Solomons Boat Rental

Rentals from Solomons Boat Rental include life jackets, safety equipment, fuel, a bimini top, a sunshade, comfortable seating, a Bluetooth stereo and navigation maps. Amenities vary by boat and by season, so confirm what comes with the boat you book.

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)

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)

From Solomons, point into Back Creek and Mill Creek, out onto the Patuxent River, or through the river mouth to Chesapeake Bay. The public Solomons Boat Ramp provides direct Patuxent access.

Back Creek is the local harbor cove, with an anchorage used by yachts and fishing boats, while Mill Creek is another marina-lined branch that becomes shallower farther in. The Patuxent is broad, busy water exposed to tides, currents and changing weather. Between Drum Point and Fishing Point, it opens into the Chesapeake Bay’s open water. Farther up the Patuxent, St. Leonard Creek offers a sheltered small-vessel anchorage in any weather.

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

Good day-trip choices from Solomons are St. Leonard Creek, the Broomes Island sandbar, Point Patience, Sandy Point, and Back Creek. The National Park Service identifies St. Leonard Creek as an especially popular anchorage for cruising boats.

Calvert County’s water trail maps short outings from the Solomons ramp to Point Patience and Sandy Point, plus extensions into Back Creek’s coves. Near Broomes Island, an extensive sandbar sometimes reaches from the island’s tip into the Patuxent River, providing another distinctive destination when conditions allow.

Source: Calvert County Government (calvertcountymd.gov)