Potomac River Cruising Adventures to Washington, DC – Great Loop Side Trip

After a couple months of cruising around the lower Chesapeake Bay and being in smaller quaint towns, we felt we were ready to start our transit up the Potomac River.

For we knew at the navigable terminus, Washington, DC was awaiting us – and we’d be sucked into an extended stay. Plus, summer temperatures were coming, and we’d be wanting dockside power anyway.

So we crossed back over from the Eastern Shore, and started exploring the adventures that awaited us as we moved closer and closer back into civilization.

This post covers from June 9-19, 2025.

As always, if you prefer the video version (with dolphins!!), here it is:

Stop 1: Horseshoe Bend Anchorage – St. Mary’s, MD

After a long delightful crossing of the Chesapeake Bay, and smooth entrance into the Potomac River – we took a right and headed up St. Mary’s River and anchored off the historic town.

St. Mary’s was the original seat of government for Maryland before it was moved to Annapolis.

Offering a free dinghy dock to get ashore – the campus to the college (even their cafe) and the re-created town walking paths are open for exploring. Which was great for stretching our legs!

It was a very pleasant anchorage for two nights to catch up. And we took a day to officially tour the historic town -the reenactors are passionate and engaging.

And this river was FULL of tiny jellyfish. They were amazing to watch, but definitely no swimming here for us!

Stop 2: Breton Bay Anchorage – Leondardtown, MD

As we started our cruise up the Potomac, we opted to stick to the MD side for now – after all, on the way back we’ll be able to hit the VA side.

Next stop after St. Mary’s was Leonardtown. If skinny water doesn’t intimidate you (~5′ at low tide) – they generously offer a free dock right downtown with power, water and pump-out.

It was well utilized during our stay, and we did tie up long enough to avail ourselves of a pump out.

Something about our power setup however was tripping their GFCI breakers, so we’ll have to troubleshoot that (update – our Y-connector and power cord were both now 8 years old and were had a little bit of leakage current. Chris took the opportunity to upgrade our electrical connection to SmartPlug to eliminate the need for a Y and increase our safety & ease. And we ordered in a new 50′ power cord – solved.)

We opted instead to anchor out in the bay where we could catch some pleasant breeze instead. Thankfully it was still nice spring pleasant temperatures out in early June.

Leonardtown itself offers lots of dining options, a brewery or two, a natural food store.. and many opportunities to take in sugary calories.

A farm-to-cone ice cream shop with an endless menu of flavors (we split a ‘flight’)… and I really really really didn’t need to know that Flour donut shop offers gluten free donuts, with customized toppings.

So yup, there was a run through town to burn those indulgences off.

All and all, a charming stop!

Stop 3: Bayside Marina – Colonial Beach, VA

Next city up the Potomac on our radar was Colonial Beach, and it just so happened that our timing aligned with their annual Potomac River Festival.

We called around marinas, and Bayside Marina thankfully had space for us at $2/ft – if we could navigate some 4.5′ water to get there. Sure.. why not? The marina right downtown at the heart of the activities, unlike the other options which are a mile away (and were full).

Entry was actually pretty easy, if not butt clenching at times. And owner Eddie was super awesome and welcoming, giving us the low down on the town and festivities.

Colonial Beach offers lots of great dining options – with not one, but TWO excellent Thai Restaurants, and a Mexican place right at the marina.

It’s a beach vacation town, that a lot of city folks moved to during the pandemic – and it seems to be thriving. And we were thrilled that the town was decked out for Pride Month!

Their weekend long festival had multiple parades, vendors, fireworks and a car show. We also hit a local community theater performance and enjoyed just biking and strolling around.

Definitely a worthwhile fun stop!

Stop 4: Layola Retreat Anchorage – Pope’s Creek, MD

Winds were a bit high upon leaving Colonial Beach, causing a bit of chop as we re-entered the Potomac River to continue north. But things laid down, especially after we crossed under the Nice Bridge (and a nice bridge it was!).

We ended up puttering about 14 miles – and because it was a weekend we didn’t have to arrange a patrol vessel escort through this active test firing range.

We decided to anchor just off these gorgeous cliffs around Pope Creek. It’s not often we’ve gotten views of such terrain in our boat travels so far.

It was absolutely mesmerizing to enjoy, and so tranquil in the still misty atmosphere.

Stop 5: Mattawoman Creek Anchorage – Indian Head, MD

As we continued to meander up the Potomac, we decided to make an overnight stop at Mattawoman Creek.

It was so serene and secluded feeling, that we decided to stay two nights in favor of holding stopping in Occaquan for our return trip down river.

So much of our anchoring in coves along the Chesapeake and its rivers has been essentially being in people’s backyards. With views into each other’s living rooms, and sounds of lawnmowers constantly.

So we embraced this rare secluded feeling.

And just around the point was a public dock to get ashore (even with a pump out station if we needed it) with access to Smallwood State Park. We enjoyed their trails to get in a nice shaded run, and enjoyed some paddleboarding.

Would have been nice to have a working drone to really capture the beauty here. But alas, we won’t be able to replace ours until we get to DC and have a shipping address.

So, these onboard shots will have to suffice.

Stop 6: George Washington’s Mansion Anchorage – Mt. Vernon, VA

Anchoring off of Mt. Vernon is a must-do stop for any cruiser transiting the Potomac. For one, it’s just a beautiful part of the river.

But ..if we had been anchored here in 1799, we would have been George & Martha Washington’s view!! For this is the site of their home, which has been lovingly cared for.

We used the docks to get ashore, after checking in with the Wharf Officer and purchasing our tour tickets online. And we spent the afternoon exploring in the nicely air conditioned museum.

So fascinating to learn more about our nation’s first president and hero.

The mansion is under major renovations, but two rooms were open during our visit – so we joined in for a tour.

We capped off a hot afternoon with a swim off the boat – with a rainbow that appeared!

Because of the construction, apparently our tickets are good for the rest of the year – so we can stop in again on our way back down the river.

And yes, we rang our ship’s bell to honor the president.

Real Time Update

We are now wrapping up our month+ long stay in Washington DC (that is if we don’t end up extending yet again). It’s been jam packed with museums, monuments, theaters, tours, dining, biking and an abundant social life.

We’re looking forward to casting off the lines and heading back down the Potomac with an aim for a bit of downtime and hitting some stops we missed on the way up.

And then we’ll take a left to start exploring the upper Chesapeake – we’re looking forward to stops like Solomons, Oxford, St. Michaels, Deale, Annapolis, Baltimore and more.