Tall Ships Return to Victoria
The tall ships entered the harbour on Thursday afternoon (June 26), in a sort of parade. The festival was open to the public that afternoon, although the ships were not. No matter, I had the day off work on Friday and attended the festival then.
I probably spent a third of the day at the festival, mostly in lineups to board a number of the ships. That process was much more controlled than it was in 2005, where lineups got very long and out of control. This year, the festival organizers set up the ships in clusters, so some of the bigger draws would be in separate locations, namely Ship Point and Wharf Street. They also issued boarding passes for certain of the ships, so as to keep track of how many people came and went. I made it aboard Eagle, Pacific Grace, Lady Washington, and a few others.
There were many people there at the time, but I was glad I went on Friday as Saturday and Sunday were expected to be much busier. And they were, as I could tell when walking by the harbour on those days.
There was a whole festival organized around the tall ships. Attractions included local artists, live entertainment, and ethnic food stands. Tall ships also coincided with JazzFest at Centennial Square, which I also attended - great music - so there was no lack of things to do this weekend!
The weekend weather was sizzling (Summer! finally!) and I got somewhat sunburned after my time spent at the festival. But it was well worth it.
To the tall ships festival: thanks for coming, do make sure you come back!
I attended the festival armed with my camera, and took plenty of pictures. A few are shown below, and I have a full gallery of festival shots.
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- Bounty
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- USCG Eagle
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- Ships at Ship Point
