Spectacle on the sea
In a span of two hours, nine tall ships will congregate in Charlottetown harbour and, one by one, sail into port,
The Charlottetown harbour should be a sight to behold on Friday, June 30.
In the span of fewer than two hours that morning, nine tall ships and two big supporting vessels will all congregate in the mouth of the harbour and, one by one, sail into Charlottetown.
It all happens between 8:50 a.m. and 12:05 p.m. That’s how long it will take all 11 ships to get from the mouth of the harbour into the port and docked.
“The ships have to be piloted in one by one in order to have organization and docking and all those kinds of things,’’ said Wayne Long, events development officer for the City of Charlottetown. “You’ll see them in the mouth of the harbour.
“It’s my understanding that some of them will sit in the mouth of the harbour and wait for their turn. You should be able to see them all congregating at some point.’’
Not only will the ships be gathering around the mouth of the harbour but they’ve been requested to come in full mast with their sails up, weather pending.
The tall ships coming include Blue Clipper, Europa, Oosterschelde, BAP Union, USCG Eagle, Rona 2, Vahine, HMCS Oriole and Jolie Brise, the latter of which doesn’t arrive until late Friday night or early Saturday morning.
Deck tours will be available on Friday from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday, July 1, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Sunday, July 2, from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.
The two supporting ships are HMCS Charlottetown, which docks at 10 a.m. on Friday, June 30, and the Canada C3, which will be in port solely to help celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday. The Canada C3 is a 150-day expedition from Toronto to Victoria via the Northwest Passage.
“When they congregate together it creates an amazing energetic setting. It really comes alive. People don’t always get these opportunities . . . being able to come on board . . . really gives you an appreciation of how big they are up close,’’ Long said.
The tall ships regatta is officially known as RDV2017 and is a Quebec City project. It’s coming to Charlottetown, in part, due to the close relationship between the two cities.
That, combined with everything else going on in Charlottetown around Canada Day, will make the capital a busy spot.
“It’s going to be the place to be in the province without a doubt.’’