THOUSANDS TO DESCEND ON THE PORT AREA FOR 2016 MARITIME FESTIVAL SPECTACULAR
LOTS TO SEE AND DO ATTHE MARITIME FESTIVAL ATTHE PORT ON JULY
IT’S back and it’s set to be the best yet!
The 2016 Irish Maritime Festival takes place in Drogheda this weekend with up to 40,000 people expected to attend the two- day event. The organisers promise something for everyone.
This year, it’s in association with Maxol and is hosted by Louth County Council and Drogheda Port Company and will be staged in the port area.
Once again, the quayside will be lined with ships of all sorts including The Spirit of Oysterhaven, the Celtic Mist, vintage lifeboats and customs cutters. There is an opportunity, when the tide is high, to board to these ships.
Weather permitting, Drogheda will welcome the truly beautiful 112ft long twin-masted Brigantine “The Phoenix”. The 4,000sq. ft. of sail, is instantly recognisable to movie lovers as “The Sancta Maria” from the epic film “1492: Conquest of Paradise”, the fictionalised story of Christopher Columbus directed by Ridley.
A series of river races will take place including the 14 km long Inver Colpa Rowing Race from Clogherhead to Drogheda, the Howth to Drogheda yacht challenge and the legendary Drogheda Raft Race.
Perhaps the most gruelling and personally challenging of all the races is the Boyne Swim, where 200+ swimmers of all ages will take to the river for the 2.5 km past the festival site. This year, the Boyne Swim welcomes a delegation of 25 swimmers who have travelled from Finland just to take part.
One of the festival innovations for 2016 is the addition of live cameras to track the activities on the river. A combination of steady cam and drone footage will be fed to a big screen broadcasting live on the festival site. You will also be able to see the on the water action by tuning in to the Irish Maritime Festival Facebook page where the final stages of all races will be broadcast live.
New for 2016 is the arrival of The Vikings. Watch out for a 45 strong marauding hoard as they take over Drogheda Port and go into battle twice daily. They’ll take over and set up their Viking Village, giving visitors to the festival an idea what it’s like to live like a Viking.
The battling pirates are also back, The S/V Vilma and Soteria will once again bring with them the ever popular duelling and duetting pirates. Captain Jack Sparrow is also set to lead the pirate parade.
Speaking of spectacles, keep your eye on the sky - there might just be a surprise in store.