"Technologically outmoded and once nearly swept from the seas, tall ships have experienced a fifty-year renaissance as sail training and passenger vessels, and we are the richer for it. After all, what sight has more power to stir the soul than a tall ship under sail with its acres of canvas and miles of rigging? But that resurgence has had a tragic side, and professional mariner and maritime scholar Dan Parrott explores it in Tall Ships Down, a groundbreaking reconstruction of the losses of the 316-foot barque Pamir in 1957; the 117-foot brigantine Albatross in 1961; the 117-foot barque Marques in 1984; the 137-foot Pride of Baltimore in 1986; and the 125-foot brig Maria Asumpta in 1995. Together, these disasters claimed 112 lives." "The stories of these majestic ships have been subject to mystery and distortion. In some instances even the survivors could not explain what went wrong, and in others the official inquiries failed to articulate the most critical lessons hidden in the sudden, terrible catastrophes - until now." "Parrott traces the history of each ship from its building and early career through subsequent owners' modifications. His vivid re-creations of each final voyage dissect the circumstances of loss from forensic evidence, expert testimony, survivors' memories, and his own considerable experience. Carefully examined, the evidence shows that, contrary to some official findings, ignorance of and disregard for age-old practices of seamanship were at least as responsible for the tragedies as "acts of God." In some instances the seeds of a ship's ultimate undoing were planted years before, as ill-considered structural changes, rig modifications, and "mission creep" eroded its stability and seaworthiness. Cargo loose in holds, hatches unsecured at sea, freeing ports timbered shut, failure to preserve proper sea room - these and other factors emerge from Parrott's analysis as contributing factors." --Book Jacket.

The tall ship Sofia sank off New Zealand’s North Island in February 1982, stranding its crew on disabled life rafts for five days. They struggled to survive as any realistic hope of rescue dwindled. Just a few years earlier, Pamela Sisman Bitterman was a naïve swabbie looking for adventure, signing on with a sailing co-operative taking this sixty-year-old, 123-foot, three-masted gaff-topsail schooner around the globe. The aged Baltic trader had been rescued from a wooden boat graveyard in Sweden and reincarnated as a floating commune in the 1960s. By the time Sofia went down, Bitterman had become an able seaman, promoted first to bos’un and then acting first mate, immersing herself in this life of a tall ship sailor, world traveler, and survivor.

A true-life, modern-day tale of high seas adventure follows the travels of a three-masted tall ship that left Nova Scotia in 1997 for a trip around the world, while the crew found themselves on personal journeys of their own. 30,000 first printing.

The tale of one man's pursuit of an unshakable dream--a true story of swashbuckling adventures, classic tall ships, and a sailor's determination to prove himself right. It is the personal account of Captain Mike Burke and the Windjammer Barefoot Cruise line he built with his barefoot spirit and his iron will to succeed. This book offers an insider's view of how Captain Mike managed to save classic sailing ships from destruction, and put together one of the finest fleets in the world. Also included are stories of ships once owned by Aristotle Onassis, E.F. Hutton and his wife Marjorie Merriweather Post, and George Vanderbilt III, to mention only a few. While you may never experience the excitement of boarding a tall ship or feel the sea spray on your face as your ship glides through the ocean, you can come close by sharing these stories and pictures.--From publisher description.

Come sailing with Chapman, on the pages of an expansive, attractively illustrated reference to large, and frequently famous, sailboats from around the globe. Enthusiasts will find completely up-to-date information on these extremely popular boats, more than 450 color photos, and descriptions of different types of sailing ships and rigging. Each craft listed features a full-color picture, details, and statistics, accompanied by facts and figures on its home port, the year it was built, the names of the owner and crew, plus rigging, tonnage, mast, sails, and use.

Covers a full range of exciting, dangerous, and everyday shipboard experiences

October 2012. A replica of the famous HMS Bounty, an eighteenth-century tall sailing ship, set a collision course with a storm that became the largest hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic—a clash that proved to be one of the most unforgettable stories of Superstorm Sandy. The Bounty, crewed by an eclectic team of seafarers and led by highly respected captain Robin Walbridge, departed from Connecticut as Sandy raced north. Walbridge, whose decisions decided the fate of his ship and crew, attempted to outmaneuver the storm by heading southeast. As violent gusts tossed the wooden vessel, the crew fought to save their ship—and themselves. When the storm finally overtook the ship, the crew was tossed into the churning sea. The men and women of a Coast Guard station in North Carolina courageously flew into hundred-mile-per-hour winds to rescue the survivors of the Bounty. After hours of white-knuckle flying, they accomplished one of their most memorable rescues ever. Based on interviews with Bounty survivors and unfettered access to Coast Guard rescue team members, The Gathering Wind is the most complete account of this heartbreaking, thrilling, and inspirational story. INCLUDES PHOTOS

Amply illustrated book traces evolution of the sailing ship over the course of 6,000 years — from vessels of ancient Egypt to full-rigged clipper ships of the 19th century. 20 halftones and 134 figures.

From the author of the Fall 2015 Disney movie The Finest Hours, the “thrilling and perfectly paced” (Booklist) story of the sinking and rescue of Bounty—the tall ship used in the classic 1962 movie Mutiny on the Bounty—which was caught in the path of Hurricane Sandy with sixteen aboard. On Thursday, October 25, 2012, Captain Robin Walbridge made the fateful decision to sail Bounty from New London, Connecticut, to St. Petersburg, Florida. Walbridge knew that a hurricane was forecast, yet he was determined to sail. The captain told the crew that anyone could leave the ship before it sailed. No one took the captain up on his offer. Four days into the voyage, Superstorm Sandy made an almost direct hit on the ship. A few hours later, the ship suddenly overturned ninety miles off the North Carolina coast in the “Graveyard of the Atlantic,” sending the crew tumbling into an ocean filled with towering thirty-foot waves. The coast guard then launched one of the most complex and massive rescues in its history. In the uproar heard across American media in the days following, a single question persisted: Why did the captain decide to sail? Through hundreds of hours of interviews with the crew members and the coast guard, Michael J. Tougias and Douglas A. Campbell create an in-depth portrait of the enigmatic Captain Walbridge, his motivations, and what truly occurred aboard Bounty during those terrifying days at sea. “A white-knuckled, tragic adventure” (Richmond Times-Dispatch), Rescue of the Bounty is an unforgettable tale about the brutality of nature and the human will to survive.