Salvage After Storm
People wonder, “Can you salvage a boat after a storm?” The threat of Hurricane Irma loomed large and led to a bevy of oil tankers showing up in the York River. We went sailing on a bright and beautiful day with two delightful couples. A key element was wondering about salvage after storm. Let’s go […]
Baby Sail
A couple recently relocated to Charlottesville took two sailing sessions on the York River. They got to see the USS Monterey at Yorktown, where it’s doing maneuvers for a month. Kyle and Madison Robinson were pretty ambitious, since she’s eight months pregnant. “I’m due in a month and I’m ready,” she said midway through a […]
Sailing past Warship
A couple from Williamsburg took their extended family sailing along the York on a breezy summer afternoon. Hannah Gibbons’ dad Patrick was an experienced skipper who last helmed a 52-footer in Puget Sound. He had no trouble with winds of 10 mph gusting to 15. We got to see the USS John Finn exit the […]
Hamilton Lives
A Chicago family spent Spring Break touring Williamsburg and took their son Luke sailing on the York, where we discovered that Hamilton lives. Luke proved adaptable by adjusting the boat to brisk winds and an occasional gust. We went under the bridge to see the USS Hudner guided missile cruiser at NWS and eventually got […]
Let’s Go Sail Charleston
Let’s Go Sail Charleston recounts ideas for boats as found at City Docks.
How Charter Sailing Started
Special to the KCSA Bulletin People wonder, How did you start the sailing business?” It started with a few words, Let’s go sail the York River. The object was to let couples sail a serene three hours. In retirement, Kingsmill resident Bill O’Donovan has pursued a charter boat business to share the joy of sailing. […]
The Start of War
The Start of War focuses on the beginning of the Revolution, at Boston.
Destroyers Compared
Sometimes people ask, “Can you compare Navy ships?” Yes, but preferably in profile. 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 […]
8 Little-Known Ways to Sail
I get asked, “Are there different ways to sail?” Yes, here are eight ways. 1. Caribbean Day Sail—The common expectation for a trip on a yacht rental in St. Thomas or St. John is to fly in and take a bareboat out for a week with another couple or two. That’s fine, but pricey and […]
Hudson Strategy
Hudson Strategy escribes how the river played a key role in the American Revolution.
York River Rescue
A sport fishing boat hit a buoy and sank within ten minutes. We were there.
Distinct Navy Ships
People often ask, “How can you tell Navy ships apart?” Two Navy warships blew into Yorktown Naval Weapons Station this week with distinct profiles and missions. The USS James E. Williams is a classic destroyer of the Arleigh Burke Class. Launched in 2003, the Williams is usually part of a carrier strike force in the […]
Summer Maneuvers
While tacking southeast toward the cable tripod on the York River, I could see two US Navy fast boats zooming from the York Channel into our path. Evidently they came up from the Amphibious Naval Base at Littlecreek to find a secluded spot for summer maneuvers. As we kept on course, they stopped dead ahead […]
Big Ship
A US Navy Support cargo ship pulled into Yorktown Naval Weapons Station and left just a few days later. USNS Medgar Evers is 689 feet long and has a crew of 123 civilians and 36 Navy personnel, some of whom deal with two helicopters on board. The cargo hold can take 783,000 cubic feet. It […]
Romantic Sail
A Richmond gal named Paula rented a stretch limo to take her boyfriend Christopher sailing as a surprise birthday gift. He got out of the limo and exclaimed, “Wow!” I took one look at the limo and said likewise. “My family has a house in Weems on the Corratoman River,” Chris said. “We have motorboats, […]
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 […]
Last Sail
People ask, “How deep into Fall do you still sail?” Deep into November, I took veteran sailors Jeanne Kushabar and Ugo Boggio out on the York in a light breeze from the east. I hadn’t see Ugo in a year, during which time he bought a 24-foot sailboat for his house on Boothbay Harbor, Maine. […]
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 […]
Giant Cranes Delivered
Philadelphia had a big winter with the Eagles winning the Super Bowl and Villanova winning the NCAA basketball crown. Here’s more big news: an extraordinary video of two “post- Panamax” gantry cranes delivered to the Port of Philadelphia. Post-Panamax refers to the mega-ship that can navigate the wider Panama Canal. My sailing buddy John Alewynse […]
Minnesota Sailors Race the York
Korine and Mitchell Arseneau of Hampton took her parents Kathy and Paul sailing on a sunny, breezy afternoon along the York River. They used their extensive sailing skills to race downriver on five tacks at 10-15 degrees heeling before running with wind upriver. Paul spent 25 years in the US Navy. “I was only five […]