Busy Sail
A quiet July morning led us to motoring under the Coleman Bridge to see two Navy warships in port at the Yorktown Naval Weapons Station. I pointed out the tubes between two square tents where the Tomahawk missiles fire. Their range is 2,000 miles, sufficient to bomb Iraq and Afghanistan from the Mediterranean Sea during […]
Educational Sailing
We got closer to the Kalmar Nickyl for the first of several educational sailing cruises. It’s the state ship of Delaware, heading out to sea after an extended stay at Yorktown. They gave tours to educate the public on how volunteers replicated the entire boat, based on a Swedish design. You wouldn’t want to go […]
Mindfulness through Sailing
Let’s go sail the York River, where couples enjoy a serene three hours. Take one of 6 sailing adventures near the Chesapeake Bay for your best vacation excursion: Adventure, Event, Appreciation, History, Lessons, Boat Buying. Sit in the catbird seat or up on the bow. People ask, “What is the concept of sailing?“ One beautiful […]
Sail Air Force
A local couple took their family sailing on a beautiful Sunday morning. Enrique Lara is retiring from the Air Force after 23 years in a unique career. “I run vehicle logistics for the Air Force,” he said casually and added, “all over the world.” Not planes, mind you, but vehicles. I asked how many. […]
Texans Sailing
The Coffman family from Texas went on two unique excursions in one day. First, six of them toured the Norfolk Naval Yard by way of the Miss Hampton, a day boat that runs up and down the Elizabeth River. Meanwhile, their parents toured the York River with Let’s Go Sail. Because the day was quiet […]
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 […]
Navy Sailing
oh On a warm, breezy morning a newlywed couple from Louisville KY took their honeymoon cruise on the York River. Stephen Bacher explained that Rachel Kinser was planning to sail down the Mississippi River in a year or so. “I’d like to be married with her long enough before she dies,” he joked. Rachel is […]
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 by Lights
On certain rivers and in certain bays, the US Coast Guard services navigation lights that show the range of a particular channel. Hence the term range lights and why we go sailing by the lights. Together, the tall light is out of sequence with the short light as they blink on and off 24/7. The […]
Dangerous Sail
A family visiting from Minnesota got the ride of their lives when they endured 20 mph winds on the York River. I took Eh Xiong and his wife and daughter to the lee side of the Coleman Bridge, where 2-foot waves were more like 1 foot and the wind was easier to manage. This was […]
Sailing by VIMS
To avoid a rainout, Bentley Streat of nearby Hayes went a day early to take her family sailing on the York. Her sister Linda Shaffron works at nearby VIMS, or Virginia Institute of Marine Science. “Ours is the largest facility in America focused on estuarine research,” said said proudly. Estuarine as in estuary, as Chesapeake […]
Multiple Sails
Home Again During multiple sails, the cable-laying USNS Zeus returned to Cheatham Annex after many months at sea in the Atlantic. The Zeus lays hundreds of miles of intel cable as deep as 9,000 feet. It’s the only ship in its class because the sister ship never got built. It looks like an old hospital […]
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 […]
Secrets to Getting Married on a Sailboat
I get asked, “Are their secrets to getting married on a sailboat?” Let’s go sail the York River, where couples enjoy a serene three hours. Getting married in a unique setting is all the rage, whether on top of a mountain or in a canyon. These “venue weddings” are big in Williamsburg, where you […]
35th Sail
Greg and Leslie Galland of Williamsburg celebrated their wedding anniversary as a 35th sail by cruising in brisk winds on the York. The 29+ mph winds of the previous day died down to a manageable 12-15, but we still had to reef both sails. We got far enough down river to see a giant oil […]
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.
Rained Out
Navy Warships Mike and Kim Talbot moved from Las Vegas to Williamsburg to be closer to their daughter. They were eager to get out on the water, which Vegas lacks considerably. But first, they were held up driving across the Coleman Bridge because a US Navy warship was transiting on the way to the Yorktown […]
Open Season
After a long winter, Let’s Go Sail launched anew for the second decade.
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. […]
