickly find yourself surrounded by friends with boats. They run events with the yacht club that appeal to all kinds of boaters. The marina is in very well protected waters into the no wake zone on the Occoquan River. It is located about a mile from historic Occoquan, a great destination for restaurants, coffee shops, and shopping.

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