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, in summer
3-4,000 EUR
Similar delivery today, net
29 locks
Caledonian Canal
Net price for a similar delivery today. It depends on how many specialist crew the ship needs. The owner covers fuel, berthing fees, repairs and crew travel to the start and home from the finish.
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. Almost 600 nautical miles, 11 days, and Phoenix was alongside in Derry when the festival opened.
29 locks with a 112 foot brig
This is not a job for a skipper alone. Phoenix needs a crew who know square rig and big wooden ships, and in the Caledonian Canal every pair of hands counts. The owner sailed with us. Some of the locks are only just big enough for her, so each one meant slow, careful work on the lines. In the marinas along the way we had to book berths long enough for her, then bring her in gently so the bowsprit did not end up in somebody's Cornish Crabber. That is why the price of a tall ship delivery depends mostly on how many specialist crew the ship needs. Hard work, but Derry was waiting at the end with the festival, champagne and fireworks.
Phoenix in the movie In the Heart of the Sea
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.
Only just fitting: Phoenix in a Caledonian Canal lock
Phoenix in a lock on the way to Derry
On deck in the canal
Every pair of hands on the lines
Entering the next lock
Phoenix on one of the Scottish lochs
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.