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Kalmar Nyckel- She Sails The Ocean Blue, This Saucy Ship Of Beauty- Part 1, The Reception

Tuesday, June 7th, 2011
Tall ship Kalmar Nyckel arrives in Cape Charles

Kalmar Nyckel Arrives In Cape Charles

Anyone who loves Gilbert and Sullivan and sees this beautiful tall sailing ship will immediately think of the song  “She Sails The Ocean Blue”  from “H.M.S. Pinafore”  because  this saucy ship’s definitely a beauty and as a reproduction  of  a grand Dutch pinnace  which made four round trips from Sweden to “New Sweden”  (Delaware) in the mid-1600’s,  she sails the oceans blue.   Sponsored in part by Blue Heron Realty Co.  and as part of  the  Tall Ships Initiative of  Cape Charles and Northampton County  (which was  the brainchild of  David Kabler,  broker for  Blue Heron’s  Cape Charles office )  the  Kalmar Nyckel arrived in the deep water Cape Charles harbor on June  2nd and settled right in for a 5 day celebration of  her eagerly awaited trip to  the Eastern Shore of Virginia,  including a Friday evening  on-board reception to be given by Blue Heron Realty Co.  (Click to enlarge the small photos.)

                       

Even the weather co-operated beautifully-  early in the week it had been quite warm,  high temps about 90 but thankfully the wee hours of  Friday morning brought  a cold front  and the day dawned in the low 60’s with refreshing breezes all day long.  I was so relieved because in my role as Chief Cook & Bottle Washer  for Blue Heron’s on-board reception from 6:30 to 8:30 that  evening ,  my biggest worry all along  had been how to keep cold hors d’oeuvres  cold on a warm evening, on deck ,  with no real refrigeration and precious little shade.  We were, of course,  already prepared with lots of  big coolers and special serving trays with ice reservoirs underneath but still, I was really delighted that the high would be only in the  mid-70’s !

                       

The evening kicked off about 6pm with an official  Welcoming Ceremony which included the Northampton County High School Band, presentation of the colors by the Coast Guard,  remarks by Cape Charles Mayor Dora Sullivan  and presentation of  a huge gift basket for Captain Lauren Morgan and her crew.  Then it was  on-board for Blue Heron’s  reception which proved to be a merry time indeed.  The invitations had gone out with Colonial or pirate attire as an optional dress code,  just to spice things up a bit.  Period attire was another of Dave’s ideas ( well, truth be told, Dave had hoped for mandatory but settled for optional )  and it added a lot of  entertainment to the evening.  The Kalmar Nyckel crew also wore their Colonial garb adding to the over-all ambience but I must say that the top prize for guys for the evening  ( had there been one ) would have gone  to local Eastville attorney Bert Turner,  usually seen in a sharp suit and crisp dress shirt,  whose flowing wig,  rakish hat and fancy garb  transformed him so completely into a  fashionable Colonial  pirate  it seemed as if  he had truly just stepped out of  a time machine.  A number of the the ladies had really wonderful costumes as well,  including Irene Henderson,  Sandy Mayer,  Susan Kovacs,  Dianne Appell,  Ann Walker  and  Carol Russ.  Even Cape Charles Town Council members  Bruce Evans and Joan Natali as well as  County Supervisor Spenser Murray got into the Colonial garb spirit,  wearing  period vests,  blouses and breeches.

                      

And if I do say so myself,  the food turned out quite well too.  Planned and executed by Blue Heron’s  “Reception Committee”   headed up by Gerry Forbes and rounded out by Lisa Anderson and Kay Lewis,  these ladies planned and put together an attractive and tasty  array of cold appetizers  including a beautiful centerpiece fruit tray of 3 different types of melons, 3 different types of grapes,  some lusciously ripe Hawaiian pineapple and picture-perfect strawberries, then garnished with kiwi,  cherries and blackberries.   Flanking the fruit tray on either side were trays of assorted cheeses plus bread bowls filled with a most tasty humus as well as chopped spiced tomatoes for bruchetta complimented by  a large relish tray of mixed olives with marinated mushrooms and artichoke hearts.  But the most popular item seemed  to be the mini sweet potato biscuits stuffed with country ham,  the contrast of the sweetness of the biscuits and the saltiness of the ham was absolutely perfect and a great accompaniment to the fruit and cheeses.  Early on in the planning stages we did an office wine tasting lunch to decide on the wines, ( yup, everyone  somehow  managed to  just  “happen”  to be at the office at lunchtime that day !  )   A unanimous vote chose a  fruity rose’  sparking wine as the  favorite,  with a dry white sparking wine a close second.  These were served along with Samuel Adams light summer ale on draft which proved quite popular as well.

                       

Entertainment was provided  by the very, very  talented duo of  Carol Russ  on  accordian and Malcolm Russ  on  violin,  whose wide ranging repertoire included many  popular songs like  Red Sails In The Sunset   to  about 15 robust choruses  of What Shall We Do With A Drunken Sailor   vocalized by  Dave Kabler together with the Kalmar Nyckel’s  Captains  Lauren Morgan and  Sharon Litcofsky.  I personally think that the right music can help make or break an evening and the  Russ’  performance was great,  it added so much to the over-all ambience.  A pleasant summer’s eve,  a light breeze blowing,  laughter here and there,  pleasant conversation all around,  good food and wine,  all on-board such a unique venue, a beautiful tall sailing ship.  But because the Kalmar Nyckel  has no real lights on deck,  by previous agreement,  the Captain needed  guests to depart before 9pm,  so too soon it was over.   Malcolm and Carol  played that very beautiful song made famous by Sarah Brightman some years back,  Time To Say Goodbye  and with that  we  all said our good night’s and goodbye’s but those of us at Blue Heron won’t soon forget this special evening.

(Posted by Marlene Cree, licensed Virginia agent with Blue Heron Realty Co., 7134  Wilsonia Neck Dr., Machipongo, VA)

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A Quick Trip To Lewes, Delaware To Check Out The Tall Sailing Ship “KALMAR NYCKEL”

Tuesday, May 31st, 2011
Kalmar Nyckel Tall Sailing Ship At Her Berth In Lews Delaware

The Tall Ship “Kalmar Nyckel” At Her Lewes, Delaware Berth

Saturday before last was a very pleasant day,  spent with my husband driving  round trip to Lewes, Delaware  to check out the on-board facilities of the tall sailing ship,  the  Kalmar Nyckel  which is currently  moored at the Lewes Ferry Terminal.  In June she is making a  5  day stay at the deep water  harbor in Cape Charles, VA.  Lots of great activities have been planned around her arrival including a private on-board reception given by Blue Heron Realty Co.,  which is one of the principal  sponsors of  her trip to Cape Charles.   Having been advised that space is very tight,  on the  “better safe than sorry”  theory,  I decided that in preparation for the reception I should see the physical set-up and measure the spaces the ship has to offer well in advance.   And I am sooooo glad I did !   Communication is an amazing thing,  involving bringing one’s own frame of reference  into the equation.  So what I had envisioned as “tight”  didn’t compare to the reality at all.   When translated to space on a sailboat,   of course I already knew  that   “tight”  actually means almost no room whatsoever.  But I had envisioned that it would be quite different on the 143 foot  Kalmar Nyckel —   not at all !   There is no room to set up tables for food or beverages so it was clear that we will  have to make do with  the ship’s various built-ins– the Captain suggested serving beverages from a small chart box in the stern,  food from a flat surfaced 6 ft. by 4 ft. low cabinet near the bow ( which the crew has nicknamed “the doghouse” ),  a real challenge which would have been even more  so on the day had I not previewed  it in advance.  So,  really glad  we made that  5 hour round trip drive to Lewes.  Plus we had time to stop and tour the Lewes Lifesaving Station which was very interesting and then had one of the best brick oven pizzas ever at a little Italian restaurant in Fenwick Island called Mancini’s,  so not all work and no play.

A word or two on the history of the  Kalmar Nyckel.   According to a very informative little book entitled “Mallets, Chisels & Planes”  written by Charles Ireland, Jr., the original  Kalmar Nyckel was used as a merchant ship, an exploration vessel and finally as a warship.   Built by the Dutch in the late 1620’s,  in 1637  she was selected for a special voyage  by the Swedish Crown,  the purpose of which was to explore and colonize  the New World, i.e., North America. She arrived in “New Sweden”  ( now the state of Delaware)  in 1629 and there her passengers established a colony and built a fort.  In 1645 she was re-commissioned  as a warship after having made three more voyages to “New Sweden”.   350 years later a group formed with the express purpose of  creating a foundation to replicate the  Kalmar Nyckel  using  basically the same shipbuilding methods and tools that were used to construct her namesake.  One of the biggest challenges by far was to pull together an architect and the skilled craftsmen with the dedication and capability  to successfully undertake such an arduous and complicated endeavor.

Poster of the events in Cape Charles, VA

Cape Charles Events Schedule

Starting with locating an old shipyard on the banks of the Christina River near Wilmington,  Delaware,  close to the 1638  landing site of the original vessel,  then converting it to become what a 17th century shipyard would have been,  the  Kalmar Nyckel Foundation gathered together volunteers and financial backers plus  an enthusiastic  team of shipwrights and  blacksmiths, sail makers and riggers from all over the globe who were interested in becoming  part of  this  faithful reproduction including her 8 miles of rigging and very ornate decorations and figurehead.   The rest,  as they say,  is history.  And so the first week of June,  this amazing ship,  considered to be the queen of  modern day  tall ship reproductions,  will for the first time sail proudly into the Cape Charles harbor where she will be most heartily welcomed by Dora Sullivan,  Mayor of Cape Charles and other dignataries prior to  Blue Heron’s private reception.   Over that week-end,  the  Foundation is offering tickets for 4 different sailing trips into the Chesapeake Bay of  about 2 1/2 hours each , which should be lots of fun,  as well as offering public tours on the following Monday.   So if you’re nearby, come on down and see what a tall sailing ship from the early 1600’s looks like,  she is  a pretty dramatic and interesting sight,  well worth coming to take a tour.

                        

(Posted by Marlene Cree, licensed Virginia agent with Blue Heron Realty Co., 7134  Wilsonia Neck Dr., Machipongo, VA)

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Blue Waters, Green Fairways, Golden Sands– Check Out This Fine Lot In Bay Creek Golf Resort, Cape Charles, Virginia

Friday, May 13th, 2011

Itching to hit the links and swing into some great Eastern Shore golf ?   What better way to enjoy a  relaxed  golf  lifestyle than to build a custom home on this large lot for sale overlooking a deep green fairway just minutes away from the shining blue waters of the Chesapeake Bay and the soft golden sands of Bay Creek’s several  miles of  beach  ?   In 2010,  Bay Creek Golf Resort,  a waterfront golf community currently comprised of  10 separate residential villages centered around an  18 hole Arnold Palmer Signature course and an 18 hole  Jack Nicklaus Signature course,  was chosen as  one of the top 50 golf resorts by GolfWorld and it was  the 12th ranked resort course in the US,   great praise indeed.   Located in one of  Bay Creek’s  most beautiful villages,  Heron Pointe,  this lot has a view of one of the little lakes  and its lovely waterfall which features a stunning large bronze sculpture of a blue heron ( of course, what else ) standing on a bronze log  in a  little pool just below the waterfall,  a special custom commission by the developer.

As one of the most upscale villages at Bay Creek,  Heron Pointe is home to a number of  luxurious properties.  Located in the area of  Bay Creek Resort where the Chesapeake Bay and Old Plantation Creek intersect,  it is the neighborhood where the influence of being surrounded by water is felt most vividly–  most of the Heron Pointe lots have some  saltwater views or front on one of its several freshwater lakes.  Indeed,  several of the most talked-about waterfront holes of  Bay Creek’s  Arnold Palmer Signature Course wind through Heron Pointe,  including  the famed holes # 1 and #3,  which have been called some of the finest golf holes  in Virginia.  Hole #1 is so impressive– as you look down the long,  long  fairway you see what appear to be  large white “petals” of  a  huge flower lying on the ground near the approach to the green.  A pretty tricky flower however,  sort of like a Venus flytrap,  because once you get caught in one of these  sand  “petals”  it can be quite difficult to get out,  as I’m sure as many a Bay Creek golfer will attest !    

Located just beyond the flower petal shaped sand traps is the elegant  reproduction of  Old Plantation Flats Light,  built by Bay Creek in 2004 as a a replica of  the unusually shaped original 1886 lighthouse which stood in the  Chesapeake Bay near Cape Charles for many years.   Sited in a small freshwater lake at the very edge of the Bay and the beach, this impresssive  reproduction features an antique  fog bell from a retired buoy and a new Fresnel fourth order lens.  One can stand on the lighthouse deck and by gazing east,  overlook  much of  Heron Pointe.  A glance south nets a great view of the  # 2 green on the Palmer course,  located just at the edge of the Chesapeake Bay, overlooking  the broad sand beaches.  Certainly the lighthouse is  a great place to stand and watch the ships go by on the horizon,  a grand place to enjoy the spectacular sunsets over the Bay. 

 And for the icing on the cake,  from this Heron Pointe lot it’s only a few minutes to the Chesapeake Bay marina,  clubhouse,  pool, tennis courts and the many other golf community amenities.  All this and a chance to enjoy the special beauty of the Eastern Shore comes as a complete package,  gift-wrapped and topped with a spectacular bow,  with the purchase of  this spacious 3/4th acre building lot in Heron Pointe,  most attractively priced at $149,000.  Visit the Blue Heron website and see more golf properties as well as beachfront,  boating,  historic and town & country properties at  www.blueheronva.com .

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Wander Down Dogwood Lane and You Will Discover This Elegant Frank Lloyd Wright Inspired Home

Tuesday, May 10th, 2011

Wander down Dogwood Lane near Belle Haven, VA  in the springtime  and  you will see it is well-named,  profuse with beautiful clumps of its namesake trees, pink and white  flowers set against a backdrop of  the broad blue waters of Occohannock Creek,  a saltwater inlet from the Chesapeake Bay on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.  And gently rising  from a  gorgeous wooded setting is this elegant contemporary  home,  inspired by the architectural traditions of  Frank Lloyd Wright.  Perfectly integrated into its wooded waterfront homesite,  it maintains  the essential elements of  Wright’s   “prairie”  style,  the low horizontal lines of the home,  very open  interior spaces,  nearly flat roof lines with overhanging eaves,  bands of horizontal windows as well as clerestory windows, a central chimney  and solid craftsmanship.  But  a very special and unique architectural element has been added to this particular prairie style home,   an element which brings it into perfect harmony with the coastal traditions of the Eastern Shore of Virginia.  

Designed by the architect son of the original owners,  this home is reminiscent of a ship,  the center portion of the home symbolizing  the stack and the brick terrace towering over  the shoreline as the prow.  It is a very attractive design,  different, bold and exciting.   One of  Wright’s central tenets was that  a “good building is not one which hurts the landscape but rather one which makes the landscape more beautiful than it was before the building was built.”  Certainly this property qualifies in every sense,  the home  looks completely natural  and in tune with the site,  almost as if it had been grown from the land itself,  the deep colors of the California redwood exterior blending in perfectly with the surrounding trees and colorful flowering shrubs,  each complementing the other and providing an attractive contrast to the blues of the waterfront beyond.

The  history of the creation of the “prairie” style architecure  is quite interesting.  At the turn of the 20th century, Frank Lloyd Wright and a group of like-minded architects were striving to come up with an alternative to what they perceived as the over-embellishment and fussiness  of the then-prevailing European styles like Victorian, Tudor, etc.  They wanted to create something which had cleaner,  more simple lines.  By designing long homes with low silhouettes,  horizontal lines and open interior spaces they were creating homes designed to be built on large lots,  in more  open spaces.  These new styles  contrasted sharply from the tall narrow homes with closed in interiors so popular in cities at the time.   When Wright wrote an article about a  home he had just designed in the new style and entitled it  ” A Home in A Prairie  Town”,  a name and a  style were born.

As magnificant inside as out,  the interior of this home gleams with the rich polished redwoods,  accented by soft recessed lighting, pointed up by the use of interesting ornamental lamps throughout.  This is a bold house,  a house that is quite modern, a house that requires contemporary furnishings and modern art.  Actually, the house itself truly is a work of art– it’s clear that a great deal of thought was given to the visual appeal of each design detail,  even down to where to place the most interesting boards, the ones with the most intricate swirls and grains,  installing them in locations where the most beautiful boards would be at eye-level.   Shapes have been elevated to an art form in this home,  a small powder room with a 12 foot ceiling,  a short entry corridor opening into a rectangular great room overlooking a triangular patio, an intricate dining room with its focal point being a triangular shaped fireplace projecting into the room,  the kitchen a long, sleek galley with a pass-through into a long corridor overlooking the water which links the dining room and the great room.  The  bedrooms comprise a complete wing of the house,  long bands of windows suffuse soft  light throughout  the wing’s hallway,  the master bedroom placed at the end to allow for a private little deck which overlooks the woods of the front yard.  The tray ceiling of  the master bedroom blends down into a unique redwood triangular shape embossed panel  above the bed and the same panel is replicated in the bathroom, perfect for contemplating while taking a long bubble bath. 

This is a house that is so amazing inside that it could be easy to ignore the outside grounds if they too were not spectacular.  Two huge oak trees anchor the mature landscaping, with hollies, azaleas, camillias landscaped through the pines and dogwoods, right  down to the shoreline along Occohannock Creek,  a tidal saltwater inlet from the Chesapeake Bay offering shimmering blue views.

  The dock on the property is perfect for small boats and kayaks,  and the  inlet offers easy access to the Bay and all sorts of fishing, crabbing, etc., all in only about 15 minutes.   The front approach to the home has been landscaped with small white stones which the owner has raked into a labyrinth design,  the contours of the white stones in sharp contrast to the dark pebbles of the circular driveway beyond.   This incredible home is absolutely perfect for anyone seeking a strong contemporary feel in a waterfront environment and is attractively priced at $549,000.  (More info at www.blueheronva.com )

                  

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If You Want To Purchase A Boating Property But Love Horses, On The Eastern Shore Of Virginia You Can Have Both !

Friday, December 3rd, 2010

It seems like more and more,  we are getting  calls from people who are looking for boating real estate on Virginia’s Eastern Shore but who want a property where they can have both a boat dock  in their backyard and horses on the property  as well.   Now in most areas this simply is not possible.  But  on the Eastern Shore of Virginia,  we have a number of opportunities  to buy properties where you can do just that.  I think one of the unique aspects of purchasing property here is that,  unlike so many other waterfront areas where the land has been chopped up into quarter acre lots, or even smaller in many cases,  on Virginia’s Eastern Shore,  many of the available waterfront parcels range from three to six acres in size,  and some are even larger.   These properties with acreage present the perfect scenario for having both a boat pier and a horse on the same property.

Take for example a ten acre parcel we have listed not far from Nassawadox, Virginia.  A  beautiful property,  it features wide water views and easy boating access to the Chesapeake Bay within 10-15 minutes of the property.  The best place to site  a custom home would be at the top of the knoll,  looking down towards the water.  This would offer terrific views and the access to a boat dock would be down a gently sloping path to the shoreline.   A pristine property,  this waterfront acreage is a perfect purchase for a boat lover .   And for a horse lover too  !

Partially wooded and partially open,  this parcel offers  easy conversion of the open area to  good horse pasture.  Fortunately, on this parcel,  as on most of the land in Northampton County,  the soils are excellent sandy loam soils which offer top notch  drainage — nobody wants their horse to have wet feet !   The property also has good depth which keeps the horses  away from the house and away from the water.  ( An important factor in helping maintain clean water would be  keeping  the nutrients from the horse patties from entering the water. )   Attractively priced at $399,000,   this property is ready for a beautiful custom home,  a backyard boat dock  and ,  if desired, offers room for a horse barn and pasture.  So if you want to purchase a boating property but you love horses too,  on Virginia’s Eastern Shore,  you won’t have to choose– you can have them both !   ( Take a peek at the  Farms and Farmettes   listing section on our web page,  www.blueheronva.com ,  to see other  real estate opportunities including beachfront properties where you can also have a horse. )

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An Entertaining Lunch On The Island House Veranda In Watchapreague, Virginia

Saturday, September 18th, 2010

Crabcakes And A View At The Island House Restaurant In Watchapreague, Virginia

Enjoying a meal at the Island House Restaurant in Watchapreague,  Virginia is not merely  about the food.   Definitely not !   Perched at  water’s edge  on Finney  Creek,  a  deepwater inlet from the Atlantic Ocean,  which  languidly winds its way through the emerald  green marshes and  out to  Metompkin Inlet,  a trip to the Island House offers a unique little peek  into  the Seaside on Virginia’s Eastern Shore.   Watchapreaque itself ,  now  a quiet little residential  town with a population of about 300,  was  the site of  the once bustling Hotel  Watchapreague,  now gone,  a well-known resort  frequented by all sorts of celebrities in the early 1900’s.   Now home to a  large private marina with an impressive fleet of charter fishing boats,  greater  ” downtown” Watchapreague also boasts  a town marina,  a marine railway and several  boat ramps,  all catering to those who love the excellent sports fishing and boating  nearby. 

A Toss Up - Eat Or Launch The Boat ?

Clearly,  after a brisk morning  out on the water there are going to be some mighty hungry people  coming ashore looking for  sustenance and who better to provide it than the Island House Restaurant    Needless to say,  it offers seafood of all kinds but specializes  in a  fresh catch of the day as well as local crab, oysters and clams.   My husband and I especially enjoy their delicious clam chowder and crabcake sandwiches,  a perfect lunch harvested from our salty Eastern Shore  waters.  And what better place to eat it than out on the Island House’s large veranda, watching all the activities going on around us.   The restaurant is nestled in between  a boat ramp and Watchapreague’s  largest marina  so there is always lots of interesting stuff  happening on all sides.  Smaller boats being launched at or being pulled out at the adjacent ramp,  little snatches of conversation and laughter floating up,  big  boats gliding  into the marina,  people waving and calling out to each other,  tides rising and falling,  seabirds on the wing  trying to catch a little lunch for themselves.  

 Looking to the horizon,  one gets glimpses of Cedar Island,  ( part of our off-shore  Barrier Island chain,  a United Nations Biosphere)  and also sightings  of what appear to be  boats traveling upon the marsh grass itself.    They are,  of course,  moving in the  water  but because the deep channel  winds through large  expanses of  marsh grass,  when  boats  are landward of Cedar Island,  the illusion is created that they are  floating upon the grass itself, quite an interesting phenomena .   Anyway,  there’s always someone or something to see or hear,  so definitely lunch at the Island House is quite  entertaining as well as tasty.?( http://www.watchapreague.com/theislandhouse.html )

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Looking To Buy Boating Property In Virginia ? Then You Need A Home For Your Boat !

Sunday, August 22nd, 2010

Bayside Marina On King's Creek In The Town Of Cape Charles

For many of our customers looking to buy boating  real estate  on Virginia’s Eastern Shore,  finding a home for their boat is as important  as finding a home for themselves.  Well….nearly.  Being a peninsula , with the Chesapeake Bay to the west and the Atlantic Ocean to the east,  the Eastern Shore of Virginia features mile upon mile of saltwater coastline.  It’s a boater’s dream location !!   From the normally calm waters  of the Chesapeake Bay to the deep swells of the Ocean,  there is a type and depth of water to suit every boater’s requirements.  Our customer’s watercraft range from deep keeled sailboats to kayaks and everything in between including yachts, smaller power boats,  flat bottom scows, pontoon boats and canoes.   And every boater wants to find a nice, comfy home for  their boat.

The three obvious abodes include:   1) A  marina    2) Your own  backyard dock  or   3) On a trailer in your yard   .    Fortunately, the Eastern Shore is well equipped for any and all of those options.  Which option one selects usually depends on boat size and your real estate  budget.

Seaside Marina In The Town Of Willis Wharf

Marinas are an easy choice for any boat owner because they are so convenient and because they can normally accommodate any size boat.   In Northampton County,  two excellent Bayside marinas are located in Cape Charles and  the tiny town of Willis Wharf on the Seaside features a Seaside  marina.  Plus an  86 slip private neighborhood Bayside  marina for residents and guests only   is offered in a tiny community near Cape Charles.  (On the Eastern Shore of Virginia,  the main north-south highway is Lankford Highway, U.S.  Rt. 13.   Everything on the east side of  the highway is referred to as “Seaside” and everything on the west side is referred to as “Bayside”. )   The Bay Creek marina,  located  at the mouth of  King’s Creek as it meets the Chesapeake Bay,   is a new,  full-service,  state of the art facility.   Named by Southern Boating Magazine as  one of its  “Top Ten To Visit”,   it  features floating docks and can accommodate boats up to 150 feet,  with  water,  electricity,  fuel and the Complete Angler,  a  well-stocked marine  store on-site.  Perfect for any boat and within an easy 15-20  minute drive  from almost any property  in Northampton County.  A great home for  boats  !

Berthing Her At Your Backyard Dock

Next place to consider is keeping your boat at your own backyard dock.  This is where the keel meets the water,  so to speak,  because unless your boat’s home  is more important than your own home,   it is critical to match your boat to your property and not vice versa.  Many a customer has come down looking to buy a lot or house on the Eastern Shore of Virginia  thinking they must have at least 3 feet at MLW to accommodate their current  boat.  But then they fell in love with a home that offered only  2 feet at MLW and was not suitable for that particular  boat !  Ah, well … so my advice in these  instances  is that unless one is going to be on the boat more than in the house then it’s better to go the marina route or get a different boat,  one better suited to the backyard home you can provide for it.  Tough advice but someone has to offer it !

A Trailered Boat Goes Everywhere, Fast

Another  very popular option here is to house your boat on a trailer which can be kept in  the yard or garage and pulled  to whichever  spot is hot  that day.  In Virginia,  a boat up to 28 feet can legally be trailered on the highway and a great many very nice boats fit into that  category.  This option is especially popular for those ardent fishermen ( or fisherpersons) who often times want to launch on the Seaside rather than Bayside or the other way round.  Trailering to the preferred boat ramp can save a lot of time and distance.  Fortunately,  we have at least eight different boat launch ramps in Northampton County ranging from the excellent Bayside ramp at Kiptopeake State Park  which puts you right where the Chesapeake Bay and Atlantic Ocean merge  all the way up to  the Seaside ramp at the Willis Wharf marina at the northern end of the county.    Obviously,  home, home on its trailer  is often a good solution too. 

So rest assured,  if you’re  considering buying property on the  Eastern Shore of Virginia and having it as your home port,   there are a lot of good options here for berthing your boat.  And with hundreds upon  hundreds of miles of  Chesapeake Bay,  Atlantic Ocean and saltwater inlets  to cruise,  we are a boater’s dream come true.   Come on ashore,  matey,  and we’ll  show you some  great homes for sale  for both you and your boat !

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Now Is A Great Time To Buy Virginia Real Estate– Come Take Advantage of Virginia’s Eastern Shore Great Real Estate Deals At Today’s Attractive Prices And Amazingly Low Mortgage Rates

Friday, August 6th, 2010

When I think back on my real estate career,  I cannot remember a time when the stars were so favorably aligned for getting both  a fabulous deal  AND  an amazingly low mortgage rate.  (Remembering back to my salad years of the mid- 1970’s,  when prices took a drop then,  mortgage rates were about 12-14%.   The price drops of the early 1990’s  saw mortgage rates of  8-10%. )  One of the advantages of being  “older and wiser”  is that I believe can recognize a great time to buy when I see one.  And I’m seeing one now !

Like most other areas,  the Eastern Shore of Virginia  has  been effected by  the  real estate downturn.  We have had very few  waterfront  home  foreclosures —  attractive short sale opportunities have been more likely.  Since a number of the folks who are purchasing waterfront and water access properties here are doing so for retirement purposes,  a purchase here often necessitates a sale of their primary residence in another state.  And as Sherlock Holmes  would say,  my dear Watson,  it is elementary  that therein problems may arise.  Because,  of course,  many other areas have been quite hard hit and so selling a home elsewhere may take a while.   The  ” I need to sell my home first”  phenomena  has created a current situation where sellers who are motivated may accept offers which are very attractive from  buyers  who are  ready and able  to purchase without having to first sell a property elsewhere. 

Combine a motivated seller with a ready and able buyer and voila !  a prescription  exists for getting a great deal on purchasing a property here.   Which,  of course, explains why buyers who have already sold their home,  or who are purchasing for leisure home use and therefore don’t have to sell  something elsewhere,  are finding some really, really  attractive purchase opportunities !   Combine these great purchase prices  with the amazingly low  mortgage rates ( in the  5%  range  or even somewhat less) and  you can clearly see why buyers are getting the deals of a lifetime,  right  here and right now !!!  So whether you’re looking for a beach house,  a boating property, a historic home,  a water access home or a condo give us a call  at   (757-678-5200) for information about some of our latest and greatest deals on single family homes,  condos or  land parcels —  it really is time to take advantage of the Eastern Shore of  Virginia’s  great real estate deals at  today’s amazingly low mortgage rates !

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Sailing on the Schooner DELIGHT In The 2010 “Parade of Sail”

Thursday, May 13th, 2010

The little tall ship schooner DELIGHT, which has been a fixture for 20 years on the Chesapeake’s horizon off the town beach in Cape Charles, will be the lead vessel in Norfolk’s annual Harborfest Parade of Sail for 2010. For a front and center grandstand seat to view this spectacular annual parade, visit Norfolk’s Town Point Park on Friday, June 11.  The parade starts at noon as the fleet of harbor tugs blasts their steam whistles and sweep the sky with their powerful plumes of sea spray from their fire hoses. If you love sailboats,  Harborfest is an event not to be missed.

Harborfest’s  Parade of Sail  this year was particularly poignant for her Captain and owner,  Dave Kabler,  and her regular crew which carried her through the parade waters into her slip at Waterside Marina.  This was her last year under Capt. Dave’s command as she has been sold to a new owner from Baltimore, MD.  The DELIGHT has sailed in the Great Chesapeake Bay Schooner Race  since 1995, winning her class twice.  Known all over the Bay for her sweet, traditional lines,  DELIGHT was built 40 years ago in the East River of Mobjack Bay in North Carolina  by Thomas E. Colvin who also designed her.

Schooner DELIGHT leads the Parade of Sail for Harborfest 2010

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