Destination

Walter Cronkite - The Vineyard's "most trusted" boater

"Interviewer: Tell me about your sailing trips.
WC: They're kind of the middle-area sailing trips. I don't go transoceanic. But we do a lot of offshore sailing. Sailing the boat down to the Caribbean in the winter and back in the spring. In the summertime we sail off of our home in Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts and around the northeastern part of the United States, which is very challenging sailing. I have a group of friends with whom I sail - mostly pirates out of Annapolis."

From That's The Way It Is... with Walter Cronkite by Kira Albin, interview conducted in 1996

I grew up listening to "Uncle Wally" present a most unbiased view of the world news that I treasured every evening. When I learned that he was an avid sailor as well, he became a double secret hero. As an avid sailor of his then 48-foot yacht, “Wyntje”, Mr. Cronkite chronicaled his experiences sailing waterways from the Chesapeake Bay to Key West in his book South by Southeast (1983), with paintings by artist, Ray Ellis. Other collaborations with Mr. Ellis included North by Northeast (1986), which covered his trips sailing the northeast coastal waterways, and Westwind (1990) he recounted his sailing tour of America's West Coast. Around America, his most recent sailing book, was published in August 2001.

Walter Cronkite was selected by the Vineyard community as a Community Hero, representing the seasonal resident from Edgartown, for his contribution to Sail Martha's Vineyard. For more than 20 years, the Sail with Walter Cronkite has been a highlight of The Possible Dreams Auction, generating thousands of dollars each year for Martha's Vineyard Community Services. When Martha's Vineyard Hospital created an endowment fund, Mr. Cronkite added his voice to the educational video. He is also the host of The Celebration of Heroes educational video honoring residents exemplifying the Vineyard spirit, and he headed up the Edgartown Harbor Clean-Up.

Mr. Cronkite has often hosted visiting dignitaries and celebrities including the Clinton Family, the Kennedy family, Prince Edward and many others. He was photographed with the Clintons aboard his yacht shortly after the Monica Lewinsky affair came to light. He has been an active member of the Edgartown Yacht Club since 1973.