Girls’ weekend getaway
A unique idea for a girls’ weekend getaway is to go sailing. Many’s the time I’ve had pals show up spontaneously for three-hour afternoon sail. Mothers and daughters find sailing a bonding experience as well. Get out of the parking lot and on to the water. The Adventure Cruise is the most popular, offering a […]
Junior Sailor Expertise
A junior sailor from suburban Buffalo got a chance to run a giant spinnaker on warmer waters than she’s used to. Matt Meincke brought his children Madison and Zak to Williamsburg on vacation, and they set sail on the York River on a magnificently breezy afternoon with another family. Madison took the wheel with aplomb. […]
Family Sailing Experience
A Richmond couple got stuck in traffic for an hour as they finally brought their four young children to the marina to go sailing. The contrast was evident as the sailboat scooted out to the York River with all the room in the world to drive. Light winds propelled us across the river and into […]
Courageous Captains Sailing
Exactly one year later, retired Navy Capt. Terry Culton and his wife Helen returned to sail the York River, this time with friends Mike and Debbie Decicco. Unlike last year when the winds were flat, they piped up quickly to 12-15 mph. So we reefed both sails. The couples were in town for a […]
York tugboats
Up and down the York River, tugboats provide safe and secure transit for ships. The biggest clients are Navy warships, which usually take one and sometimes two tugs to push and prod into port at Yorktown Naval Weapons Station. The current is wicked, aggravated by the 2-foot tide. Moran Towing gets that job done, using […]
Sailors with Boating Friends
A couple from Northern Virginia left their teenagers at home for a one-day adventure to drive south and go sailing on the York River. Katie and Sam Mangrio are in real estate, so we got to talking about flipping houses. “We’ve only done that once,” Sam said cautiously. “A lot can go wrong, so you […]
Scientist Relearns Sailing
For those who are interested, I walk them through the dynamics of sailing. For those who aren’t, I just point them in the direction of a close reach and leave it at that so they can enjoy the adventure. Here we have a scientist relearning sailing. Kim Allan sent her husband Brian and their son […]
Longshoreman Sailing
There’s boating, and then there’s shipping. Dante and April Turner of Chesapeake went sailing on the York River to celebrate their first anniversary, complete with a picnic basket of wine and cheese. “I’m a longshoreman,” Dante said when I asked what he does. “We have three container terminals in Norfolk, Craney Island and Portsmouth, as […]
The Perfect Sail
A Minnesota couple on vacation in Williamsburg took their three children sailing on the York River. They asked about the perfect sail and as luck would have it, this was it. Jim Keane took the helm as an accomplished boater. “We don’t have boats,” he said. “Instead, we have boating friends. We bring the lunch […]
Sail together
Friends do lots of things together, but mostly they enjoy each other’s company. Nowhere is that more fun than on a boat where they can sail together. Visitors to Williamsburg find that sailing on the York River is a distinctly intimate experience, unique for riding an elegant boat in a wonderful environment of the great […]
