Activities

Ships Arrival
Tall Ship Celebration begins with the arrival of visiting Tall Ships on Thursday, July 20. Ships will muster in the Saginaw Bay and will begin the last leg of their journey to Downtown Bay City at approximately 1:00 p.m. Although they will not be available to tour on Thursday, watching their arrival and witnessing the "organized chaos" of getting them tied up and secure is a site to behold!

Ship Tours
The highlight of Tall Ship Celebration is the rare opportunity to step aboard the incredible wind-powered vessels that will grace the Saginaw River in Downtown Bay City. Eleven ships will be available for boarding and touring during festival hours on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, July 21-23. (A Souvenir Passport is required to board and tour the Tall Ships.)

Pirate School
Although not historically representative of life on the Great Lakes, pirates were real enough and a plague to sailors particularly along the Atlantic coast. Pirate legends continue to excite the imagination and with a wink and a nod to visiting Tall Ship Sloop Providence, Tall Ship Celebration will add the "Ring of Steel Pirate School" to its line-up of activities in 2006. (Providence was used in the film "Pirates of the Caribbean II" due out in theaters in early July.) Professional theatrical fighters and re-enactors will entertain and engage visitors. Costumed volunteers will lead our youngest guests through a series of hands-on crafts and interactive activities.

Art in the Park
Under the leadership of The Art Center/Studio 23, Tall Ship Celebration will host a fine art show focused on the original works of Michigan artists. Artist spaces are still available. (Contact curator@studio23baycity.org for more information.)

Vintage Base Ball Game
Real grass, wooden bats, a leather ball, and no gloves. The Bay City Independents Vintage Base Ball Club will take you on an entertaining tour of what base ball was like in the nineteenth century when real men played ball with a bare knuckle style. The Bay City Independents take on the Regular B.B.C. of Mt. Clements on Saturday, July 22 at 2:00 p.m. Join us to see the brand of base ball that started it all when the bases were 42 paces apart, an out was recorded when one hand was lost, and instead of doing the wave the spectators would yell "Huzzah!"

Kid's Krafts
A number of activities for children will be sprinkled throughout the festival. Our younger guests can expect to help paint a giant mosaic mural, build their own tall ship from a kit, have their faces painted, listen to storytellers and more.

Small Craft Symposium
The Tri City Amateur Boat Builders Association invites guests to help them build two small wooden boats-from start to finish-throughout the four-day festival. Guests who help will be entered into a drawing to take one of the finished boats home when the Celebration ends.

ASTA Crew Games
A series of friendly and fun competitive events, the Crew Games/Sail Training Rally is designed to test the nautical skill and intestinal fortitude of the young trainees who crew Tall Ships. An activity not to be missed,

Other Community Activities

All of Bay City celebrates Tall Ships. Here's a sample of other activities that are scheduled throughout Bay City during the festival.

The historic State Theater in Downtown Bay City will offer special showings of Pirates of the Caribbean. ($5.00 per person.) www.statetheatrebaycity.com

Prior to each showing, representatives of the Sloop Providence will share the ship's motion picture adventures as one of the stars of the sequel, Pirates of the Caribbean II.

There will be pleanty of opportunities to test your sea legs on a variety of waterborne excursions. Click on the links below for complete schedule and rate information.

The Bay County Historical Museum will offer its most popular guided tour "Ghosts, Legends and Other Bay City Lore" through some of Bay City's most historic neighborhoods. Tour buses board in front of the Delta College Planetarium across from Wenonah Park. ($8.00 per person; $4.00 for children under 12 years. See Ticket Order Form.)

Sit back, relax and see how ancient mariner's found their way at the Delta College Planetarium & Learning Center. Visit the Downtown Planetarium "Celestial Navigation", a special show for Tall Ship Celebration, a Tall Ships exhibit and other activities. (Fee: $3.50 adult, $3 children/seniors)

Thursday July 20 4:00 pm, 5:00 pm and 6:00 pm

Friday, July 21 1:00 pm, 2:00 pm, 3:00 pm, 4:00 pm, 5:00 pm, and 6:00 pm

Saturday, July 22 12:00 noon, 1:00 pm, 2:00 pm, 3:00 pm, 4:00 pm, and 5:00 pm

Sunday, July 23 12:00 noon, 1:00 pm, 2:00 pm, 3:00 pm, 4:00 pm, and 5:00 pm

Hop aboard a horse-drawn carriage to truly experience historic Downtown Bay City. Carriages board at Center and Water streets across for Wenonah Park. ($5.00 adults, $3 children, 3 and under free.)

The Bay Area Family Y invites crew and guests to get fit with a 5K Run/Walk along the beautiful Riverwalk/Railtrail on Saturday, July 22nd at 8:00 a.m. (989) 895-8596

First Presbyterian Church invites guests to attend an Outdoor Worship Service in Wenonah Park on Sunday, July 23 at 8:15 a.m. Lawn seating only; bring your own lawn chair or blanket.

The American Red Cross will serve up flap jacks at a Pancake Breakfast in Veterans Memorial Park on Sunday, July 23 from 9:00 a.m. until noon. ($5.00 per person)