Shades of Columbus: Replica boats docked
Copies of 15th-century vessels will put visitors in touch with the past.
Jupiter visitors can see copies of the Niña and Pinta, two of the navigator’s 1492 vessels.
JUPITER — It was a calm morning at the Harbourside Place dock where two huge wooden ships sat. A small crew was quickly tying knots, adjusting sails and setting up for visitors that were expected to arrive soon.
Carved in the back of the 85-foot, black-colored ship was the word “Pinta” and in front was the Niña — a 65-foot beauty. These two vessels are replicas of the ones Christopher Columbus used to sail the ocean in 1492.
Capt. Steven Sanger, wearing a plaid shirt and baseball cap and holding a mini-megaphone, emerged from the Niña as his dog trailed behind him.
Sanger, a crew member for 10 years, chuckled as he answered the question on everyone’s mind: Why is there no Santa Maria?
“The Santa Maria would need about 12 feet of water to float. When you come up to a dock, we are only sitting in 8 feet of water right now,” explained Sanger. “So, the Santa Maria simply wouldn’t be able to travel to about 75 percent of the ports that we go to.”
This is the second year in a row the two replicas have been stationed at Harbourside Place. Last year, they drew about 1,000 people.
Crew member Collin Foster, 20, of Atlanta, said two years ago he was just like the visitors who come today. He was in Punta Gorda when he saw the “crew wanted” sign on the Pinta and joined the crew two days later.
“It’s been an adventure of a lifetime,” said Collin, who is a deckhand. “Every day is something new.”
Sanger agreed that he loves that the Niña and Pinta give him a sense of “adventure and purpose,” but his favorite thing about being captain is something else: “Being able to travel around on the most historically accurate replica of the Niña in the world,” said Sanger. “But, I also love being able to share history with all the young kids, who are able to step out of the classroom and step on aboard the ships.”
Moments later a group of home-schooled children lined up along the dock to get a glimpse of “the pirate ships,” as 5-year-old Cale, from Juno Beach, described them.
The school group was touring the Niña on Friday, which Amy Spring, of Juno Beach, said worked out perfectly since the kids are learning about American history.
“We came last year for the event. It is very educational and the children were really enthusiastic about it,” Spring said. “They’ve done such an amazing job creating this replication of.”
The Niña and Pinta will be on display from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. until April 29. For more information visit www. ninapinta.org or call 787672-2152. The cost to tour the ships is $8 for adults, $7.50 for seniors, $6.50 for students. Children 4 and under are free.