Tall ship Phoenix delivered from Hartlepool to Derry
A 112 ft two masted brig, about 600 nautical miles in 11 days. The forecast forced a change of plan, so Phoenix went through the Caledonian Canal and its 29 locks and still made the festival on time.
600 NM
Distance
11 days
Hartlepool to Derry
Summer
Season
29 locks
Caledonian Canal
The passage
When the forecast closes the north, you take the canal
The job: take the brig Phoenix from Hartlepool on the English east coast to Derry in Northern Ireland for the Foyle Maritime Festival and the Clipper Race stopover. Ten days in the calendar, a fixed date at the other end and a big wooden ship with square sails.
The planned route went north around Scotland. The forecast said no, so we changed the plan and took the Caledonian Canal instead: shorter in miles, longer in time, and 29 locks with a 112 foot brig is a lot of manoeuvring. It worked. Almost 600 nautical miles, 11 days, and Phoenix was alongside in Derry when the festival opened.
The yacht
Phoenix was built in Frederikshavn in 1929 as a mission schooner, later a cargo vessel, then rebuilt by Square Sail in the UK. In 1991 she played the Santa Maria in Ridley Scott’s 1492 and in 1996 she was converted to the two masted 18th century brig she is today. You may know her from In the Heart of the Sea. All wood, period rig, deck for 50 guests.
How we ran it
What the owner got, step by step.
Crew and plan
A professional delivery skipper and crew matched to the yacht and the route, a passage plan and the weather window agreed with the owner before departure.
The passage
Position updates along the way and decisions made for the safety of the boat first: port stops for fuel, provisions and weather as needed.
Handover
The yacht handed over at the destination with a written report on the condition of the boat and anything worth the owner’s attention.
Planning a similar passage?
Tell us the boat, the route and the dates. A captain, not a call centre, replies within one working day.