SPECIAL EVENT : Long and Short of Tallships

It’s a little-known fact that the streets of Boston are paved with a piece of South County.

The New England trading ships that came laden with goods for settlers in 19th-Century Orange County left cash-rich but ballast-poor. So, rocks from what is now Dana Point and San Juan Capistrano were loaded on board to weigh down the frigates. Upon the ships’ return to Massachusetts, the ballast was crushed and used to build roads in the state’s capital.

Both legend and lore of Orange County’s sea trade will come to life this weekend at the Tallship Festival in the Dana Point Harbor. Thousands of people are expected to tour full-sized reproductions of 19th-Century sailing ships that will be docked at the Orange County Marine Institute.

On display will be the Pilgrim, the institute’s re-creation of the trading ship that brought Richard Henry Dana to the shores of Orange County, and the Kaisei Maru, a 151-foot, two-masted brigantine from Japan. The ships will rendezvous near Newport Beach and lead a large flotilla of pleasure craft into the harbor at about 10 a.m. on Saturday.

The Pilgrim can be toured starting at 2:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The Kaisei Maru will be opened to visitors on Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Other sea activities are planned for the weekend. Visitors can get involved in a heaving line throw or watch demonstrations of nautical skills such as marlin spiking. Sailors will be singing sea chanteys and telling stories of the ocean.

In addition, the U.S. Coast Guard and marine environmental groups will be talking about ocean environmental issues, and booths will be set up to sell food, drink and marine art and crafts.

What: Tallships Festival.

When: Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 12 and 13, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days.

Where: Dana Point Harbor, Dana Point.

Whereabouts: Take the San Diego Freeway south to the Beach Cities off-ramp. Follow signs to Pacific Coast Highway north. Turn left on Dana Point Harbor Drive and go to end of street, where Orange County Marine Institute is located.

Wherewithal: Free.

Where to Call: (714) 496-2274.