Anchorage

Kiptopeke

Shelter: NW, N, NE, W, E, SW, S, SE
Seabed: mud
Anchoring: Allowed

Anchorage at Kiptopeke on the lower Eastern Shore of Virginia, near Cape Charles, mud bottom, sheltered behind a line of sunken concrete ships.

Pontoon

Guide

Approach and anchoring

Approach from the Chesapeake Bay and anchor in the lee of the breakwater off Kiptopeke State Park. Holding is good in mud. Although the breakwater knocks down the swell, the anchorage stays open to wind across the Bay, so watch the forecast.

Practical

No facilities at the anchorage. Cape Charles Yacht Center is 5.8 nm to the N with fuel, berths and a boatyard. Bell Isle Marina lies 15 nm to the W. Provision in Cape Charles before settling in here.

Ashore

Kiptopeke State Park has a swimming beach, fishing piers and walking trails behind the dunes. The park hosts a long-running autumn bird-banding station, with hawks and songbirds funnelling down the Delmarva Peninsula on migration.

History

The breakwater is formed by nine concrete ships built in the 1940s for wartime transport and scuttled in 1948 to shelter the Little Creek to Cape Charles vehicle ferry terminal. The ferry closed once the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel opened in 1964.

Key facts

Type: Anchorage
Coordinates: 37.16837, -75.99103 (37°10.10'N 75°59.46'W)
Country: United States
Shelter: Sheltered from north-west, north, north-east, west, east, south-west, south, south-east winds
Seabed: mud
Anchoring: Allowed
Services: Pontoon
Boaters' rating: 3.0/5
Updated: July 7, 2026