Mariner Spectrum
Two ends of the mariner spectrum were captured in a sea change along the York River. A waterman sets up for the day to harvest oysters off the river bed while the destroyer USS Mitscher transits toward the Coleman Bridge and Yorktown Naval Weapons Station. The Mitscher was the Navy’s official welcoming ship when […]
Sailing to Mexico
Ramona Findley of Los Angeles has crewed in offshore races from Newport Beach to Ensenada, Mexico, a 125-mile stretch that includes overnight sailing. So she and her colleagues from the LAPD and LA Sheriff’s Department had no problem sailing a mid-size Hunter on the York River on a beautiful afternoon. “I worked as the spinnaker […]
USS Cole Sails On
People ask, “Do you ever see the USS Cole?” While sailing the York River on a calm afternoon, the guided missile cruiser Cole transited the Coleman Bridge on the way from Norfolk to the Yorktown Naval Weapons Station. Kathy Hiles used to live nearby on the shores of Gloucester Point and was intrigued to see […]
Sailing Out of the Park
Alan and Val Domzalski of Gross Pointe Woods MI enjoyed a late afternoon sail on the York River with their pal Jeff Craig. Alan’s beverage company has a suite at Comerica Park, where they can watch the Tigers play in comfort. “The suite is beside home plate, looking down the first-base line. We’re there tomorrow […]
Happy Birthday Sail
People ask, “Does sailing make a good birthday gift?” Every year, Chris and Marty McCurry of Spruce Pine NC try to do something special on their son’s birthday. This week John Caleb McCurry got an up-close look at US Navy submarine barreling up the York River to the Naval Weapons Station. We were sailing near […]
Navigating a Career
People ask, “What’s with the Army’s Navy?” Ft. Eustis is home to the “Army’s Navy,” where soldiers learn everything from becoming a stevedore to captaining a boat. Donald Topping explained while sailing the York. Tens of millions of dollars have been invested to teach 27 discrete programs to Army troops and Navy SEALS. “We owe […]
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 […]
Sailing for Show
“Whenever we do an evolution [event] of 15 or 20 ships at sea, we have to take photos to show the formations and the ships. Sometimes we have to get within 400 yards with ships on each side to get good photos, and that’s difficult to do while moving at 13 knots on the open […]
Mexico Sailor
Jerry Lafferty of Cincinnati and Puerto Vallarta went sailing with his brother Ed Lafferty and Ed’s wife Chris on a magnificent day on the York River. Jerry spends six months on the coast of the Mexican beach resort, whose population has skyrocketed from 5,000 to 250,000. Homes sell for millions. But because of the steep […]
Sailing into Port
People ask, “What’s it like to see the bridge open?” The opening of the Coleman Bridge is a nuisance for drivers, but from out on the water it looks fabulous. Lois Anne and J.Q. Anders of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, joined Mary and Rob Yeager of Scottdale, Pennsylvania, on an afternoon sightseeing cruise in which a […]
Sailing by Feel
Sometimes I get asked, “Can blind people sail?” Wayne Kislinburg is a retired Navy lieutenant commander whose final sail before retirement was to bring a submarine tender under the Golden Gate Bridge into San Francisco Bay. He later developed macular degeneration and is now legally blind, but you’d never know it. At the encouragement of […]
Sailing Class
Sam Melville, Jon Sargent and Robert Dexter Lilley concluded an intensive two-day course with SailTime Virginia Beach by running a Catalina Capri 22 out of Willoughby Bay at Norfolk beside Interstate 64, over the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel toward Thimble Shoal Lighthouse, and back to port at Willoughby Marina. The crew fought a wicked ebb […]
Sailing with Critics
People ask, “Do you have any professional video?” Michelle Alexandria was in Williamsburg shooting video with her crew Tom Allen and Kyle Ervin for eclipsemaganize.com and blogcritics.org. She views around 200 movies a year as a member of the Washington DC Film Critics Association. Once a year she gets the full treatment of promotional materials […]
Sailing off the Beaten Path
The Zahns and McMandons live in Palm Coast, Florida, an hour south of Jacksonville and an hour north of Orlando. Part of Palm Coast’s charm is that it’s relatively remote, off the beaten path and away from a metropolitan center. But you have to want to get there to go there. Similar places are Charleston, […]