Wedding Under Sail
I get asked a lot, “Do you do weddings on board?” Brandon Marks wanted to surprise his fiancé Addie Misnier with a unique wedding venue. She always wanted to go sailing, so he chose the waters of the York River. The ceremony was performed by Pastor Chris and witnessed by Addie’s best friend Katherine. Then […]
Sailing the Current
It took me years to realize while sailing that once you cross the York River the current on the north side dissipates because it gets shallower. The river current and the tidal current combine in the middle of the river to form a wicked 3-4 mph lateral drag on the boat during mid-tide when […]
Sailboat Wedding
Linda Dugan and Dennis Landry came all the way from arid Arizona to Virginia to get married on the water in a uniquely romantic setting. They chose Williamsburg Charter Sails to go out on the York River for their wedding ceremony. As we sailed to the middle of the river, almost miraculously several pods comprising […]
Learning in Rising Winds
In facHaving been a motorboat dude all his life, Steven Cucick of Littleton MA brought his wife Christine to Yorktown to learn how to sail on the York River. We covered all three points of sail: close reach, beam reach, broad reach. We did a heave-to for Man Overboard. He sailed in light and fluky […]
Will I Get Seasick?
People occasionally ask, “Will I get seasick?” on a three-hour cruise along the York River. The answer is No, for several reasons. 1. We sail in a river, which almost never gets enough chop to make the boat pitch forward and backward. High seas with seven-foot waves (measured from top to bottom) are found 20 miles […]
Sailing to Success
Two couples from New York City quit their jobs in fashion, corporate, nursing and teaching to find success in a group home setting in Washington, DC. Charrisse and Mark Ifill and his brother Mike Ifill and his wife Khardieita related their collective experience while sailing on the York River near Williamsburg with their small children. […]
New Sailors
While sailing in a wonderful breeze, I explained to the Bartlett family of Minnesota how the Coleman Bridge met deadline when it was replaced over the York River between Yorktown and Gloucester Point. For a detailed look at the history of the bridge, check out the video below. Mike Bartlett served in the “Brown Navy” […]
Night Sailing
Certain navigation lights have to be turned on at night depending on whether you’re sailing or anchored. These lights do not impinge on the dark magnificence of sailing beneath millions of stars on a crystal clear night. But crab pots do. These pesky lines are connected to cages usually found in 10-15 […]
Lights for Sailboats
The US Coast Guard has developed an elaborate scheme of navigation lights for boats and sailboats of all sizes on the York River and around the world. Thay way, everyone can recognize each other at night and tell what direction they’re going. The easiest example is the one here of a sailboat with red, green […]
First Hot Shot
Early during the Siege of Yorktown in October 1781 the French got the bold idea of heating solid cannonballs red hot and firing them at a ship. They succeeded by arcing at least three balls a mile away toward the HMS Charon, the 44-gun lead ship of Lord Cornwallis, anchored in front of what is […]
