Saturday, August 25, 2012

Sailing on a Movie Star -The Schooner Woodwind II in Annapolis, MD



A couple of weeks ago, my husband, daughter and I had the privilege of sailing aboard The Schooner
Woodwind II in Annapolis, MD. It was a perfect day for sailing and it was the perfect boat to sail on!

The Woodwind is a beautiful, 74-foot wooden schooner with tall, majestic sails and it just so happens to be a movie star to boot, having been featured in "Wedding Crashers." It is available for public and private cruises every day of the week, with the public cruises lasting 2 hours.

We drove to Annapolis from Leesburg, VA for the 4 o'clock public cruise and thanks to Northern Virginia traffic, we ended up stuck on the highway and made it to the boarding dock with literally two minutes to spare!

Thank God we made it in time to board because the 6 o'clock sunset cruise was booked up. And we really would have missed out on an amazing time if we had not been able to sail!

We set off from the harbor of Annapolis with at least a dozen other people and immediately took notice of the Naval Academy. I grew up in Annapolis and spent almost every weekend boating, many times by the Naval Academy and harbor, so this was like coming home to me.



One of the best parts about sailing on The Woodwind is that you get to be part of the crew by either helping to hoist the sails or steer the boat if you wish. My husband Matt was the first to hoist a sail with a few others and then I got to take a turn:



My daughter Natalie took the helm toward the end of the sail and she had such a blast!


There was another child who steered us for awhile too. I love that they let children take an active role in sailing the boat!

Here's video of Natalie navigating us through the wake of a very large speed boat:



It made my husband and I very happy to see Natalie enjoying herself so much and we were definitely loving every minute ourselves!



The winds were strong enough that we were able to sail all the way out to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Some days, the wind is strong enough to sail as far as the Thomas Point Lighthouse, another favorite place from my childhood boating memories.




During the sail, we were able to look at a photo album filled with pictures from the filming of "Wedding Crashers" and it was very cool to see that Owen Wilson, Vince Vaughn, Rachael McAdams, Isla Fisher, Jane Seymour, and Christopher Walken all sailed on the same boat that we were on.
From left: Vince Vaughn, Owen Wilson and Rachael McAdams

Christopher Walken "steering" the boat (see Captain Jen steering it for real from below).

Isla Fisher and Vince Vaughn

We may not have been on the sunset cruise, but the sun was setting as we headed back to the harbor, and it was stunningly beautiful to see it on the water!



Here's a video that shows just how perfect the winds were and how much fun it was to sail on the Woodwind (note the "pirate ship" in the distance).

 
 
As you can hear from Rena, who is part of the Woodwind crew, a complimentary beverage (soda or water) is part of your sail for the public cruise and a cash bar is available as well. There are lots of local beers to choose from and you also receive a complimentary snack.

If you live in the DMV area or are planning to visit, I highly recommend a sail on board the Schooner Woodwind II! It's a perfect activity for birthdays, anniversaries, date night, etc.

Check out the Schooner Woodwind website for more information on booking, events, pricing and more. You can find them on Facebook and Twitter as well.

Disclosure: My family and I received a complimentary sail to facilitate this review, but opinions stated are never influenced by comp products/events.
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7 comments

Anonymous said...

This has a swashbuckling feel to it as the crew are sailing for pleasure with their skills. So different from the honeymoon packages fiji we took. I wanna try this and pilot a ship.

doris alonso said...

These boats are really good for travel on water with the family. I find I found so much long island used boats that are so much similar to this.

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

It's always good to capture great memories like that with my Canon Cameras. However, I'd minimize the exposure to the salty air. I heard it could ruin gadgets.

Unknown said...

I would love to hoist the sails or steer the boat. The same boat, to be specific. I missed the sea because I haven't gone with my dad on the ship for too long.

Anonymous said...

I hope this regularly undergoes a rigging inspection so they could keep the good quality of the sail boat! - Grace Aston

Unknown said...

I love sailing. I'm actually pretty excited to for our boats spray hood installation to be done and over with so that we can start our voyage again.

Best,
Mischna Ong

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