DANA POINT : Tallships Festival Sets Sail Saturday

The city’s most famous vessel will sail into Dana Point Harbor Saturday to mark the start of the 10th annual Tallships Festival.

The Pilgrim, a 130-foot brig with 14 sails and a crew of 35, is named after the ship that Richard Henry Dana sailed aboard in 1834 during a voyage to Southern California from New England.

The Pilgrim will be joined by a host of other ships, including the 145-foot Californian, the state’s official tall ships, said Daniel T. Stetson, director of maritime affairs for the Orange County Marine Institute.

From 12,000 to 15,000 people are expected for the two-day event that begins 10 a.m. Saturday and ends at 5 p.m. Sunday. The Pilgrim should set sail about noon Saturday along the Dana Point breakwater and glide into the harbor.

The festival also will feature tours, maritime exhibits, pirate skits, live music and an art show.

The Pilgrim has been away from its home port for the past month during a cruise as the city’s goodwill ambassador.

Previously named “Joal,” the Pilgrim was purchased in 1973 in Denmark by California investors who wanted to use it for a proposed seaside development in Monterey. But the project didn’t win coastal approval and the ship was eventually bought by the Orange County Marine Institute. Today, the ship serves as a centerpiece for the organization’s educational programs for children.

“The Pilgrim is probably the most popular classroom in California,” Stetson said.

More than 15,000 schoolchildren each year from California and other Western states learn hands-on history lessons while sleeping overnight on the vessel, Stetson said.

Ray Wallace, the first volunteer captain of the ship after it became the Pilgrim, said he was “proud to see that it didn’t end up in the sea of wrecked ships.”

Information: Orange County Marine Institute at (714) 496-2274.