The House:
Mallard House was designed as a place to entertain and relax in combination. It is a spacious retreat that allows mobility and plenty of room for family and friends. The gourmet kitchen is stocked with dinnerware, utensils, etc. to serve up to 20 guests. There are plenty of cookware, serving platters, wine & champagne buckets, crock pots and even an ice cream maker. The kitchen also has a wine cooler to store your favorite pinot grigio from Ingleside Winery or other local wineries. The microwave doubles as a speed cook for quick breads, snacks and even small meals. The warming drawer helps keep food hot while compiling your meals.
The dining area has a large oak table that can seat up to 14 guests comfortably and still hold generous trays of food. There are several televisions with DVD players around so different tastes in movies and television favorites can be accommodated. The recreation room on the lower level has a smaller table that is great for games and cards.
The Water:
The property is really located at the mouth of three bodies of water -- the Lower Machodoc Creek, the Potomac River and the Chesapeake Bay which translates into breathtaking, panoramic views of the water. There is always a great breeze so sailing around this area is almost always good.
You can swim off of the dock and the water is closer to fresh than salt as this is really the creek. The water is not terribly deep at the ladder and gets much more shallow as you walk back toward shore. When the tide is low, one can always find sharks' teeth, oyster shells and sting-ray teeth on the shore below the barricade.
Kayak or canoe up the Lower Machodoc and you'll find lots of small coves full of birds and other wildlife. Bring your boat and put it on our lift and take a trip up the Potomac to 'Sharks' Tooth Island or the Westmoreland State Park to search for shells, sharks' teeth and other sea treasures.
The Location :
The Northern Neck is a beautiful and intriguing part of Virginia. There are scores of small villages around that make for interesting shopping trips. There are a surprising number of really good restaurants in the area if you don't mind a short scenic drive and there is locally-grown produce available at several nearby stands.
Mallard House is still close enough to Washington, DC for day visits and provides a much-needed haven of relaxation after a busy day of sightseeing in our Nation's Capital. Visits to Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown are only about 2 hours away by car and it's actually a very pleasant and easy journey to and from these locations. For the kids, Kings Dominion, Bush Gardens and Wolf Lodge are only about 1 hour or a little longer from the house.
Other Activities:
Day trips to Washington, DC, Yorktown, Williamsburg & three amusement parks -- Kings Dominion, Bush Gardens and Grey Wolf Lodge
