Archive for the ‘Fishing’ Category

A Guided Tour of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel Which Connects Virginia’s Eastern Shore to Mainland Virginia

Tuesday, September 27th, 2011

Tuesday, September 6, 2011, promised to be a memorable day what with the tour by our US Coast Guard Auxiliary Cape Charles 12-02 Unit of one of the great engineering marvels of the modern world,  the amazing  17 mile long  Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel complex. Our group gathered at the north end of this transportation wonder which  is so important to the economy of the Eastern Shore of Virginia as it connects our area,  which is the southern tip of the DELMARVA peninsula,  to the mother ship,   mainland Virginia.   There we all were ushered into the wood panelled meeting room of the complex’s Board of Directors and seated in plush leather swivel chairs at an immense, polished mahogany conference table where we were warmly greeted by Mr. Jeff Holland, the executive director of the complex and his assistant Paige Addison.  Jeff took great pains to explain to us the history of the Bridge-tunnel from its inception all the way through its construction, carefully illustrating with a slide show its ground-breaking engineering.  As well, we learned about its ongoing maintenance, its operation, considerations for future improvements, its funding and security issues. As one who has driven across this complex countless times, even during extreme weather events and electrical outages, and even having been rescued by their emergency personnel, I was amazed by the quality and quantity of new information I gathered.

Jeff Holland, Executive Director of the CBB-T, points out the Thimble Shoals Channel of the bridge-tunnel to Milton Hickman, son of a former longtime director of the complex.

Our group was then given toll passes to allow us to travel south over the bridges and through both tunnels to park on the first island near the restaurant and visitor’s center.  Jeff took time to point out the massive construction of the islands and the bridge trestles, and pointing out to us the shipping channels that the underground tunnels span. Observation points on the island afford visitors and travelers an incredible perspective of the mouth of the Chesapeake Bay where it meets the Atlantic Ocean. Also, there is a fishing pier that has special lighting underneath that attracts schools of bait fish to the surface, making the pier a great attraction for fishermen casting from the pier above them.  While we were observing this incredible scene, Jeff pointed out to us a very special ship making her way east through the Thimble Shoals Channel.  She is the USS New York, a US Navy warship, which was built with steel salvaged from the site of the World Trade Center after its destruction on September 11, 2001.  How poignant that we should be touring this facility just a few days before the tenth anniversary of that event  just as  she was passing by.

USS New York passes through the Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel on her way to the tenth memorial anniversary of the destruction of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001.

Next, our group was lead into the garage bay of the island’s ventilation and maintenance building where we were informed by the director of safety, Mr. Jim Davis, of  how the public is protected by their  extensive traffic safety procedures and response to breakdowns and accidents. It seemed that every conceivable emergency has been considered and planned for,  which spoke so highly of the professionalism and dedication of the employees of the Bridge-tunnel.

 

Traffic Safety Director Mr. Jim Davis, in front of fishing pier, explains the complex's focus on safety.Inside the ventilation and control b uilding on the first island.

After a most interesting, as well as reassuring, explanation of the Chespeake Bay Bridge-Tunnels traffic safety and engineering standards, our group was then ushered into the ventilation area where we got our exercise for the day by descending five stories down to the level of the underwater/underground tunnel crossing beneath the Thimble Shoals Channel.  It was explained to us that the tunnels were engineered to allow for open shipping channels into the world’s largest naval base in Norfolk, VA, which could be especially  critical in a time of war.  A bridge could be destroyed and thus block such channels, but not the underground tunnels which would always be open for the Navy’s ships.   Mr. Tee Wells, a superintendent of the facility, escorted us through a steel door in the thick concrete walls that lead us onto the sidewalk in the Thimble Shoals tunnel. The noise of the traffic was amplified and reflected by the tunnels walls,  especially loud when an eighteen wheeler passed by.

Standing on the walkway next to traffic in the Thimble Shoal tunnel.

Re-climbing and catching our breath, our group re-entered the ventilation building with a big sigh of relief.  And then we climbed one more story up where we could walk above the tunnel’s traffic lanes in the ventilation shafts. Ventilating the tunnels is essential to removing the carbon monoxide produced by the traffic and the huge fans exchange the air every few minutes.  Up in the ducts above the tunnels, the space is pitch black dark  but through the vents in the ceiling, we could watch the traffic passing below us!

Finishing our tour of the ventilation works, we then entered the secured control room where an experienced operator is on duty 24 hours a day, all year round.  The operator has at his command a dozen monitors that give him a view of all areas of the tunnel’s roadway,  the ventilation buildings and the parking lots on the island. There we were given an exciting overview about  the complex’s  very high security standards and abilities.  Let’s just say that the war on terror is being fought right here at home and that  this world class transportation facility is right in sync  with detailed guidelines and high standards of terrorism awareness and facility protection.  And after learning so much about the operations of the  Bridge-tunnel complex,  I shall  definitely feel  even more  safe each and every time I cross this increadible engineering achievement.

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Fishing, Just Having Fun, Odds and Ends, Virginia History | No Comments »

Oyster “Buy-Boat” Reunion A Big Hit in Cape Charles, Virginia For The Town’s 125th Anniversary

Tuesday, August 30th, 2011

A wonderful example of Chesapeake Bay maritime know-how!

The first weekend of August this eleventh year of the third millenium proved to be truly memorable for Cape Charles residents and visitors alike.  Jam-packed with activities that began the month-long celebration of our historic Town’s 125th anniversary,  there was something for everyone of all ages to enjoy, including open house tours of several of  Cape Charles’  beautiful historic homes for sale.
The Harbor of Refuge of Cape Charles is,  of course,  no stranger to working watercraft of the Chesapeake Bay. Its first 60 years of service as a transportation hub for the railroad and steamship industries attracted many hundreds of Chesapeake Bay workboats such as log canoes, skipjacks, bugeyes and deadrises that worked the plentiful and famous oyster reefs of the Bay.   Unfortunately,  since the late 1950′s,  the oyster populations in the Bay have declined substantially due to over-harvesting of the resource and decimation by an oyster virus.  Slowly but surely, these wooden workhorses of the Bay have fallen prey to abandonment and rot until there are very few examples of these splendid watercraft left afloat.

A tall bow helps these heavy boats plow through the steep swells of the Chesapeake Bay.

No one wants to glorify the overfishing that in large part caused the decline of this valuable fishery,  the oyster,  a “keystone” species of the Chesapeake Bay watershed but appreciation of the design and construction of these historic wooden watercraft is part of the preservation of the Eastern Shore’s  rich nautical heritage. ( In fact, the not-so-humble oyster was so important to the Shore that over on the Seaside, less than 10 minutes from Cape Charles,  sits the quaint little  town of  Oyster, Virginia. )   Traditionally,  these “buy- boats”  cruised the waters of the Bay, buying oysters and clams,  dredging for oysters and in general hauling lumber, farm produce and other products from the Eastern Shore to market.  Historians believe that there are maybe thirty of these  ”buy-boats”  left in the Chesapeake Bay.  Another that is still known to be afloat is in Honduras in Central America of all places.   A  fleet of twelve buy-boats from as far away as the Sassafras River arrived in the Cape Charles  harbor as a culmination of their weeklong annual cruise reunion.  This is the first time they have visited Cape Charles, as the Town has now completed the installation of  new floating docks which will  accomodate fleets such as this.

The ship's wheel where the captain steers these heavily laden craft safely into port.

The fleet of buy-boats arrived Thursday afternoon and Cape Charles’ Harbormaster Smitty Dize and his hardworking crew were prepared to tie them up on B dock where they could all be observed together by the hundreds of eager fans awaiting their arrival here.  As Blue Heron Realty Co. is an avid supporter of efforts to revitalize the Town of Cape Charles,  we had signed up to sponsor the first Cape Charles Harbor Boat Docking Competition scheduled to take place Sunday afternoon and one of the highlights of the buy-boat reunion here.  So we were invited to the VIP party Thursday evening at the harbor and allowed very easy access to all the buy-boats and their owners, captains and crew.

I was readily invited aboard the buy-boats for first-hand tours, their captains proudly displaying for us fans of Bay Chesapeake maritime heritage their beautifully restored and maintained boats. Pictures really cannot do justice to the beauty and magnitude of these incredible boats. It was more than obvious that owning and maintaining one of these craft is a real sacrifice of time, labor and finances, and the owners that I met expressed without reservation their generous attitude of stewardship in preserving an increasingly rare example of Chesapeake Bay maritime know-how.

The Smith Island Crab Skiff

Friday of that special celebratory weekend brought our first full day of public visitation on these historic watercraft.  Hundreds of new visitors to Town were attracted by this display and to tour some of the beautiful historic homes for sale in Cape Charles.  That night the local band “Quadpod” entertained the crowd and plenty of good, homegrown food was prepared and served.  The next day, Saturday, was anticipated by all as one of the highlights of our month long anniversary celebration with a parade through town by the Shriners and our county fire departments. Then that afternoon, we cruised down to the docks to watch the Smith Island Crab Skiffs Association race around a marked course in the outer harbor.  Now that was some excitement to see these wooden skiffs, hand-built by their owners, no more than 13′  long and powered by 20 hp lawn mower engines,  flying around the course and even capsizing in the water!  Saturday evening brought a beautiful sunset over the horizon of the Chesapeake Bay and we were again entertained late into the night with a live band with everyone looking  forward to the boat docking competition the  following day.

Coming 'round the bend!

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in At the Beach, Boating, Business, Events In Cape Charles, Fishing, Historic Homes, Just Having Fun, Our Little Towns, Real Estate | No Comments »

Eastern Shore’s Independence Day 2011, Cape Charles Style

Wednesday, July 13th, 2011

In towns small and large all across this country, very, very early on the Fourth of July,  organizers are out and about, getting ready for the big parade and after dark, the fireworks.  And the same holds true for the little coastal town of Cape Charles, Virginia,  but with several special twists.   Great fireworks, of course, set off from the Cape Charles harbor, with an audience not only watching from the shore but lots of boats gathered out in the Chesapeake Bay to watch amazing colors bursting high in the night sky.  And there is a parade  but there also is a fishing tournament, beach volleyball tournaments,  an  artisan show  and a corn hole tournament all steeped in the tempting aromas of the food vendors lined up along Bay Avenue.   Squash , broccoli and salads are mysteriously absent but behold the delicious crab cakes, clam fritters,  grilled Italian sausages with onions and bell peppers, hamburgers,  hot dogs and French fries, of course.  Funnel cakes dusted lightly with powdered sugar, ice cream, brilliantly colored snow cones and Italian ices are there in great profusion,  ready to help Cape Charles  celebrate the 4th of July.

Reeling In-- Will It Be The Big One ?

Our first order of the day was the Fishing Tournament– not for adults but for kids, divided into  3 groups,  RED ( up to age  7),   WHITE  (  ages 8-12)  and, you guessed it,   BLUE   (ages 13 to 17).   The Kids 4th of July Fishing tourney is an annual 4th of July event sponsored by the  Northampton County Angler’s Club and its become a very popular event both with the kids and their parents but also with on-lookers, like my husband,  who love seeing kids having fun with something besides their video games and who also love fishing.  The event takes place on the impressive Cape Charles Chesapeake Bay fishing pier down by the beach and Charles Dumouchchelle, the 4 year past present of the Anglers,  was there overseeing all the action, registration,  rod and reel loaners, judges, the lot.   Awards are made by age group, three prizes for each group,  with a first prize of a rod, reel and tackle box.  While I was chatting with Charles, Jim Clark, who Charles describes as one of the best fishermen on the Eastern Shore,  came up to enthusiastically convey the news that his  young grand-nephew Zack had just caught an 18  inch flounder, the biggest catch so far by any age group– clearly  fishing talent runs in the family ! 

Uncle Sam, Cape Charles Golf Cart Style

By this time volleyball and horseshoes were  gearing up but I was a little hot.  After grabbing a couple of deliciously cold lemon Italian ices,  we  headed for Blue Heron Realty’s  Mason Avenue office for a little AC prior to taking a stroll down the street to see some of the art work on display along the sidewalk.  Just  about 2pm the parade kicked off with the Color Guard from the Cape Charles Coast Guard Station leading the way, marching in quick step down Mason Avenue and around and down Bay Avenue, throngs of on-lookers cheering them on, then the American Legion float,  followed by the Golf Cart Parade and the Bicycle Parade.  Cape Charles is one of the few towns in Virginia where golf carts are street legal and lots of residents enjoy ” going green”  and  zipping around town in their electric golf cart  rather than a gas powered car. Every year,  as part of the 4th of July celebration, the town sponsors a golf cart parade.  Owners can decorate their cart and enter it into the Parade contest and I’ve seen some very creative designs entered.  The golf cart contingent was followed by the Bicycle Parade– kids of all ages can gather down near the  Fire Station on Plum Street to participate in the parade, riding their bikes, some still with training wheels, all the way down Mason Avenue and  Bay Avenue, learning at an early age that in a democracy, participation is important.  So,  a long day but full of  fun, food, fireworks– an Eastern Shore Independence Day,  Cape Charles style.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in At the Beach, Boating, Entertainment, Events In Cape Charles, Fine and Casual Dining, Fishing, Just Having Fun, Our Little Towns | No Comments »

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 )

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in Boating, Fine and Casual Dining, Fishing | No Comments »

Crabbing in Cape Charles

Monday, May 10th, 2010

 

If you’ve never been crabbing come on down to the Eastern Shore of Virginia and give it a try.  It’s so easy to do and the results are truly delicious.  Our area, where the Atlantic Ocean merges with the Chesapeake Bay,  is a prime spot for catching these succulent blue beauties.  People are saying this is a bumper year for Blue Crab in the Chesapeake Bay!  So come on down, grab your bait,  your crab scooper nets,  a pail to hold your catch, being an optimist I’d bring a large pail, and you’re ready to go.  Crab from a boat or for great crabbing without a boat, try either the new fishing pier at Cape Charles or the larger fishing pier at Kiptopeake State Park.  Either way you will end up with some delicious  crab au gratin dinners.

NewsArticle

Posted in Fishing, Regional Foods & Wine | No Comments »