Serenity Sailing, Then Dolphins
A York County woman took her family sailing on the York River and found it a serene setting of mild winds and warm breezes, part of the outdoor fun near Yorktown. The anticipation was that of a family outing. The adventure arrived in the quietude, as they chatted for hours. In the process, we sailed under […]
Birds of Virginia
Question: What is it with the birds of Virginia? Answer: They sometimes fly right at you. Birds are fascinating to watch on the water. Rob and Share Breitenstein of Pensacola, Florida, took their three beautiful children sailing on breezy York River, where we saw dolphins hunt for schools of fish. Either that or they were […]
Sailing Memories
Elizabeth Blatz and her friend Heidi Smith went sailing while visiting Williamsburg, and it brought back fond memories. “My parents had a 70-foot sailboat, built in Japan,” Elizabeth said. “The man who built it sailed it to the U.S. after the war and sold it. It presented as a magnificent boat and we kept it […]
Sailing with Dolphins
Dolphins showed up late in the season in the York River, with a pod of seven bobbing for 20 minutes near the entrance of the channel to Sarah Creek. Adrienne and Ben Johnson of St. Paul, Minnesota, took their family sailing on a breezy fall afternoon and were wowed by the sight. They were in […]
Best Sailing Movies
People often ask, “What are the best sailing movies?” Geni and John’s Nautical web page ranks hundreds of movies going back to the 1930s. Dead Calm is a thriller starring Nicole Kidman. It was filmed almost entirely at sea and presents accurately the difficulty of navigating under terrible conditions. White Squall, starring Jeff Bridges, ranks […]
Back to the Bay
Kelly Mikeselle took her family from Indiana on a sightseeing sail June 24, and they got to see dolphins in the York River. It’s the earliest that dolphin have arrived, since they usually show up with the warmer water in August. The river is already 80 degrees. Three fish were spotted frolicking a half-mile south […]
Dolphins Galore
People ask, “Do you ever see dolphoins?” During the summer of 2014, the Verellen family of suburban Pittsburgh hit the jackpot as three pods of dolphin suddenly showed up alongside our boat in the middle of the York River. As we picked up speed with the wind, the dolphins dove below the boat, crisscrossing without […]
Houston Problem
The Howell family enjoyed a beautiful afternoon sailing on the York River, near Williamsburg. After all these years, the three sisters retain varying degrees of their native Georgia accent. That led to a generalization that people outside the South find the drawl charming in women but not so much among men. It could be that […]
Party & Dolphins
One evening in 2013 we hosted three couples, all of whom are nurses at a big New Jersey hospital. They took turns at the helm, running the boat. And they took many creative photos as the sun began to set. What was truly remarkable was that during their singing and chatting and laughing, they forgot […]