Yesterday, we had a full day of sun for the first time in several weeks and – better yet -- the sun-colored “Heritage” came to enjoy it with us as a wonderful bonus. (Of course, we’re back to dank and dismal fog as I write this, but that’s another story.)
The sleek schooner overnighted and her passengers rowed ashore Thursday to tour the WoodenBoat Campus and rowed back to their vessel about an hour later. Her yawl boat also came ashore to pick up non-rowers. Meanwhile, boats from WBS sailing classes glided by and provided a sense of size proportions.
Near mid-day, the mainsail, topsail, and foresail went up and Heritage weighed anchor.
She turned around, picked up a following wind, let fly two jibs (forward sails), and sailed north. One of the passengers told me that she was going to try to reach the Sedgewick-Little Deer Isle Bridge before high tide so that the tall schooner had room to slip under the bridge.
The “Heritage” hails from Rockland, Maine, and is one of our largest schooners; she’s 145 feet long counting bowsprit with a 24-foot beam (widest part). She’s also advertised as our “newest” coastal cruiser, having been built in 1983 for the tourist trade. (Images taken in Brooklin, Maine, on July 20, 2023.)