The latest Tall Ship extravaganza to come to British shores saw Liverpool and the Mersey play host to the Tall Ship's Races 2008 from 18 to 21 July. The event culminated in a parade of sail dwon the Mersey. The fleet of approximately 60 vessels gathered in formation and then proceeded downriver and out to sea, lead by the frigate HMS Argyll and accompanied by a small flotilla of other craft. It was a spectacular sight with thousands of people lining both banks of the river to watch the vessels and take advantage of every vantage point available. The parade began at 1400 and almost three hours later the final vessels were out of sight and heading north. The fleet went to an area off the north coast of Northern Ireland for the race start on 22 July. The vessels, ranging in size from the 78.7m barque Statsraad Lehmkuhl to the Class D vessels of about 15m in length, then undertook the challenging voyage around the north of Scotland and headed across the North Sea to Måløy, Norway (1-4 August).
For more details and exclusive photos, see September issue of Ships Monthly on sale 21 August
