Beautiful sail with the Pride of Baltimore II in background.

That’s Ben in the foreground with the gray hat.  Behind him to the right is Colleen and her significant other, Ryan at the helm.  Mary and Jeff are on the left.

The unexpected treat was seeing the Pride of Baltimore II.  The Pride is at least twice our size, but her rig is the same.  We are both schooners.  Pride’s design replicates the fast vessels that were built between 1812 and 1830.  Our design was popular between 1920 and 1940.  Mary took the helm as we pass the skipjack Stanley Norman which was built in 1902.  She is actually a working vessel built to dredge for oysters.  She is now owned by Save the Bay Foundation, but still is dredging, but releases what she catches and her captain and crew teach their guests about the environment of the Chesapeake Bay.

Mary at the helm. Stanley Norman in background.

Stanley Norman built in 1902.

Pride of Baltimore II

30+ knots of breeze on the Woodwind

So there we were getting ready to do maintenance on the boat because we had no people signed up when up walked Bob and his brother Jim.” I’d Rather Be Sailing”, I think I’ve seen that bumper sticker somewhere. Well that was our attitude and off we went with just the 2 brothers. The winds were brisk and from the West so we headed out toward the Thomas point lighthouse.

The winds picked up and we saw gusts in the 30′s and the boat was flying along at 10+ knots, WOW.

Sailing along at 10 knots toward Thomas Point Light house

We had a wonderful sail all the way past the lighthouse and back. This was Bob’s 1st trip on our boat but Jim had been out with us before on one of our sunset sails and Boat and Breakfast packages. It was a pleasure to have you both aboard!!

Our next sail we headed toward the bay bridge and Captain Corbin took a turn at the wheel. He was fantastic and kept us in front of all the other boats on the bay and we won the race back to Annapolis. Good Job Corbin!!

Captain Corbin steering the Schooner Woodwind

Our last sail of the day was a group charter and again we headed toward the bay bridge and had and encounter with Woodwind II on there sail. We made it under the bridge and back. The sunset was again fantastic over the city of Annapolis.

Woodwind II at the Bay Bridge

Sailing the Woodwind II alongside Woodwind

You’ve heard people say, “I never explore what’s in my own backyard”. Tonight, we took out many local, downtown businesses through the Annapolis Business Association and Bricks and Clicks organization for them to explore their own backyard.

We had about 30 people join us for a two hour sunset sail to the Bay Bridge and back. The winds were blowing around 20-25 knots, so we put up a reefed main and the jib. The sky was beautiful and the day a little chilly. Woodwind was also out sailing around with a fully catered, private event.

Many folks took a turn at the helm, and were amazed how fun it was to sail the Woodwind II.  And the buzz around the boat was, why don’t we do things that are right here in Annapolis?  This is beautiful, relaxing and rejuvenating.

Sunset on the Annapolis Skyline

The best part of the cruise? Sailing together with Woodwind under the bridge, and the magnificent sunset right on the city skyline. It reminds us all why we love Annapolis and chose to work here in this wonderful city!

Photo by Stephen Bryson of Harlan, Kentucky

Photo by Dave Smith of San Francisco, CA

Photo by Brock Graham of Old Saybrook, Connecticut

Photo by Holly Wootten of Woodbridge, VA

Mother’s Day on the Woodwind

What a great way to spend the day. Bring your mom out for sailing and a nice brunch to boot. That is what everyone did yesterday.

We had awesome sailing all day with winds from 15 to gusts of 30 knots.

We sailed with only a reefed main and jib all day but the sailing  was still exciting.

Our 1st sail of the day was our Mother’s Day Brunch sail and we were completely sold out. We sailed over to Kent Island under jib only till everyone was stuffed and then we hoisted the main and sailed up to the Bay Bridge. We had several frequent sailors out for the day. One was celebrating her birthday. Martina comes out several times a year and has a turn steering the boat each time.

Martina’s Bday Trip on Woodwind

Happy Birthday Martina!!!

Our last 2 sails of the day were also exciting. We shook out one reef on the main and sailed with main and jib alone and were able to get under the bay bridge and back on both our 4:00 and 6: 30 sails.

Chesapeake Bay Bridge… on The Woodwind

We were treated to another spectacular Annapolis sunset on our way in from our last sail. My 1st of the season and looking forward to many more!!

Sunset over Annapolis from the Schooner Woodwind

Going through the buffet line on the Schooner Woodwind II for Mother’s Day Brunch.

What a terrific Mother’s Day. The wind was howling and the sky was absolutely clear. Terrific day for sailing! Having Mother’s Day Brunch? Maybe the conditions were not ideal due to the high winds, but all of the guests had a terrific time and raved about the food. The salmon and beef were amazing, were the most noted comments.

We sailed both the 10:00 Brunch and the 1:30 Sail with a reefed main and just the jib. Many folks took the turn at the wheel, including a bunch of younger, super interested kids.

Enjoying the Day with Thomas Point Lighthouse in the Background

On the Brunch we managed to sail past Thomas Point Lighthouse and still make it back to the dock on time. We saw this big sloop sailing by, it must have been a 100-footer.

It was great having all the moms aboard and making their day extra special. Thanks for taking the helm and telling me the stories! I loved it!

Big sloop sails by

Tony Lucca singing on the Schooner Woodwind

It has been over two and a half years that we have had Tony Lucca sing and perform on the Schooner Woodwind. A lot has happened since then, like he became the finalist on “The Voice” representing team Adam.  He also has a new CD coming out in June or July. Then he will get ready for his big tour with Maroon 5 and Kelly Clarkson.

When I got the call that he wanted to come for 2 back-to-back shows, I was ecstatic! We decided upon a sunset sail on Friday night and a brunch cruise on Saturday.

Friday’s and Saturday’s show started with his soon to be released single. He then played favorites and requests from the small, intimate audience. He also talked about “The Voice” and shared some very interesting insight into the show and the process. He played only a few covers and really stuck to his originals, which was what the crowd enjoyed.

Tony Lucca jammin’ on the Woodwind!

There were three things that amazed me… one was how far people came from to be on the Woodwind for these performances. We had folks from Alabama, Tennessee,  Virginia, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. Many folks made an entire weekend in Annapolis  including attending the  Pat McGee/Matt Duke show at Ram’s Head.

Captain Jen and Tony Lucca

The second thing that amazed me was how great the music sounded. This was a totally acoustic show. The creek that we chose was nice and quiet, so the sound echoed beautifully. One couple commented to me that they felt so privileged to experience such a lovely 3 hours.

The other thing was how gracious and sincere Tony is. He is one of the most genuine people I have met. A truly wonderful person.

Both shows ended with a terrific, hour long sail back into the harbor under full sail. Tony sailed the boat in on the sunset sail, and help raised sails on the morning sail.

Keep a look out, we may be announcing more terrific talent coming soon. In the meantime, join us for Local Musician Night every Thursday on the Schooner Woodwind.

Photos from the cruises