This past weekend here in Portsmouth New Hampshire, we were fortunate to see history in the making. Never before, in at least 100 years, has there ever been more than one Tall Ship in our port at any one time. This past weekend, for THREE whole days, we had the pure pleasure of FOUR of these magnificent beauties in the Port City, tied up at our State Pier.
The four Tall Ships that graced us with their presence were: The Pride of Baltimore II, The Prince William, The Spirit of Bermuda, and The Urania. And they were a complete joy to see come into Portsmouth Harbor Friday morning around 9:30am, and all weekend long tied up right in downtown Portsmouth.
A beautiful sight to behold for sure!
Friday morning, July 6th, the ships gathered in the Atlantic Ocean, just off the coast of New Castle and Portsmouth Harbor. It was foggy and just plain lousy weather at that point. Visibility was so poor that you could barely make out the masts of the largest ships, and that wasn't much more than you could see even with binoculars. A very kind couple standing next to me let me use their binoculars a couple of times, and I very much appreciated that. 
Then, all of a sudden, about 9:30am, when the Parade of Ships was set to start, the fog lifted and the sun began to peek out. Lo and behold, we could begin to see those glorious ships and boats coming into the Harbor. If you have the slightest bit of love and/or admiration for boats, you would have been in your glory to see this great Parade of Ships coming up our river, the Piscataqua River.
The Parade was led by 2 fire boats, our very own brand new Portsmouth Fire Boat and a Navy Fire Boat, and then the Tall Ships came, one by one, accompanied by about 100 small and large pleasure boats. I would have given anything to have been on a boat on the river that morning......
Along the shores of the Piscataqua River that morning, hundreds and hundreds of people greeted these ships. In the interviews I read of the crew's reactions, they were stunned by the warm New Hampshire and Maine welcome they received. From what I read, they are accustomed to very few people greeting them, and many people coming out for their send-off.
The hundreds of us that greeted them were pleased to welcome them to our fair city, and we never hesitate to show our appreciation in any way we can!
This was a HUGE event for this area. Our Piscataqua Maritime Commission, which is the group that arranges these types of visits, brought us an historical happening by getting FOUR Tall Ships to visit us here in Portsmouth. Since the early 1980's, they've been bringing a Tall Ship a year into our port. Last year, we had the great pleasure of the US Coast Guard Cutter Eagle come in and The Bluenose II visited us as well.
A little about OUR Tall Ships that were here:
The Spirit of Bermuda is a 112-foot three-masted Bermuda sloop that hails from Hamilton Bermuda.
The Urania is an 88-foot long Bermuda Ketch, and she is the flagship of the Royal Netherlands Naval College.
The Prince William hails from Portsmouth England and is a 200-foot long two-masted square-rigged brig.
The Pride of Baltimore IIis a reproduction of an 1812 privateers ship from the Chesapeake Bay, which serves as the Ambassador of Maryland, telling the world the story of the "Star Spangled Banner". The Pride of Baltimore II is a 157-foot long Baltimore clipper, a replica of the gaff-rigged topsail schooners used during the War of 1812.
What beautiful ships each of these are!!
The Tall Ships were available for tours Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, and some very lucky ticket-holders were able to enjoy a 3 hour cruise on the ships. Those tickets sold out within hours of them being released, and the lines for tickets to tour these ships were as long as 100 deep and longer at times. The paper this morning said the estimates of the visitors who toured these ships were about 5,000 people. 
This morning, these ships headed back out to Portsmouth Harbor to meet up with the other Tall Ships taking part in the final leg of the 2007 Tall Ships Challenge Atlantic Coast Race Series. They'll race from here, Portsmouth New Hampshire to Halifax, Nova Scotia.
Farewell to our beautiful Tall Ship friends, may you have the wind always at your back......
And may we see you again here in our fair Port City of Portsmouth New Hampshire!!
To see more great pictures of Portsmouth and the area towns, feel free to take my 'Community Tour'. There are several tours within this link, and there are a number of pictures within the various tours, so allow time for the pictures to load.
Check out this additional information on Portsmouth New Hampshire:
Portsmouth NH ~ Summer Seacoast Scene in July
Tall Ships are Coming to Portsmouth New Hampshire!!
Portsmouth NH - Happy 30th Anniversary for Market Square Day!
Fly DIRECTLY into Portsmouth New Hampshire!!
Portsmouth's Pet Pooch Park
Portsmouth New Hampshire - "Portsmouth Lights on Friday Nights"
Portsmouth New Hampshire - Loving Life in Portsmouth!
Portsmouth New Hampshire - Music, Theater, Arts, and More!
Portsmouth New Hampshire Tidbits
Scrumptious Seafood Adventure
Seacoast Theaters - It's SHOWtime on the Seacoast
Seacoast Area Towns Information:
Hampton Beach New Hampshire - Sand Sculpture Contest
AT HOME in New Castle New Hampshire
AT HOME in Greenland New Hampshire
AT HOME in Stratham New Hampshire
AT HOME in Newmarket New Hampshire
AT HOME in North Hampton New Hampshire
AT HOME in Hampton New Hampshire
AT HOME in Dover New Hampshire
AT HOME in Rye New Hampshire
Exeter New Hampshire - History and Charm Galore!!
Fun Things to Know About New Hampshire:
Summer Seacoast Scene in July
June in New Hampshire ~ Fun Things To Do Around the State
New Hampshire - May's Fun Stuff Around the State
April Adventures Around New Hampshire!
February Fun Around New Hampshire!
New Hampshire Naturally
New Hampshire Nuggets
New Hampshire Made Delights!!
Ann Cummings, New Hampshire & Maine Broker
RE/MAX Coast to Coast
Portsmouth NH
ann@anncummings.com
888-349-5678 x 3839
Servicing the Coastal Areas of NH & Southern Maine 
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Wow, Ann, that is a really awesome event. Portsmouth sounds so lovely. I have to get up there sometimes. Been promising Esther for years.
Ann,
Great photos of the Tall Ships. This is the benefit of being on shore! You can get a much closer shot. They are beautiful, aren't they? Wouldn't want to be rowing one though:(
You got some nice shots of the ships... Was wondering if you were capturing the fireworks as I passed through Tuesday night.
Wow Ann!! this is interesting. now i have to go read all about boats. Also, thanks for the suttle reminder for Localism posts! :))
Awesome! I've been waiting for this post!!! Jay and I couldn't make it to see them in person but I knew you'd give me a treat! Thank you! :)
I was bummed we couldn't make it this weekend but I put a house under agreement so that made it worth not going. We did see the Bounty docked in Boothbay Harbor.
I still can't believe how crappy the weather has been. Either too hot and humid or too cold and drizzly. 75 and sunny would be nice
Missy - Portsmouth really is a wonderful town, and I can't imagine living anywhere else. There's so much to see and do, and you can also do absolutely nothing and still love this area. You MUST keep your promise to Esther!! ;-)
Karen - I really wish I had a camera with a stronger zoom or telephoto lens, but I was thrilled all the same to see what we were looking at. Pictures never seem to do justice to that kind of event, no matter what. I would have loved to have been out on the water like you were to see these ships. And I surely would not want to be ROWING any of those ships!!
DAN!! You were HERE and you did not get in touch with me!!?!?!?!? Shame!! I did catch the fireworks - we can actually see quite a few of them from my house.
Thanks for the very nice comments!!
Ann
Nicky Mississippi!! Thanks for stopping by and I hope you enjoyed what you read about those beautiful Tall Ships! Love those localism posts.... ;-)
Monika - I have SO many pictures, it was hard choosing which ones to use. I may do a Real Estate Show with some of them. I just wish I could have gotten closer shots of them, but was thrilled to be seeing them come into the Harbor in person. The fog just seemed to magically lift when they started on their way into the river......
Jay - Congrats on your pending sale!!! Yep, that is a priority for sure! That picture of The Bounty is beautiful. Was it in for a visit or is it docked there all the time? I agree about the weather - it would be nice to have exactly what you described - 75 degrees and sunny. We go from one extreme to the other....
I appreciate the great comments you've all left here - glad you enjoyed this post!
Ann
Ann, is there a Real Estate Show of this and can I feature it in the RES Blog??? Please? :o)
Hey Sarah - I don't have a show put together as yet, but have plenty of pics to put one together, and as a matter of fact, I had already thought about doing one. I'll email you one when I get it done?
Thanks!!
Ann
What an event. Thanks for sharing the photos.
Ann... I wasn't sure if we were going to make it Tuesday night or travel by on Wednesday and since it was a holiday I didn't want to disrupt plans... Anticipate several more 4-5 day weekends so we'll get together at some point... You up for a drink or do I have to hit the area at dinner time?
Lovely Ann! You're the queen of localism!
Tina - you're very welcome, and I'm glad you enjoyed this post!
Dan - Cool!! I'll look forward to it, and no, you don't have to wait until dinner time! ;-)
Chris - Thanks!!! And wow - coming from YOU, that's an enormous compliment - thank YOU!!! That's how I think of you...
Thanks for the comments!!
Ann
Ann - how beautiful...thanks so much for sharing. These ships must be amazing in person though - nothing like appreciating scale first hand.
I never did make it over...thanks for the treat Ann
Hi Ines - To see these ships in person was just wonderful - I love seeing these and the others that have come here in past years. I will never get tired of them, ever. One day I'll make it to Newport Rhode Island where they all gather for this Atlantic Coast Race - now that would be just the greatest thing for seeing these Tall Ships!
Hi Joan - You're very welcome!! It was just amazing when the fog began to lift just as the Parade of Ships began at the mouth of the harbod....the fog lifted and the sun began to shine a little, and there the ships were.....just beautiful!
Thanks for reading and for your comments!
Ann
Ann - As amazing as I thought it would be.....to be you and have a shoreline view!
Hi Paula - I love your comment!!! Amazing indeed, about the shoreline view that is! And to be living right here in this awesome place I call HOME!!!
Thanks for reading!
Ann
Ann... didn't you just write a blog about tall ships? I thought I had commented... maybe that was another post? ;o) In any case, I love the old ships and the view. Thanks for sharing this.... and great job.
Hi Jeff - I did write a previous post about the Tall Ships. That one was saying that they were coming, and at that time, we only thought we were going to be treated to 3 Tall Ships. This post is of the actual visit and pictures of it, along with the fact that we had the pleasure of seeing FOUR Tall Ships!
Thanks for reading and for your comments - much appreciated!
Ann
thought I wasn't dreaming. Damn, my mind is still fresh somewhat. That's good to know.... lol
Too funny! ;-)