Things to Do in Mechanicsville

Surreywood Swim & Tennis Club's layout is reminiscent of a summer camp, with outdoor swimming pools and a volleyball court surrounded by towering trees, picnic areas, and shaded playgrounds. The club's three pools include a guarded general-purpose pool with two diving boards; a six-lane, 25-meter competition lap pool; and an unguarded toddler pool with an arbor for shade. Here, swimming lessons help little ones feel more comfortable in the water without Mom and Dad or a personal bodyguard. Five lighted competitive tennis courts offer exercise enthusiasts the chance to practice their sport even when the sun goes down, and a sand volleyball court makes the most of warm weather.

The burner roars to life and inflates a nine-story-tall balloon, hoisting a basket aloft into air currents just above the treetops. Cradled in the basket alongside a Federal Aviation Administration–licensed commercial pilot, passengers look out upon panoramic views of forests and rolling open countryside. They drift along, breathing in the perfume of flowers below and catching glimpses of deer foraging for leaves, eagles rising on thermals, and foxes prowling the woods. The pilot eventually lands the balloon on firm ground and passengers are transported to the balloon port, where they pause for photo opportunities, disembark, and celebrate with a postflight complimentary champagne toast.

Whether leading visitors on regular tours of the countryside like these or undertaking large-scope marketing projects to espouse Virginia’s charms, Balloons Over Virginia, Inc. maintains a strong sense of pride for their state. For example, for several years its staff piloted the crimson-and-white "Virginia is for Lovers" balloon on low flights throughout North America. Staffers extend their aerial-navigation skills to outdoor events as well, where they slowly fly attendees up to 100 feet in the air on rope-tethered aerostats. They also head to classrooms to teach balloon-related math, science, and aviation history before taking students on a brief balloon voyage.

At the Aqua-Tots in Richmond, experienced and encouraging instructors unlock aquatic territory for youth and adults while following a national curriculum recognized by the United States Swim School Association. They maintain a teacher to student ratio of 1:4 in their small group lessons, which last 30 minutes and sort pupils into eight swim levels, letting wee ones get used to splashing at their own pace and more experienced swimmers work on remembering which of an octopus’s tentacles to shake upon acquaintance. They also welcome special needs children into their Adaptive Aquatics Program and invite grown-ups in for adult lessons.

Aqua-Tots facilitates comfortable, safe learning with a modern facility whose pool contains 90-degree water even when the snow is falling. The center’s parent lounge lets progenitors watch lessons from behind a glass wall and browse the internet with free WiFi, and a play area entertains whippersnappers while their siblings are paddling.

In 1784, George Washington stood before the Virginia General Assembly, lobbying for a canal system that would connect the James River to the Ohio River via the Kanawha River. His vision began to materialize in 1789, when construction began on the canals, leading to further westward expansion and the canals becoming a hub of American history. Today, the guides of River District Canal Cruises lead both public tours and private charters through the canal system, unveiling its storied past to passengers. The Canal Walk, for example, teems with historic significance, from hosting the world’s first successful electric streetcar system to having one of the world’s last functioning triple main-line railroad crossings. Throughout each tour, the boat’s cover keeps guests comfortable by providing shade and deflecting falling satellites.

River City Rafting, a whitewater outfitter, showcases the beauty of the James Rivers’ rapids and relaxing stretches through its guided trips. Its guides have traversed rivers such as the Ocoee, the Gauley, and the Colorado, gathering the experience that makes them savvy aquatic leaders and excellent fish impersonators. Rafting trips swirl through up to Class IV waters, though some stick to smaller-scale rapids. Tubing trips, alternatively, peruse the river’s more leisurely segments.

From the outside, fly-fishing looks like an art form, with anglers harnessing the flowing, lasso-like cast framed by tree-lined mountainsides and a rock-strewn stream. But for Andrew Stiles, a fly-fisherman with more than 40 years of experience on waters around the world, a wealth of technical details supersedes this romanticized image—the physics of casting line that weighs more than the lure, the entomology of matching flies with the season's insects, the leverage required to land a 150-pound tarpon on 12-pound tackle.

This passion for both teaching and fly-fishing drives Andrew to impart his knowledge by instructing anglers all over the world. Locally, he teaches classes at John Tyler Community College and Randolph-Macon College with a curriculum modeled on the teachings of George Harvey, who developed the first accredited college fly-fishing course at Penn State in 1947. Andrew's international teaching experience includes instructing at the Euroclave Federation of Fly Fishing / Danish Fly Fishing Festival in Denmark, as well as virtually coaching clients as far away as Australia through Skype. He also develops tailored video lessons and posts a YouTube series for beginners. Throughout all of this, Andrew upholds the high standards of a fly-casting instructor certified through outdoor organizations such as the Federation of Fly Fishers.

When not teaching, Andrew travels the world, applying his tactics—such as his specialty in the double-haul method—to waters that range from the mangrove flats of Florida to the trout streams in England. “If you’re fishing for trout, you’re going to be in some of the most pristine waters in the world,” he says. An expert in fly tackle, he can also appraise antique fly outfits unearthed from attics, basements, and the forgotten prop storage units of A River Runs Through It.