Boat Rentals in Rock Hall, MD

Rental fleets in Rock Hall include Sailboats. What is available on the day depends on the company and the season, so it is worth checking a few listings.

Late May through June and September are usually the best times to boat from Rock Hall on the upper Chesapeake Bay. At nearby Tolchester Beach, NOAA monthly averages put the water in the mid 60s in May, mid 70s in June and September, and around 80 in July and August.

Rock Hall says its harbor bustles about nine months a year, rather than giving fixed opening and closing dates. Summer brings the warmest water, but Chesapeake thunderstorms often develop during afternoon heating and are more frequent in July than in September. In early fall, morning fog can affect the upper Bay, so later departures may offer better visibility.

Source: Town of Rock Hall (rockhallmd.com)

From Rock Hall, you can choose Chesapeake Bay, Rock Hall Harbor, Swan Creek and The Haven, or the Chester River at Eastern Neck. Chesapeake Bay is the open water option. Rock Hall Harbor has a marked breakwater entrance and inner channels, and Bayside Landing Park provides a public boat launch. Swan Creek is the sheltered choice: its marked channel reaches The Haven, a recognized small boat refuge in heavy weather, but shallow flats lie off Little Neck Island. For a river outing, Bogles Wharf at Eastern Neck launches trailered boats into the tidal, brackish Chester River.

Source: NOAA Office of Coast Survey (nauticalcharts.noaa.gov)

From Rock Hall, boaters can make day trips across the Chesapeake Bay to Annapolis, or explore the Upper Bay and Chester River at Still Pond, Worton Creek, Fairlee Creek and the Corsica River. Annapolis offers temporary docking assigned by the city harbormaster; Still Pond is a noted shallow anchorage; Worton Creek has marinas and a restaurant; Fairlee Creek is a convenient anchoring stop; and the Corsica River is one of the area’s particularly beautiful Chester River anchorages.

Source: Town of Rock Hall (rockhallmd.com)

Maryland does not issue a recreational boating license, but people born on or after July 1, 1972 generally must carry a boating safety education certificate when operating a numbered or documented pleasure vessel. This includes personal watercraft, whose operators must be at least 16. Anyone under 16 operating a motorized vessel 11 feet or longer without a certificate must instead be supervised by someone 18 or older who holds a valid certificate, or who was born before the cutoff. Exemptions include commercial operators, qualifying visitors, private waters, and those born before the cutoff. Renters of motorized vessels other than personal watercraft may be issued a 10 day temporary certificate after reading a safety sheet. Maryland Natural Resources Police administers the program.

Source: Maryland Department of Natural Resources and Maryland Natural Resources Police (dnr.maryland.gov)

Maryland boaters should know the state’s life jacket, alcohol, registration and personal watercraft rules, enforced by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and Natural Resources Police. Children under 13 must wear a Coast Guard approved life jacket while underway on a recreational vessel under 21 feet; children under 4 need added infant safety features. Operating while impaired is illegal, and an alcohol concentration of 0.08% is considered boating under the influence. Mechanically propelled vessels used most in Maryland during the calendar year must be registered. PWC operators must be at least 16, wear an approved life jacket and may not operate between sunset and sunrise.

Source: Maryland Department of Natural Resources (dnr.maryland.gov)

Maryland sets no general minimum age for operating a motorized vessel other than a personal watercraft, but an operator under 16 is never unsupervised. Under Natural Resources §8-712.2, someone under 16 must both hold a boating safety certificate and have an eligible supervisor aboard. For vessels under 11 feet, the supervisor must hold a certificate; for vessels 11 feet or longer, the supervisor must hold one and be at least 18. Someone born before July 1, 1972, may also supervise.

Personal watercraft operators must be at least 16 and carry a certificate if born on or after July 1, 1972. The rental operator sets its own minimum, so confirm it when booking.

Source: Maryland Department of Natural Resources (mgaleg.maryland.gov)

Alongside the boat rentals on this page, Rock Hall has 14 marinas and 2 boat dealers.