Ramping toward the big Tall Ships Boston event in June, Sail Boston has an update on a pre-arrival this weekend:
Sail Boston, Inc. is proud to welcome back to Boston the Norwegian Tall Ship Sørlandet, the oldest full rigged ship in operation in the world. The ship’s visit is part of the ongoing ramp up to the much anticipated return of the Tall Ships to Boston Harbor from June 17 – 22. The Sørlandet is the second tall ship to visit Boston in less than a month in preparation for Sail Boston 2017. In mid March, the Mexican Tall Ship Cuauhtémoc paid a five day port of call. The Sørlandet will be docked at Fan Pier from April 9th to April 14th, as excitement for Sail Boston 2017 continues to mount.
The Sørlandet was built in Kristiansand, Norway in 1927 as a full-rigged ship for training young people for the merchant marine. Currently, the ship serves as a school for the Sørlandet Foundation’s A+ World Academy program. It is essentially a Class A floating school with 50 junior and senior high school students completing a full year of travel-study aboard a tall ship. The Sørlandet also holds the distinction of being the first tall ship to offer sail training for women (1981). The public is invited to a free boarding of the Sørlandet April 10th to 12th, from 1:30 – 5:00 PM (times subject to change at captain’s discretion).
The Sørlandet’s Boston stop is courtesy of Sail Boston’s Visiting Ship Program. The program’s goal is to promote maritime heritage and tourism by recruiting and facilitating the visits of many of the world’s elite ships to Boston Harbor. The individual ship visits help boost the hospitality industry, serve as a vehicle to enhance educational opportunities for the area’s public school students, and help raise awareness about the overall work of Sail Boston, Inc. – a 501 (c)3 not-for-profit organization, that since 1992, has hosted more than 300 international tall ships and vessels of interest to Boston and many Massachusetts coastal communities.
For more information on Sail Boston, Inc. and Sail Boston 2017, visit www.SailBoston.com
