Boating in Ocean City, MD (inlet), MD Map View
There are numerous privately owned pile and timber piers and bulkhead wharves on the inner side of Ocean City. The Commercial Fish Harbor on the mainland side 1 mile directly back of the inlet, has a 1,000-foot public bulkhead landing.
There are several small-craft facilities at Ocean City and in Commercial Fish Harbor. Gasoline, diesel fuel, water, berths, and marine supplies can be obtained at most of the facilities, and hull and engine repairs can be made at some.
Ocean City Coast Guard Station is 0.6 mile inside the inlet on the southwest side of Ocean City.
Navigation:
Ocean City Inlet (38°19.4’N., 75°05.2’W.), between Fenwick Island and Assateague Island, is 29 miles south of Cape Henlopen and is the only break in the barrier beach between Indian River Inlet and Chincoteague Inlet. The entrance is between stone jetties, but the north jetty and the outer end of the south jetty are covered at high water. A 200-foot-long fishing pier is 0.2 mile north of the north jetty.
The entrance to Ocean City Inlet is marked by a light near the outer end of the north jetty and lighted buoys that are shifted in position with changing channel conditions. During the summer months fishing vessels anchor at the entrance to the inlet near the north and south jetties. Within the inlet a strong ebb current exists. Caution is advised when entering and transiting the inlet.
A large, cylindrical water tank, about 1.5 miles west of Ocean City Inlet, is prominent and is a good landmark while entering the inlet.
Lights, lighted and unlighted buoys, and a daybeacon mark the channel to Isle of Wight Bay.
The U.S. Route 50 highway bridge over Isle of Wight Bay from the mainland to Ocean City, 0.9 mile above the entrance jetties, has a bascule span with a clearance of 18 feet. The bridgetender monitors VHF-FM channel 16 and works on channels 13, and 68; call sign KYU-698.
Ocean City, part of Fenwick Island barrier beach, is a large summer resort visited by many small boats and is a shipping point for a large amount of seafood. Numerous water tanks and numerous high-rise condominiums are prominent along the beach of this resort.
