Commemorative Sail

Commemorative Sail

Every summer I take Nanci Bond and Ellen Janoncyzk out on a commemorative sail on the mutual day of their late husbands’ birthday. They were both named Bob. On a virtually still day with the York River like glass, we motored over to the other side of the river and all the way out to Tue […]

Sailing to Modernity

Sailing to Modernity

I get asked, “What’s with all these bridges?” Two things we take for granted in Tidewater Virginia are weather and bridges. I was explaining to two couples from Norfolk that I get people from all over the country for whom the weather is not a big news story but a big tragedy. You name it: […]

Norfolk Boat Memories

Norfolk Boat Memories

While taking their gals sailing near Williamsburg, two fellows recalled their Norfolk boat memories, having grown up together during the 1950s. Dale Murray said, “I’ve been around the water all my life, but I’ve never been sailing.” He did just fine on the helm. On the water indeed. “I have a center console 22-foot fishing boat […]

Voyager Canoe

Voyager Canoe

This is the second week of the Polynesian Voyager Canoe visiting Yorktown. John Raines of York River Yacht Haven was there for the creation. He joined the Williamsburg Area Learning Tree for a six-hour training day. “I was 20 years old in 1970 when they launched the Hokule-a in Hawaii. It was recreated to demonstrate […]

Washington’s Spies

Origins of Washington's Spies, Williamsburg Charter Sails

The Siege of Yorktown had everything: Cannon fire, sea battles, death, destruction, sickness, victory— and spies. So it’s odd when people ask, “Was Yorktown important?” In the summer of 1778, George Washington authorized the formation of a secret chain of agents known as the Culper Ring to operate in British-occupied New York. The following excerpt from […]

Sailing Home

Sailing Home, Williamsburg Charter Sails

Five decades removed from where I grew up, we ventured back to go sailing home. Bonnie and I met our younger daughter Wendy in New York for three days of touring that included a day in the suburbs of Westchester. Wendy was in town from Denver to deliver a talk to the Queens Dental Society, […]

Sailing the Blue Mind

Sailing the Blue Mind, Williamsburg Charter Sails

There comes a time in a man’s life when he hears the call of the sea. If the man has a brain in his head, he will hang up the phone immediately. –Dave Barry That explains why many people are reluctant to buy a boat, much less board one. Despite the lure of the sea, […]

Toy Boat at Sea

toy boat at sea

A toy boat launched in the Atlantic Ocean by South Carolina school students has reached the coast of Wales, after a stopover in Bermuda. The Royal Gazette reports that the Carolina Dreamer was built by the St. Andrew’s School of Math & Science in Charleston and fitted with a GPS tracker. The little vessel went […]

Oysters in the Bay

They are comparatively few and far between today, but oysters used to clog the Chesapeake Bay. These days, we see precious few oyster men while sailing the York River. Virginia’s catch has dropped from nearly 8 million bushels in the early 1900s to half a million today. The industry began here in the early 1800s when […]

High Tides, Few Guns

The tides on the York River have been higher lately from a week-long storm and the passing of Hurricane Joaquin. There simply hasn’t been a low tide in ten days. We’re talking 3 to 4 feet range. On this day, we sailed from the high tides of Canada to its strict gun laws. “We saw […]