Captain Mike was great! Knew all of the bald eagles and their friends. Fun 2 hours! Highly…read morerecommend

This is a review for Captain Mike's private eagle tour…read more My fiancee's family and I booked a 2 hour private eagle tour this recent week and it was one of the most fantastic experiences I've had in Richmond! Our tour started bright and early at 7:30 AM out of a private yacht club dock on Captain Mike's pontoon boat. He provides everything you'll need for the trip from water for hydration, binoculars for avian viewing, and blankets if you decide to not dress warm enough. There is easily seating for at least 6 on the boat itself. There are restrooms right by the dock as well. Mike as a tour guide was fantastic. There's a difference between simply knowing what you're talking about versus being truly passionate about it, and Mike is absolutely the latter. Our tour brought us through 5 resident eagle territories (eagle pairs are extremely territorial and rarely cross boundaries), and Mike knew the names, history, boundaries, and interesting quirks about each pair. We saw at least one eagle from all of the pairs, and half of the time both the male and the female. He is also very knowledgeable about many of the other birds on the river like osprey, herons, cormorants, and kingfishers. Mike also keeps a stash of fish on the boat to feed the eagles and bring them in close. I knew we would see eagles on the tour, but I no idea that we'd be maybe 20 feet from them. There's a big difference between seeing one in a tree or a zoo versus seeing one swooping down in front you scooping up a fish to bring back to a tree or their nearby nest. It's really quite a breathtaking experience. The stretch of river itself is nice in its own right as well. If for some weird (and wrong) reason that you're not interested in learning about the majestic birds of the river, you could just sit back and enjoy a nice boat ride down the James. The site lists the details and cost of the tour if you wanted to read more about it. The private tour is about $300 for two hours for up to a group of six people. In my opinion it is absolutely worth it. There's a wealth of knowledge to learn about from Captain Mike, and everything was just a great experience. Absolutely recommend.

Amazing group of guys. Extremely knowledgeable and incredibly helpful. Nate, Tyler, and William are…read morereally great. I'm so happy I get to learn from them. Jim the owner is outstanding! I can't wait to learn all I can from him.

Buckley was an incredible instructor. He has tons of patience and really gets your motivated.read more

Dave helped me get my Open Water Diving Certification for an upcoming trip that I have planned. He…read morewas extremely nice to everyone in the group, and ensured that we were all excited to do the training. He took his time to ensure that each of us was thoroughly trained at each step. I would highly recommend Dave and the rest of his crew.

Just completed my Open Water Certification. Fantastic!…read more Dave and Gray were awesome instructors. Lots of dives, lots of learning. Always knew what we were doing, how we were doing, and gaining confidence thru the process. Want to dive, first call should be to Dave and Get Down Scuba.

Hands down my favorite park in the area! It's always well kept with great parking, a really good…read morespot to launch a boat or to go for a walk!

Deep Bottom Park is one of those places that I never would have visited had the bf not discovered…read moreit on one of his kayaking adventures. We decided to take the scanoe (yes, a scanoe, not a canoe. it's a canoe with a square back) out last weekend and the bf's destination of choice was Deep Bottom Park. It's not the most scenic place in the world, but it fulfilled its purpose for us. There were a few picnic tables, but I'd really only go back to use the boat ramp again. The bathrooms are really nice, though. I was pleasantly surprised by the cleanliness- clearly someone's on top of the upkeep and it shows. A number of other boats were out on the water while we were there, along with at least one jetskier. We also saw a few people fishing off of the docks, so it seems like this boat launch is probably a fairly popular spot. If you're looking for a place semi-close to downtown, with relatively calm water and a decent boat launch, this park is worth a shot.

We rented a pontoon boat for a large family outing (9 adults and 1 child). Cody and his team…read morecouldn't have been nicer or easier to deal with. They had to boat hosed down and ready to go and even used their wagon to help get our cooler down to the boat. We had so much fun and can't wait to rent from them again soon

Attention antique car owners. They have non-ethanol gasoline, which is virtually non-existent in…read morethe metro Richmond area. Ethanol causes significant damage to antique car engines (not to mention your lawnmower, weed-whacker and other small engines). It is a pleasant little road trip out Route 5 and then over the river to the marina. But bring your 5 gallon gas can.

We headed to Huguenot Flatwater last night to do some kayaking with our group. It is very easy to…read morefind, and there is a small parking lot there. I can see it being frustrating to find a spot as it gets closer to boating season though. I was not a fan of the boat launch area, it's design was not very user friendly for easily getting into your kayak. You have to step off a ledge into your boat, or use the small muddy area to load and push off. The point it puts you into the river is great though, and you can go left for a nice paddle up to Bosher's Dam.

During this crazy time of Covid and politics, our priorities have shifted from dining out…read morefrequently, to attempt a more healthy lifestyle of cooking most meals at home, and seeking out alternative sources of entertainment, ones that permit us to breathe in fresh air, enjoy what nature has to offer, and maintain social distancing. So, after visiting a few terrific Virginia State parks, renting kayaks, we decided that this would be something we would like to do regularly, and purchased our own boats. How many times have you crossed Huguenot bridge and thought, oh neat, look at the people kayaking, what fun? Yea, that has been me for years. So we decided to check out the Huguenot Flatwater put-in area and while it is a challenge, it is doable. By this, I mean, it is CRAZY steep, there is a ramp that the "fit and brave" smaller and experienced kayaker can attempt. For us, we carried our kayaks down the steps and were able to launch from there with relative ease. The main issue we had, was that it got super busy, and it was really noisy with the constant sound of vehicles on the bridge. We paddled down river for a bit but decided to play it safe and head back up river so we could float back and were not fighting the current and didn't get too worn out. When we were about ready to head back in, there were so many people trying to put in, that people were having to wait to get out. And then a bus load from a tour company came and we decided to head over to where a trail end let out on the river, decided it was safe, and we carried our kayaks through the trail and back to our car. Not far. The "coolness" and novelty of urban kayaking wore off within 5 minutes of being in the river. It wasn't peaceful at all, but we did get a decent workout and enjoyed the views. We will definitely continue to seek out different places to kayak, and kudos to those who love the adrenaline of being in that environment. I personally just prefer more quiet and fewer people.

We greatly enjoyed our experience at Brambly Park! Trey was our excellent server, who helped make…read moreit so great! Our cocktails and antipasti were delicious, and the space was delightful. I also liked that they had a parking lot, where we were able to find a space (twas close to full, though).

Such a wonderful place to hangout with the girls to grab some drinks and snack on some apps,…read moreespecially on a nice day! Trey was very helpful with our decision on an antipasti board size and was able to answer our questions about what came on it. 10/10 we're keeping this place in mind for our next girl trip!!!

So i went to rva on a whim. I booked the ghost tour not expecting much. I got sooo much out of it…read more My guide was lexi. She dressed in full historical costume. I was like yeahhhh. Ok so we go on the tour we learned so many things. Richmond is full of historical gems. Also filled with history we are not proud of like the hanging gardens or the Craig house. We got alot of knowledge from lexi. The cobble stone in road was also explained. I would do the extended tour if you can. And the tour ends right by the bar area. You can grab a drink after. I loved my ghost tour.

Took the walking tour with 3 adults and 3 teens. Love the history and unique insight into…read moreRichmond's past. Wendy was awesome, would recommend!