Celebration when Sea Stallion leaves Dublin tomorrow

The last few members of the crew arrive to sail the big longship reconstruction, the Sea Stallion, out into the Irish Sea. The ship has spent a few days moored in the “finer” part of Dublin’s harbour.
The last few members of the crew arrive to sail the big longship reconstruction, the Sea Stallion, out into the Irish Sea. The ship has spent a few days moored in the “finer” part of Dublin’s harbour.
2008-06-28

The world’s biggest Viking ship reconstruction turns home. The 2nd half of the experimental voyage ends in Roskilde on 9th August.

 

The 61 members of the crew on the 30-metre long “Sea Stallion from Glendalough” are sure to get soaking wet already in the middle of Dublin Harbour tomorrow morning.

Thousands of Irish people along the quayside will wave goodbye to the crew and to the ship that spent the winter at the National Museum – and the harbour tugs will spray goodbye at full pressure.

The original Sea Stallion was built by a group of enterprising Vikings a thousand years’ ago in an area near Dublin, and the Irish have taken the scientific research project of the Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde completely to their hearts. The city is full of flags decorated with the Sea Stallion logo.

The City Council is determined to celebrate the occasion, but nothing can hide the rough weather forecast, which looks like sending the Sea Stallion into an Irish Sea with local gale-force southerly winds.

Skipper Carsten Hvid has also looked at the weather forecast:
– As usual we won't compromise on safety and we'll put in to the nearest harbour, as and when necessary – even though we are so incredibly lucky this year as to have the powerful diver and cable support vessel, Cable One, with us all the way from Dublin to the entrance to Limfjorden.

– Cable One was also at our disposal for a part of last year’s voyage. This ship normally services oil rigs, so it's obviously very expensive to use.  The Nordea Foundation gave us the wherewithal this year, says Carsten Hvid.

By Lars Normann