We spent a picture-perfect November weekend last week at the Oyster Festival in Urbanna. The cottage we have rented on Urbanna Creek for the last 15 or so years was no longer available, but we booked a cottage on Jackson Creek in Deltaville and made the 20-mile drive to and from. The views of the sunrise on the creek with the sailboats bobbing in the water, by the way, were beyond … [Read more...]

The corn maze is open again. Liberty Mills Farm has set aside 34 acres for a cornfield maze, one of the largest of its kind. The Maze is open for exploration on Saturdays from 10 to 6 and Sunday from 10 to 5. There are four separate trails ranging from “Anyone can do this” to “Where the hell are we?” You can purchase your tickets ahead of time on-line or at the Farm at Somerset. The hay wagon … [Read more...]

I am not a big fan of going to concerts – even at JPJ and especially not to 22,000 seat venues such at the Jiffy Lube Stadium in Northern Virginia. But I am a huge fan of Pentatonix. We own all their Christmas CDs. They are an amazing group of acapella singers. When we found out that they would be performing just 80 miles north, we got tickets - third row, middle seats in the orchestra section … [Read more...]

  After a few wonderful days in a delightful cottage just off the Piankatank River, Nancy and I have decided that this area may very well take the place of the Outer Banks in our quest to breathe saltwater air. For starters, it’s 2 hours and 10 minutes, not 5 hours or more if the traffic is bad in Hampton. You could leave after work and arrive in time for dinner. It’s also a little less … [Read more...]

  It’s come full circle. The man who most influenced my love of fly fishing (and subsequent careers as a sport shop owner and outdoor writer) has now touched the life of Laura, my fly-fishing daughter. In the late 60’s and early 70’s, fly shops were as scarce as possums that looked both ways before crossing a road. Yet, that’s when I caught a severe case of fly fishing and fly-tying … [Read more...]

  Nancy and I have been married a long time. Claudius was Emperor of Rome when we tied the knot. We have long passed the Gold and Diamond Anniversaries and are now in the Moon Rocks of Venus category – and Andrew Minton Jewelry has sold out of Venusian Moon Rock Rings. So, for this year’s anniversary we’re going to Jamaica, Mon’. I didn’t know much about Jamaica except it’s warm, even … [Read more...]

  It is Virginia’s finest trout stream. Period. Not only is the stream heavily and frequently stocked, but it also has a large population of native and holdover fish including some alligator sized browns. So, it’s probably difficult to access with all those trout? Not in the least. In fact, it is one of the most easy-to-fish streams in the Commonwealth with miles and miles of fishable … [Read more...]