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Big Little Boat Festival 2024

Location: 500 Conquest Beach Rd, Centrevlle, Maryland
Dates: Saturday, May 18, 2024

Join us for a day of waterfront fun at Conquest Beach on the beautiful Chester River. Conquest Beach is situated on the 758-acre Conquest Preserve between the Chester and Corsica Rivers. It is about an hour east of our Annapolis shop. But we think it will be worth the drive for those visiting from the western shore. The beach has easy access for small boats on dollies and plenty of shade on shore. The facility includes two bath houses with showers, plenty of parking, and, best of all, the view of the river is fantastic. The event is free and open to the public.

Our rowing, sailing, and paddling fleet will be available for on-water demos. Under the pavilion, we will have boatbuilding seminars. The kids' cardboard boatbuilding event at last year's BLBF was a huge hit and will return this year. We encourage all our boatbuilder friends to bring their boats to play with and/or enter the Boatbuilding Contest. Bring your boat, show off your hard work, and hopefully, you will win a prize!

Grab a bite to eat at the on-site food truck, or bring a picnic lunch. On-site camping is available on Friday & Saturday nights. We hope to see you there!

On-Water Demos: 9am - 12pm, (Lunchtime 12pm -1pm), 1pm - 4:30pm
Technical Seminars

Kids' Cardboard Boat Racing: (Weather Permitting)
Boatbuilding Contest Awards: 4pm (more details to come)
GPS Directions: 500 Conquest Beach Rd, Centreville, MD 21617
Food Truck on Site for Lunch
Sorry, no dogs or other pets are allowed on the premises.
This is an alcohol-free event.

Registration for the event is FREE and open to the public.

* Scroll down for more details *

Important Notes:

We'll be there RAIN OR SHINE.
Bring your own Paddles & Life Jackets. We'll have lots of gear for in-water trials, but you can help us keep the lines down by bringing your own.
If you are trailering a larger craft like PocketShip, you'll need to use the Centreville Boat Ramp (see below); don't forget to purchase your launch permit in advance!
Feel free to bring a picnic lunch or snacks. A food truck will be on station at Conquest Beach, 11am-2pm with great food options including pit beef, pulled pork, and ham sandwiches, caesar salad (plain or with protein), fries, chips, and soft drinks.
Bring your own refillable water bottles, sun screen, towels, lawn chairs, and everything else you need to enjoy a day at the beach.
Bring the kids! Sorry, your furry kids and other pets need to stay at home. Conquest Beach does not allow non-human pets.

Sorry, no trailer launching on the beach. Please bring your dolly!

Boat Ramp Launching Facilities for large boats:
Conquest Beach is great for launching lightweight boats like kayaks, rowing boats, and dinghies. Larger boats that require a boat ramp will need to use one of the local public ramps. A permit is required, so plan ahead! Launching permit purchase information can be found here.

> Centreville Boat Ramp This is the closest boat ramp to the event and has parking for about 12 vehicles with trailers. It is 7 miles up the Corsica River by water, so we suggest bringing your auxiliary outboard.
201 Front Street, Centreville, MD 21617

Directions from Conquest Beach to the nearest launch ramp (click the image to enlarge).