Tall ships

Måløy, Norway – Around 3,000 sailors, more than half of them between the ages of 15 and 25, and seventy classic sailing ships and yachts have been crossing the North Sea on the first leg of the 2008 Tall Ships Race. The first across the line will likely be the rather modern ketch Alba Explorer, with the thoroughly un-modern tall ship Christian Radich hot on her heels and in first place overall.

San Francisco, California - The San Francisco Bay was alive with maritime nostalgia on Wednesday, playing host to a fleet of Tall Ships and schooners participating in the Parade Of Sail. The parade, a welcoming event for this weekend's Festival of Sail was a glorious display of these magnificent historical boats chugging along in succession with unfurled sails. With the blazing blue sky, and perfect wind conditions, it was a fantastic day to be out on a boat, and the Bay was teeming with spectating yachts and classic sailboats which paced the Tall Ships during the parade.

San Francisco, California - The 2008 San Francisco Festival of Sail began yesterday at noon local time, with a Parade of Tall Ships entering under the Golden Gate. fred eagle took this shot for YachtPals, and several more you'll see this weekend in a feature on the Festival of Sail.