SMA DSNDS BELOW MEA WHEN CLRED TO 'CRUISE' 2000 FT.

Narrative

I WAS FLYING ON VICTOR 1 S ON AN IFR FLT PLAN; CLRED TO OCEAN CITY; MD; ARPT. UPON REACHING THE WATERLOO VOR; I WAS GIVEN RNAV DIRECT TO THE ARPT AND ALLOWED TO DSND TO 2000 FT. AFTER REACHING 2000 FT; THERE WERE SOME THIN; SCATTERED CLOUDS BELOW ME AND SALISBURY; MD; WAS RPTING THIN; SCATTERED CLOUDS AT 2000 FT AS WELL. I WAS GIVEN A 'CRUISE 2000 FT CLRNC' TO OCEAN CITY; MD. SINCE I WAS NOT ON AN AIRWAY; I HAD NO REF FOR A MINIMUM SAFE ENRTE ALT; AND SO TOLD THE CTLR THAT I WAS ALREADY AT 2000 FT AND WHAT DID HE MEAN BY THE 'CRUISE 2000 FT CLRNC.' HE SAID I WAS CLRED TO THE ARPT. EXPECTING THAT THERE WAS A THIN CLOUD LAYER WHICH WE HAD BEEN SEEING THROUGHOUT; I DSNDED IN THE CLOUDS DIRECT TO THE ARPT; EXPECTING TO MAKE A LNDG. HOWEVER; THE CLOUDS WERE EXTREMELY THICK; AND I DSNDED ALMOST IN 1000 FT BEFORE ENTERING VFR CONDITIONS AND LNDG. IT IS MY INTERP THAT MY VIOLATION WAS DSNDING INTO IMC CONDITIONS WITHOUT BEING ON A PUBLISHED SEGMENT OF THE APCH. THE CONFUSION WAS; HOWEVER; THROUGH THE CRUISE CLRNC WHICH; ALTHOUGH I AM AWARE IT ALLOWS ME CLRNC FOR THE APCH; WAS CONFUSING SINCE I WAS NOT ON ANY SEGMENT OF ANY AIRWAY WHERE THERE WAS A MINIMUM ALT AVAILABLE. NO INCIDENT OCCURRED. THE LNDG WAS CARRIED OUT SAFELY; AND I BELIEVE I WAS WELL OUT OF RADAR COVERAGE; AND LASTLY OUT OF COMS COVERAGE AS WELL WHEN REACHING SOMEWHERE APPROX 1500 FT. AFTER LNDG; I RPTED TO EITHER DOVER OR PATUXENT APCH BY PHONE; INDICATING A SAFE LNDG. THERE WERE 2 FACTORS WHICH COMPLICATED THIS: 1) THE ONLY ADF REPRESENTATION I HAVE IN MY PLANE IS ON MY MOVING MAP. THE MOVING MAP LOST PWR SHORTLY AFTER TKOF; AND THE MOVING MAP (OR THE ADF) WOULD BE NECESSARY TO IDENT LANDY; THE OM; FOR THE LOC APCH. 2) I HAD THE FULL EASTERN UNITED STATES MAPS WITH ME; AND OCEAN CITY; MD; IS POSITIONED SUCH THAT IT IS BELOW MAP #26; JUST OFF IT; WHERE WATERLOO VOR IS LOCATED; AND AT THE VERY NORTHERN TIP OF THE 29-30 MAP WHERE THE SALISBURY VOR BUT NOT THE WATERLOO VOR CAN BE SEEN. THE NE CORRIDOR MAP ALSO DOES NOT SHOW OCEAN CITY; MD; THEREFORE; THERE'S NO MAP WHICH SHOWS BOTH THE RELATIONSHIP OF THE 2 VORS AND THE ARPT. CLRLY; THE APPROPRIATE CHOICE WAS TO ASK FOR VECTOR FOR THE VOR APCH OR FOR THE LOC APCH; OR TO ANNOUNCE THE FULL APCH MYSELF UNDER THOSE CIRCUMSTANCES WITHOUT DSNDING.