Tall Ships Race 2025 in Aberdeen

Hello!

The green one- AlexanderVon Humboldt II
Bremerhaven

A long awaited weekend arrived and didn't disappoint in the least. The cloudy weather with a hint of Scottish smirr didn't dampen the enthusiasm when I had a fabulous day at Aberdeen Harbour (Scotland) to view the fifty or so tall ships berthed along the quaysides.

The city of Aberdeen was thronging with thousands of visitors to the massive event. In addition to the vessels berthed in the harbour, there were quayside concerts by famous and local bands, lots of food outlets, street entertainers wandering around and plentiful craft tents to browse their varied stock. There were paddleboarders and jet skis on the harbour waters doing stunts and entertainments. I didn't manage to video or photograph him but one of the paddleboarders was playing bagpipes! 

Dar Mlodziezy -Poland in the distance

Union Street, the main street in the city of Aberdeen, was the venue for a huge 'fleet' parade, though I didn't see that this time around. Other events were dotted around the city centre, for families and for all sorts of fun.

Bap Union- Peru

The last time I viewed the Tall Ships Race event was in 1997, an even more exciting time for me. My younger daughter won a berth on the 3-masted schooner Sir Winston Churchill (vessel now retired ). It was a UK Sail Training Association ship and she took part in one leg of the Tall Ships Race 1997. She boarded the vessel in Leith (Edinburgh) which then slowly meandered northwards and she was up on the rigging when her ship sailed into the docks at Aberdeen. It was so amazingly exciting to view the vessels, small and large, following one after another along the entry channel into Aberdeen Harbour, the channel between the quay and Torry Battery to the south of Aberdeen being narrow enough to seem like a canal. The next leg of her race that year was over to Norway.

Note: A new harbour quay in Aberdeen has slightly altered that above situation. 

In 1998, she was invited to do a return voyage, that time on the SS Malcolm Miller the sister ship to the Sir Winston Churchill and very similar. The image below is when the Tall Ships Race came to Aberdeen in 1991, an event  I also attended.

SS Malcolm Miller
Sail Training ship

The SS Malcolm Miller was replaced in 2000 and was sold to a private owner for use as a pleasure vessel. The vessel then had a turbulent time as the Helena C, was seriously damaged and then restored and her original name of Malcom Miller reinstated. It remains in private hands as a charter vessel but its importance on the Aberdeen Harbour quayside in 2025 is that the vessel was built in Aberdeen in 1967 by John Lewis & Sons. We were sad to be unable to board the Miller since those boarding were a private party of guests, though my daughter believed the schooner to be so changed in its current refit that it didn't seem anything like it was in 1998.  

Thallassa- Holland

This time around for 2025, the vessels arrived from Thursday 17th. There has to be a queuing system since once into harbour many are berthed two or three abreast since the harbour area isn't large enough for them all to be dockside.

Rigging of the Sorlandet - Norway
One of the older ships in the race

My plan is to go to Aberdeen Beach Boulevard tomorrow Tuesday 22nd July to view the 'Parade of Sail' as they leave port and muster out in Aberdeen Bay before they each get the go-ahead to begin the next part of the race- each ship given their official start time. To get the real feel of these cutters and clippers you really need to see them in full sail. It's especially impressive seeing the dark green sails of the Alexander Von Humboldt though the one in harbour today is a replacement vessel to the one I saw in 1997. 

So, till next time...

Slainte! 

See the confirmed ships who are in port for 2025 here https://www.tallshipsaberdeen.com/confirmed-ships/