New Look at Old Shipwrecks
UPDATE: Sept. 20, 2020: News Release by JRS Explorations Survey of New Wreck Completed During Sept. 13-18, 2020, JRS Explorations Inc. conducted an extensive shipwreck survey within the Yorktown Shipwrecks National Register District, thanks to the efforts of experienced researchers. The goals were to survey and map “Wreck 11,” a recently discovered wreck in the […]
Read about Tacky’s Revolt
The British brought 2,000 “free” slaves to Yorktown in 1781. Then they left them to fend for themselves in no-man’s land. Years earlier, slaves revolted with great consequences. Harvard historian Vincent Brown’s latest book is Tacky’s Revolt: The Story of an Atlantic Slave War.” It tells the story of the largest slave revolt 1760–61). He […]
Ships Under the York
Underwater archeology is an important field that is poorly funded, according to John D. Broadwater, a world-renowned practioner who’s now pursuing his 11th ship under the York River. Broadwater once explored the Titanic and helped raise booster rockets from the Apollo space flights. His career has spanned 50 years, with much of it right here […]
Sailing Annapolis
On an annual Christmas stopover before St. Michaels, we walked around the port of Annapolis to check out boats and boat names as if we were Sailing Annapolis. The imagination runs wild. Across from town, Eastport formed its own “island nation” and there is where many of these boats are berthed. They recently celebrated 150 […]
Among his troops
In July the Museum of the American Revolution released its first book, “Among His Troops: Discovering the Only Known Image of Washington’s Tent,” based on an exhibition of the same name. The book focuses on two of Pierre L’Enfant’s watercolors, one depicting the Continental Army at West Point and the other showing the army’s encampment at […]
Sailing into History
A young man from Prescott AZ (originally Baltimore) brought his wife to Williamsburg for an annual trip they’ve done for years. They wanted the History Cruise, so I dived deeply in the 1781 Battle of the Capes and the Siege of Yorktown that effectively ended the Revolutionary War. They had some history of their own. […]
20 Sailing Superstitions
Sailing Superstitions offers historical perspective to couples and families who want to enjoy private charters on the York River. Let’s go sail.
Fast Pitch Sails Past
147 teams from 16 states showed up in York County for a girls’ fast-pitch softball tournament.
Relearn How to Sail
People ask, “I used to sail, can you teach me again?” A couple from Charlottesville and a family from Pittsburgh went sailing on the York River to relearn their skills. Sebastian Kukla and Erik Fernandez hadn’t sailed since their college days, but they got the hang of it quickly in winds of 10 mph rising […]
Santa Maria at Yorktown
People ask, “Do you ever see tall ships?” A replica ship of Christopher Columbus’s fleet pulled into Yorktown for Memorial Day Weekend. The Nao Santa Maria set sail in 2017 to mark the 525th anniversary of the original discovery of America in 1492. The 200-ton, three-masted ship blew in this week from Wilmington NC. Skip […]
Dolphins!
People ask, “Do you ever see dolphins while sailing?” For the first time this year, we saw dolphins in May in the York River. Two couples from New Jersey and Tennessee got up close as the dolphins zoomed in the wake of the sailboat while cruising the York River. Art Ford spotted two of them […]
How to Build a House
Peoplel ask, “What’s it like to build a house on the water?” Heather Masters booked a sail with her husband Ryan for their 20th anniversary. By their youth, I figured they got married at 15. We had a serene run up the York River to see the Navy submarine in port, and Ryan noticed a […]
Sailing from Childhood
People ask, “Do sailors recall their childhood on the water?” Yes, fondly for the most part. A Wisconsin couple transplanted to Palm Harbor FL was visiting Williamsburg and saw they could go sailing on the York River. Peggy Wearing grew up near Lake Michigan. “I started out sailing prams and later 210s out of the […]
How to Evaluate Sailing Pricing
Every now and then I’m asked about the sailing pricing of Let’s Go Sail. It’s a fair question and is best addressed on two fronts, strategy and comparisons. Sailing Strategy The idea when starting out seven years ago was of course to earn revenue, but with a twist. The principal objective remains to get people […]
Sailing Yorktown
People ask, “What’s the deal with pirates?” Pirates prevailed at Yorktown on Saturday as the Schooner Virginia and RV Virginia sailed into port. The 122-foot schooner went bankrupt years ago and was revived by the Nauticus Foundation, home-ported there in Norfolk. The big white Virginia was just christened as the newest research vessel by VIMS, […]
The War Begins
People ask, “Why is Yorktown important?” Yorktown is the other bookend of the American Revolution. The war began with the two engagements between Massachusetts militia and the British Army. What is not well-known is the hurry, surprise and confusion leading to those battles. In takes us on an intimate journey into the events of April […]
From Slaves to Soldiers
People ask, “What was slavery like?” During the winter at Valley Forge, General Washington faced chronic shortages of manpower. Rhode Island General James Varnum proposed that Rhode Island recruit an all-African American regiment to serve in the Continental Army. Years later the first award for injuries in battle was won by a black soldier at […]
Big Winds Return
On a whim, Daniel Katekovich took his bride Connie sailing along the York River on their 30th anniversary. She had never been on a sailboat before, “if you don’t count a small catamaran.” She did great as we zoomed across the river in 10 mph winds and building seas. Then we tacked to go under […]
Sailing Toward Fall
On a serene York River that slowly came to life as the wind built, we sailed past the lower range light at Yorktown to show how it has become obliterated. A vacant osprey nest has collapsed over the lens, leaving it nearly obscured to ship traffic. I notified the Coast Guard and sent them a […]
If By Sea
Before the American victory at Yorktown came resounding defeat at Charleston. George Daughan’s If By Sea: The Forging of the American Navy—From the Revolution to the War of 1812 tells the story of the early years of the American navy. The following excerpt examines Abraham Whipple’s command of the Continental Navy at Charleston in 1780. Daughan attributes […]