Copied from, Virginia Knits

On Saturday, May 17th at the Heathsville Farmer's Market, the Northern Neck Spinners and Weavers Group will be holding a fleece to shawl demonstration. The demonstration will begin at 8:30 and conclude either when we are done or 4 p.m. whichever comes first.

We hope to finish before 4…

We will be demonstrating and teaching how to flick and comb wool, spin it on both wheels and spindles and weave the finished singles into a shawl.

The shawl, once completed, will be donated to the Hughlett Inn - Rice's Tavern organization for either a raffle or auction to benefit this teaching and historic preservation organization.

What makes this fleece to shawl demonstration unique is that any visitor interested in participating will be brought in, handed and spindle with some fleece and taught how to spin. Your resulting yarn will be incorporated into the shawl.

That same day at the Farmer's Market they are also celebrating Crab Crawl and will feature food, organic vegetables, locally grown plants, local crafts persons, and more. The Blacksmith shop will be open and the members of that guild will be doing blacksmithing demonstrations next door to where we will be spinning and weaving.

Sunday, April 20, 2008

Contact Information

Mark Huffman

President

MediaMax

804-456-0052

mark@northernnecktoday.com

Virginia’s Northern Neck, bordered by the Potomac and Rappahannock rivers and Chesapeake Bay, has increasingly drawn retirees who enjoy the peaceful setting and hassle-free lifestyle. Now, the Northern Neck Tourism Council is making it easier for people contemplating retirement to take a first hand look.

The council is sponsoring its first “Northern Neck Pre-Retirement Tour” May 17, 2008, in conjunction with the Fourth Annual Kilmarnock Crab Festival.

“Folks who are thinking about where they want to live when they retire will have the opportunity to see what we have to offer that weekend,” said NNTC President George Beckett.

Beckett said the “tour” is self-guided, but Council volunteers will provide information, literature about the area, and answer questions. Visitors will then set out to visit the region’s museums, farmers’ markets, wineries and other attractions.

“We chose to hold our first tour during the Crab Festival because it’s a great introduction to the culture of the Northern Neck,” Beckett said.

The Crab Festival, initiated by Kilmarnock businessman Shawn Donahue, celebrates the local watermen’s culture. It features crafts, art exhibits, food and entertainment.

“This year we have added lots of live entertainment, so it should be bigger and better than ever,” Donahue said.

The festival begins Friday evening, May 16 and resumes Saturday May 17 for a full day of activities.

“On Saturday, our volunteers will be set up in the festival’s Welcome Center,” Beckett said. “We invite people to drop by and pick up a map, our Tourism Guide, and a suggested itinerary of things to do.”

“Both the Crab Festival and the Pre-Retirement Tour are great ways to meet the other people who live here, and decide whether you might one day also want to make the Northern Neck your home,” Donahue added.

The Northern Neck is made up of four rural counties, but is as close as an hour away from Richmond, Virginia and as close as 90 minutes from Washington, DC.

Easter weekend was cool here in the Northern Neck. The days before we had tempertures in the 70's but late Saturday night a front came through and bought the cooler tempertures.

Trees have started to bloom as well as some flowers. The water temperature has warmed so it won't be long before crabs start to run and the fish start biting.

Take a weekend and ride down to experience the beauty property owners have here in the Northern Neck and if you like what you see then give me a call and we'll see if we can't find you that perfect piece of Northern Neck Real Estate.

Tougher crabbing limits are set in Virginia

Harsher restraints may come in April if numbers worsen, say regulators

Copied from the Times Dispatch. These regs will make it much rougher on Northern Neck and Chesapeake Bay crabbers. 

By LAWRENCE LATANE III

TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

NEWPORT NEWS — State regulators passed new limits on the blue crab harvest and promised more to come after a bleak public hearing on the economically important species yesterday.

The measures enacted unanimously by the Virginia Marine Resources Commission are expected "to go a long way towards restoring this iconic resource for the commonwealth," commissioner Steve Bowman said.

Watermen packed the commission's meeting room and complained that water pollution — not harvest — has driven the crab population to its lowest point in decades.

"In this context of a declining ecosystem, today's fishing is tomorrow's overfishing," said Williamsburg waterman Kelly Place.

Many of the eight commissioners agreed but said the only tools immediately available to improve crab numbers are mandatory restrictions that will leave more crabs in the water to multiply.

Rules approved yesterday will go into effect on the March 17 opening of this year's crabbing season.

They include a requirement for watermen to leave two escape hatches open in all crab pots no matter where they are set. Previously, watermen crabbing in the mainstem of the bay and parts of the Eastern Shore had been able to crab legally with only one of the escape hatches open.

The hatches allow undersized crabs, especially small females, to avoid capture. Called cull rings, the hatches were mandated in 1996 when the commission enacted a series of 22 measures designed to reduce fishing pressure on blue crabs.

Last year, a commission study panel concluded the early restrictions had failed to buoy the crab population. It recommended that new conservation measures be implemented this spring.

The study panel said crab numbers have plunged 70 percent since 1991 and pointed out that the crab population is so low it has been overfished seven out of the past 10 years.

The commission said it needs to wait until its April 22 meeting to consider even harsher restraints on crab harvesting.

A Chesapeake Bay census of hibernating blue crabs is expected by April 1; scientists fear it may show the crab in even deeper trouble.

If the survey is as bad as expected, the commission will consider reducing by half the number of crab pots that watermen can fish for both hard crabs and "peelers," which produce high-priced soft crabs.

The commission also voted unanimously yesterday to advertise for public hearing at its April meeting a measure to curtail or close Virginia's historic winter crab dredge fishery. Totaling more than 300 boats a couple of decades ago, the fleet has shrunk to 55 this year because of declining catches, low prices and rising boat operating costs.

Watermen told the commission that they are as endangered as the crab seems to be.

"You're putting us out of business," said Tangier Island waterman Charles Pruitt.

But Bowman said doing nothing puts the crab population in danger of collapse. "If something is not done, I fear you won't have any crabs to deal with later on."
Contact Lawrence Latané III at (804) 333-3461 or llatane@timesdispatch.com.

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