Windjammer Events
Windjammer Days in Boothbay June 24 and 25.
Who says the grand age of sail is over? If it is, apparently no one told the skippers who comprise the Maine windjammer fleet, the more than dozen traditionally rigged large sailboats that set out from Penobscot Bay to points east and west each week. The windjammers gather for a handful of semi-organized events each summer that include the Great Schooner Race (don’t look for a preset schedule or racecourse, since the captains organize it off the cuff in July), but one of the most popular gatherings has proven to bein Boothbay Harbor, to be held June 24 – 25 this year. Even if you’re not aboard one of these great ships it’s quite a sight to watch them maneuver into Boothbay’s jam-packed port and drop anchor.
And it’s exciting for more than just spectators, admits Captain Doug Lee of the schooner Heritage. “There are some pretty anxious moments getting in there under sail, with the yawl boat up in davits as we wiggle in there among the yachts in the harbor,” Lee remarks. “But the harbormaster does an incredible job of making sure that there’s enough room to squeeze us all in.”
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