Annapolis is close enough to Baltimore for access to good medical care. Not the emergency room, perhaps, but heart and cancer specialists, etc. -- all that is a short drive away in Baltimore.

Anonymous wrote:How's their health? None of these areas have quick access to quality doctors or emergency care. I'm always surprised when older folks retire to areas without contemplating such things.

Actually, I don't think that's true. All of them are no more than 40 min from good regional medical centers. Dorchester Co. hospital on the Eastern shore is large and very competent and not that far south from St Michael's (it's in Cambridge). I forget the name of the medical center/hospital in Calvert Co, but it's right on rte 4, which Solomon's is also on. And Anne Arundel Co. hospital in Annapolis (it's right next to the shopping center with Trader Joe's, behind the mall) is enormous.

Speaking of the mentions of Southern MD, I think Solomon's and some of the neighborhoods around Calvert Cliffs are great bets. They might also want to have a look around the other side of the Patuxent in St Mary's Co. Leonardtown now has a cluster of cafes and such and is very water oriented. And if you were over near St. Mary's, the summer concerts and stuff at the college make for nice things to do.

Probably Annapolis if they are looking for things to do. But Chesapeake Beach & Deale MD both have pretty waterfront, too. Pretty dead in the winter, though.

How's their health? None of these areas have quick access to quality doctors or emergency care. I'm always surprised when older folks retire to areas without contemplating such things.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Lake Anna

New Englanders don't do freshwater, FYI.

X10000 unless its a cold stream in the white mountains or Moosehead Lake in Maine.

Anonymous wrote:As a transplanted New Englander, I would say Annapolis.

+1

Southern Anne Arundel has lots of small water oriented communities that are not Annapolis, but not far. Fair Haven, Rose Haven, Deale, Shady Side, West River, etc. I'm nursing a beer and looking at sailboats from one now. Less than 1 hour from DC, even with some traffic.

Annapolis is the obvious one. It really is the Newport of the mid Atlantic as far as sailing goes.

That said, if more urban's what you have in mind, Fells Point in Baltimore has a really fun yacht club and it's not that long a trip out of the harbour into the Bay. And it's a fun, walkable neighborhood with venerable restaurants like Bertha's Mussels and some newer ones.

Concur with what's been said before about avoiding the areas right around DC (national harbor, Old Town) because of the distance from the Bay. It's a LONG delivery down the river.

Another vote for annapolis or st. Michael's. Both have the beachy water feel with the smell of water in the air (hard to describe it otherwise). If they have a boat to anchor on a private dock, bonus points. Beautiful out there.

My mom is relocating to North Beach, MD. It is a very small town, but with a couple nice restaurants. She lives about 1.5 blocks from the water. North Beach has a private beach which is free to town residents and their guests. They also have a farmers market in the summer. It is about 30 minutes from Annapolis - not sure how far it is from DC. I was surprised she picked such a cute little area. It has great potential.

There are condos on the water, many older homes and a few newer homes. My mom will be tearing down an old camp house and building a new small home. You could easily buy a lot or tear down and rebuild for much less than $1million.

Next to North Beach is Chesapeak Beach, which I think is bigger than North Beach, but does not have a town beach.; it does have a water park, though. There is also a yatch club near by.

MLS#: KE8303834

Anonymous wrote:Lake Anna

New Englanders don't do freshwater, FYI.

How crazy is flood insurance in places like Annapolis/Edgewater?

Solomon's island.

Annapolis and Edgewater are great bets. I think St. Michaels would be do-able in 1.5 hrs but traffic might be kind of a pain in the summer when there's a lot of beach traffic. (Although sailing along that part of the Eastern shore's gorgeous). I'd also look on the western shore downin Southern MD. Calvert county, along rte 2/4 has some great water communities and Solomon's Island could be just their ticket for small town. The two sailing associations there are a little more low key than Annapolis. In Annapolis, Annapolis Yacht Club is kind of the more old school (which may seem uptight, depending on your perspective) and Eastport a bit less so. (Oh, over on the Eastern shore, Oxford's got a pretty yacht club on the Tred Avon).

I'd skip National Harbour, Old Town, etc as it's a long boat delivery down the Potomac from there to the Bay, so not really that convenient to the really nice sailing down here. Up north, they might want to have a look at Havre de Grace. And on the eastern shore but north of the Bay Bridge, they might think Chestertown's cute - it's a little college town and county seat, so has some restaurants, coffee shops etc. Rock Hall is very near it, too. They're probably both maybe 30 min north of the bay bridge.

Norfolk is, indeed, more than 1.5 hours away and, I think, not the prettiest sailing - it's a big commercial and military port and has about that much bucolic charm. It does have Amtrak, though, so getting up toDC isn't necessarily that bad.

The Northern Neck of VA could be a good option, although it's quieter. Kilmarnock's a long standing sailing town and Fishing Bay might be anoption, too.