Angelique is leaving Great Cove yesterday morning. She heads into the fog bank over Eggemoggin Reach and soon becomes a memory. However, she’s a 130-foot topsail ketch that is easy to remember.
Angelique is the only windjammer in the Maine fleet with a large overhanging fantail and tanbark-colored sails.
Many years ago, when sails were made of cotton, the sailcloth often was dipped in a vat of tannins extracted from tree bark. This was done to protect the sails against rot; the resulting red-brown color was (and is) called tanbark (although “bark-tan” would seem more apt). (Brooklin, Maine)