July 24, 2008
From Chari Wessel
MMSD Volunteer Crew
The long anticipated opening of the Tall Ship Festival finally arrived, bright and sunny, clear of fog, a perfect day for sailing. We were assigned to follow "Eagle" in the parade of ships. The Coast Guard escorted her out with a fireboat, two cutters and a helicopter. Along the route other tall ships fell in behind us or joined along the edges, and by the time we all assembled under the Golden Gate Bridge, nearly every sailboat in San Francisco had also arrived.
The Coast Guard and harbor patrol boats were kept busy warning the sailboats to stay away from the tall ships. No one can resist coming close to these beautiful vessels for a closer look and a photo op. A deep draft cargo container even joined in the parade at the end, flying flags and spraying water from her fire hoses. We fired gun salutes along the route and heard gunfire from "Bounty" and "Lynx" as well.
From this crew member's perspective, the parade was a huge success. We were rewarded with the evening off for showers, sightseeing and doing laundry. Paul and Aimee rewarded our work with a lasagna dinner.
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