ANNAPOLIS, Md. - The third annual Bay Paddle is set to take place on August 27th and 28th to raise money for Chesapeake Bay nonprofits, says event officials. The race, which is a 45-mile, 2-day, staged paddle race begins at Haven Harbor Marina South in Rock Hall, MD, and finishes in Cambridge, MD.
The Bay Paddle started in 2020, when founder Chris Hopkinson paddled the length of the Chesapeake Bay on a stand up paddleboard by himself so that he could raise money for the Maryland nonprofit Oyster Recovery Partnership. Earlier this year, Hopkinson's first adventure was turned in to a documentary that aired on Maryland Public Television called The Power of the Paddle.
Last year, Bay Paddle says, Hopkinson decided to turn his experience in to a week-long, staged relay race, adding Chesapeake Conservancy as another charity it would support. They say that almost 100 paddlers joined, including a team of 30 teachers from Anne Arundel County Public Schools, a group of veterans from the Valhalla Sailing Project, and all of the Bay River Keepers from WaterKeepers Chesapeake, as well as four racers by themselves.
This year, officials say that WaterKeepers Chesapeake themselves are benefitting from the event next to ORP and Conservancy. Since the start, they say Bay Paddle has raised $330,000 for charity. According to officials, both teams and solo paddlers will face wind, currents, and tides on standup paddleboards, kayaks, outriggers, surf skis, or other paddlecraft to make the trek.
People are traveling from far and wide for Bay Paddle, with paddlers from both Mexico and Canada coming to participate.