"Rockland Harbor" The Maine Windjammer Project

"Rockland Harbor" by Doug Mills

Tall ships gather at Rockland harbor for the annual Schooner Parade sponsored by the Maine Windjammer Association.

These photos are from the historical archives of the Maine Windjammer Project.

The Maine Windjammer Project started in 2007 to preserve the modern history of the Maine Windjammer and to make it available to the generations to come.

This historical archive is available to museums and for historical research.

For more info contact: dougmills@shootmainestudios.com

"At Rockland" The Maine Windjammer Project

"At Rockland" by Doug Mills

Tall ships gather at Rockland, Maine for Maine Windjammer Association's annual Schooner Parade.

Maine Windjammers Sail Out For Race Week

Rockland, Maine - Each year on the forth of July there are parades in every corner of this nation, but few like the one in Rockland Maine.  It started about 10:30 under a warm sunny sky with a good stiff breeze.  However, in this parade most of the participants were over 100 years old.  They were the historic schooners of the Rockland windjammer Fleet.


Fourth of July week is Race Week for these historic wooden boats.  Passengers board on Sunday night for a week of sailing the waters of Penobscot bay, visiting quaint fishing villages that dot the coast of Maine, finishing the week with The Great Schooner Race From Islesboro Island to Rockland Maine.  This year there are more than 20 of these beautiful wooden vessels expected to take part in this Maine sailing tradition. For more information on The Great Schooner Race or the vessels of the Maine Windjammer Association go to: http://www.greatschoonerrace.com/

"Out Of The Fog Of History" The Maine Windjammer Project

"Out Of The Fog Of History" by Doug Mills

Out of the fog of history and into WoodenBoat Cove, the historic Maine windjammers gather for the WoodenBoat Sail-In.

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Designer Fashion by Maine Artist

Doug Mills

With over 40 years in the arts he brings a wealth of artistic expression to his new designer fashions.  Doug's photos will transport you to a place where life is simple and the unspoiled beauty will take your breath away.

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"Schooner Mary Day" The Maine Windjammer Project

"Schooner Mary Day" by Doug Mills

Maine schooner Mary Day anchores in Rockland harbor before the 2012 Great Schooner Race.

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"The Start" The Maine Windjammer Project

"The Start" by Doug Mills

The start of the 2013 Great Schooner Race off Islesboro Maine.

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"2013 Great Schooner Race" The Maine Windjammer Project

"2013 Great Schooner Race" by Doug Mills

The captains of the Maine Windjammer Association, before the 3013 Great Schooner Race, aboard the Victory Chimes.

www.shootmainestudios.com

"Captain John Foss" The Maine Windjammer Project

"Captain John Foss" by Doug Mills

Captain John Foss arrives for the Captain's Meeting before the 2013 Great Schooner Race. [07052013]

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Video Special: WoodenBoat Sail-In

Brooklin Maine - A Gathering of historic tall ships in Brooklin, Maine for the 2014 WoodenBoat Sail-In. Two of the ships in this gathering have been sailing since 1871.  The oldest schooner in America, the oldest schooner in continuous service since 1871, the largest commercial sailing vessel under US flag, one of the original Maine windjammers and many more all sailing into a little harbor in eastern Maine.

www.shootmainestudios.com

"Eastbound" The Maine Windjammer Project

"Eastbound" by Doug Mills

The schooner Heritage eastbound for Brooklin, Maine for the WoodenBoat Sail In. [09-10-2012]

www.mainewindjammerproject.com

"A Morning in Stonington" The Maine Windjammer Project

"A Morning in Stonington" By Doug Mills

The Maine Windjammer Fleet spend a morning in Stonington.[07-06-2011]

www.mainewindjammerproject.com

"The Golden Age Of The Windjammer" The Maine Windjammer Project

"The Golden Age Of The Windjammer" By Doug Mills

Stonington harbor during the golden age of the windjammer.[07-06-2011]

www.mainewindjammerproject.com

BEST OF 2013: VIDEO: Tall Ships Arrival for The 2013 Camden Windjammer Festival

 Camden Windjammer Festival: A Maine Tradition
The tall ships of the Maine Windjammer Fleet arrive in Camden for the 2013 Camden Windjammer Festival.

"Not so long ago, every day in Camden was a windjammer festival of sorts. Beginning in the middle of the nineteenth century, builders like Deacon Joseph-Stetson and John Dailey launched everything from great clipper ships to smaller coastal schooners from shipyards in the inner harbor, while the turn of the century saw Holly Bean’s crew on the east side of the harbor creating the greatest oceangoing ships of the Great Age of Sail, including the six-masted George W. Wells. For nearly a century Camden Harbor was crowded year-round with moored schooners, Friendship sloops, and scows awaiting their next cargo to be brought to Boston, Philadelphia, or the West Indies, as these sailing ships served as the eighteen-wheelers of their time.

The advent of the steamship might have seen windjammers disappear from Camden if not for the arrival in the 1930s of Frank Swift, an artist and able-bodied seaman who believed the decaying coasting schooners increasingly littering the Maine coast could be refurbished to take passengers on week-long sailing expeditions. His business, Maine Windjammer Cruises, was based at what is now the Camden Public Landing, and after a few difficult years during the Depression it had grown to several coastal schooners, including Mattie, still sailing from Camden today under her original name, Grace Bailey.

Swift’s concept of a windjammer industry continued to grow even after he sold his business, with the Stephen Taber, Mary Day, Angelique, Lewis R. French, and even the great Gloucester fishing schooners Adventure and Roseway making Camden into the center of windjamming worldwide. Along with tourists, the Camden windjammer fleet attracted a unique cast of characters who sailed the historic ships, charismatic men and women who brought the old ways of sailing alive through their songs, dress, and antics.

To bring the world of the windjammer to a larger audience that includes both landlubbers and old salts, the Camden Windjammer Festival was created. This Labor Day weekend event in Camden Harbor sees the awe-inspiring vessels of the Maine windjammer fleet rafted alongside each other and hosting free "open-boat" tours, demonstrations of nautical skills and traditions, and a schooner crew talent show that is truly unlike any other show in the world." http://www.camdenwindjammerfestival.org

Story Sponsor...

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BEST OF 2013: Gone Sailing!

Doug Mills
Maritime Editor
RCN America Network

This week the staff of RCN America Network Have gone sailing.  We sail on Sunday, June 29 aboard the historic tall ship Victory Chimes, built in 1900.  This will be my 3rd year sailing on this magnificent ship.  There are 13 of these historic ships that sail these waters off the coast of Maine which carry passengers on a vacation that few will ever forget.  To anchor in a quiet harbor near a small island village that time has forgotten, with the gentle sounds of the waves on the hull, the music drifting across the water from several of the other tall ships that have anchored near by and the smell of dinner cooking on a wood stove.  The cell phone doesn't work and there is no WiFi, so there is time to make a new friend or actually read a book, or maybe just marvel at the beauty of Maine.
The end of the week the whole fleet nearly two dozen ships will gather off Islesboro for The Great Schooner Race, the largest annual gathering of tall ships in North America.  The race will run from Islesboro to the Rockland Breakwater Lighthouse in Rockland Maine.  After the race the boats will all anchor in the head of the harbor at Sharp's Point for an evening of celebration and schooner fun.
By Saturday it is time to head home and start planning for next years cruise.  Yes, you heard right.  One week is never enough and once you sail once you will have to come back again and again.
You may have missed out on The Great Schooner Race this year, but there is a whole summer and fall filled with exciting events you can experience.  If you can get away at all this year...Do IT.

2013 Sailing Events

with

The Maine Windjammer Association

July 5        Great Schooner Race

Be a part of North America’s largest annual gathering of tall ships as more than two dozen schooners race from Islesboro to Rockland. Special Awards Ceremony includes live music and festivities.

July 6 & 7   Open Schooner Tours

Stop by and tour Maine’s legendary windjammers at their docks each afternoon from 2:00-4:00 pm. The participating windjammers can be found at North End Shipyard and Windjammer Wharf (off Tillson Ave) in Rockland; the Public Landing in Rockport; and at the head of the inner harbor in Camden. Hope you can join us!

July 12      Maine Windjammer Parade

The entire fleet participates in an afternoon Parade of Sail past the mile-long Rockland Breakwater, providing spectators with stunning, close-up views of Maine’s fleet of tall ships.

August 5   Sweet Chariot Music Festival

More than a dozen groups perform traditional music of the sea on Swans Island, with live shipboard performances as well.

Aug 30-Sept 1     Camden Windjammer Festival

Festivities include a parade of sail, maritime heritage fair, contra dance, fireworks, lobster crate race, chowder challenge, free concerts, schooner crew talent show, family scavenger hunt, outdoor movies and more.

September 10    WoodenBoat Sail-in

The fall gathering of the fleet takes place in Brooklin, Maine, headquarters of WoodenBoat Magazine and WoodenBoat School. Live music, local refreshments, boatschool tours.

Don't wait book your getaway today!

Contact Us Today! 1-800-807-WIND