Festival of Sail Sets Sail in Duluth

The three day Festival of Sail kicks off in Duluth.

DULUTH, Minn.- Sunday in Duluth started with a “parade of ships” coming in through the Aerial Lift Bridge for the Festival of Sail.

The three day event brings in some of the biggest, oldest and best ships to show off and has already dazzled thousands in the Northland just on day one.

“We just came out to see the ships. The historical value that especially this ship had could be a great opportunity to learn a little more and teach our children about the war of 1812 and the history of the great lakes,” Matt Marjka said.

The Festival of Sail lets people see all kinds of boats, ropes, decks, sails, sterns and flags…

And learn a thing or two about ships over two centuries old.

“This is the U.S. Brig Niagra. We are from Erie, Pennsylvania. This ship was built in 1813 and fought in the Battle of Lake Erie in the War of 1812,” U.S. Brig Niagra Chief Mate Katelinn Shaw said.

The U.S. Brig Niagra is one of many ships to see at the festival.

“A ship like this is still very relevant today because it’s working together, it’s a challenging environment, people have to solve problems and we get to all do it together,” Shaw said.

It’s exactly what you’d expect a pirate ship to look like. There’s real cannons and some of the original wood used to build the ship still keeping its crew of 35 afloat.

“There’s about six miles of running rigging on board. And each one of the ropes, each one of the lines has a different purpose and a different name and the crew have to know which one is which in the dark,” Shaw said.

The Marjka family learned what it takes to keep a ship like the U.S. Brig Niagra running.

“I think this ship is just fascinating with truly how many ropes are on this and what a crew it would take to make it sail,” Hilary Marjka said.

And 7–year–old Norman Marjka says he learned about teamwork at the Festival of Sail.

“Teamwork makes friends and friends are kind of like family and family is good,” he said.

The Festival of Sail continues through Tuesday, Aug. 13 right behind the DECC.