How lucky to be able to see the Bluenose II on the occasion of her 100th birthday. I had watched the event online earlier this year with no expectation that I would be able to visit and go on board a few months later. It certainly was sweet to see her at dock in Lunenburg and to walk on her decks again.
I first saw the Bluenose II in 1980 when my friend Ann and I drove to the Maritimes with two key goals: sail on the Bluenose and go to Newfoundland. Neither of these happened but we had a great trip nonetheless.
When we arrived in Halifax harbour in August 1980 the Bluenose was there and we instantly headed down to the dock to see her. We were thrilled and called to the crew that we planned to sail on her the next day. No you’re not they said, we are just heading out and won’t be back. Of course we hadn’t booked tickets because we just arrived in town, and this was before the internet so finding out all these things in advance wasn’t easy the way it is now. We were heart broken but at least we able to take some pictures before they left.
I saw her a few times over the years at various Tall Ships festivals, but it was 2008 before I finally sailed on the Bluenose, and even that almost didn’t happen. My Aunt and Uncle were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary and invited friends and family to come to their summer home near Liverpool, Nova Scotia to mark the occasion. The first thing I did was to find out who wanted to sail on the Bluenose and booked 11 tickets as soon as the schedule was posted. I was not going to miss out again!
Well the thing about boating is it can be unpredictable. When we arrived in Lunenburg and checked in at the ticket office, we were told there were storms in the forecast so we would just have to wait and see what happened. No, I said, we are going out, you have no idea how long I have waited for this and how far we have come. We can’t just do it another day. Fortunately the weather cleared enough and we set sail without having to commandeer the ship. It was wonderful sailing on the Bluenose and getting the full display of Lunenburg from the water, as it is a wonderful little town, now a Unesco heritage site.
This year for the 100th Anniversary of the Bluenose I am sure they had initially hoped for big celebration. But at least they have been able to sail around Nova Scotia, visiting various ports and allowing limited numbers of people on board where possible. We were lucky enough to time our visit to coincide with open decks days in Lunenburg, and we headed over immediately to pay a visit. The waterfront was busy but not overly crowded and we got on board right away, so I was a happy camper. And now I have a Bluenose 100 polo shirt to remember the occasion.
Wandering with Wendy 
Glad you were able to see it again.
LikeLiked by 1 person