Boston Tall Ships 2009: International Harbors World Travel

tall ships atlantic challenge 2009

Libertad from Argentina. From April through August 2009, the trans-Atlantic Tall Ships Challenge will host a fleet of elegant vessels racing from Vigo, Spain to Tenerife in the Canary Islands, to Bermuda, then Charleston, South Carolina and thence to Boston for Sail Boston 2009. From Boston, the fleet will cruise in company to Halifax, Canada and then race back across the North Atlantic to Belfast, Northern Ireland. This route was a normal run for merchants and passengers during the 1700s and 1800s and the vessels will bring our history back to life. If you live away from our coastlines and have not seen these superb ships, you might well want to start planning. This is a great experience for all ages.

Because I live in San Francisco and for years managed special events, I was invited to sail on both Japan's Kaiwo Maru and Ecuador's Guayas. The Kaiwo Maru log is below. The Guayas is yet to come.

June 1999
Japan's Kaiwo Maru and Nippon Maru are sister ships both currently in their second incarnations. The original Kaiwo Maru (King of the Sea) and Nippon Maru (Ship of Japan) were built in 1930 receiving their name from the Education Minister at the time. In its 59 years of service the first Kaiwo Maru covered over 1,950,000 kilometers (49 times around the earth), educating over 11,000 trainees. Due to its dilapidated condition, a new ship was built in 1989 using funds from both the government and private donations.

July 2, 1999: Sailing on the Kaiwo Maru

At 0800 on Friday, July 2, 1999, two of my brothers and I boarded the Kaiwo Maru at Pier 35 in San Francisco. We had a choice between sailing on the Kaiwo or Ecuador's Guayas. Because I was scheduled to board the Guayas on June 6 for Long Beach, because the Kaiwo was the largest sailing vessel in San Francisco's harbor that day, and because I'm intrigued by Japan's ceremony, art, and attention to detail, I chose her to sail in the Parade of Tall Ships.

With our family seafaring history, and as my brothers are sailors, we were excited. I'm a novice with sailing vessels, so this narrative is without knowledge of accurate terms and is being written with the help of Richard Henry Dana's The Seaman's Friend: A Treatise on Practical Seamanship.

The Kaiwo is run as one would expect the Japanese to run a ship. Above and below deck, she is immaculate, the trainees efficient, the teamwork excellent. Although we had no basis for comparison, never having been on a large sailing vessel, undoubtedly her crew, appearance and sailing capabilities will hold up under the closest scrutiny by the toughest sailor.

Kaiwo Maru. The Kaiwo weighed anchor at 0900 and motored out through the Gate to her position about ten miles into the Pacific, along with the Eagle, Gloria, Dewa Ruci, and Guayas. Canada's Concordia was seen on the horizon, sailing in haste to take her position in the Parade of Tall Ships. Fortune blessed us with a sunny day, moderate winds, and light swells and chop. With this weather condition, the Kaiwo's speed under full sail would be about 14 knots.

Crew activity seldom stopped. As the Kaiwo sailed out, crews squared her for show, checked lines, took lunch breaks . . .

While awaiting the Parade of Tall Ships to begin, we were escorted below to the officer's dining mess for a superb Japanese lunch: Miso soup, teriyaki fish (don't know the type); daikon, lightly steamed carrots and more daikon, white rice, tea—and ginger, which helps ward off seasickness.

Back on deck, we saw that the Eagle, first in formation, was closing in on the Gate, sails full. Crew on the Gloria were unfurling hers. The Gloria passed under the bridge with all her canvas unfurled. Within minutes, boats of all shapes and types, helicopters, and small airplanes surrounded the ships. It was dramatic, fun, and somewhat overwhelming.

The Kaiwo's crew stood on deck, barefoot, white pants rolled to the knee, awaiting the command to climb above and begin loosing sails. As we cleared the heads, the wind dropped somewhat and the crew climbed the rigging to unfurl the lower top gallants, which had been loosened earlier, but reefed because of the strength of the wind. They then set the upper tops, stays'ls, heads'ls and the upper top gallants. The Kaiwo sailed so smoothly that those of us without sealegs didn't even lurch. The Kaiwo is an immaculate ship, managed with ease, with a narrow beam given her length.

Kaiwo Maru sailing towards the Golden Gate Bridge. By the time the Kaiwo passed under the Golden Gate in full sail, the bridge was lined with spectators, traffic was virtually stopped, and thousands of craft filled the Bay in greeting. Multi-colored carnations were thrown from the bridge, landing on deck. Cheers filled the air. Crew collected the flowers and placed them in between openings on board.

Looking up through the sails of an elegant vessel such as this is almost beyond description. The City has a sublime landscape when viewed from the Pacific and it is exciting to see her from that vantage point. Immigrants to early California often wrote that they lacked the words to tell of their impressions upon seeing San Francisco for the first time after months at sea, and of hearing the cheers from welcoming crowds of family and friends waiting on shore. Like our ancestors, our senses filled with the beauty of entering the waters of San Francisco Bay on a lovely sunny day, surrounded by pomp and circumstance . . . We paced the upper deck, excited at the vision before us, the camaderie of sailors and their shouts of "konichi wa" to the Kaiwo's crew. It was extremely easy to imagine what it must have been like for our great-great grandparents when they arrived on these shores with their hopes and dreams.

If you ever get a chance to sail on one of these beautiful vessels, I hope you will unhesitatingly say YES! A few people had been invited to join us and begged off because of work, family, the departure hour, etc. . . they missed the opportunity of a lifetime. We will never forget this day.

The Kaiwo Maru, which was launched March 7, 1989 at Uraga ship yard of Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd., has a sailing rig that appears the same as the first Kaiwo, but she is superior in performance because of state-of-the-art naval design that was applied during her construction.

Type of Vessel	Four Masted Bark Sail Training Ship
Flag	Japan
Owner	Japanese Government
Commanding Officer	Captain Hiroshi Yumoto
Crew	69 Crew; 108 Cadets; 22 Trainees
Length Overall	110.09 m (361 feet)
Beam	13.80m (45 feet)
Draft	Loaded: 6.58m (22 feet)
Depth	10.71m (35 feet)
Displacement	2.879GT
Max. Mast Height	55.52m (182 feet)
Sails	Square sails: 18 sails -- 1770m (19,267 feet) Fore and Aft Sails: 18 sails -- 970m (10,441 feet)
Sail Area	Total: 2,760m (29,708 feet)
Main Engine:	Diesel Engine: 1,500 PSX2 (1,103KWX2)