The Mist of Avalon is for sale. For information, contact us. Follow an account of Mist of Avalon's 2008 trip to PEI for the race around the island. The ship began her life in 1967 as the Motor Vessel "Liverpool Bay". She was built by the strong native timber and the skilled hands of the shipwrights of MacLean Shipbuilding, Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada. Her Captain and Crew worked the Banks off Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, fishing for the cod that were her reason for being. After twenty years working in the harsh environment of the North Atlantic, with fish stocks declining and her machinery and equipment well past their prime, in 1987 this once proud vessel was left abandoned at a Halifax pier. Another five years of neglect added to her decline, but under the layers of paint and algae, behind the rotting timber and planks, was a gracious schooner hull waiting to return to sea.

The Liverpool Bay, May 1991 [ zoom in - opens new window ] At the Lunenburg Marine Railway [ zoom in - opens new window ] Mist of Avalon, showing new colors, July 1993 [ zoom in - opens new window ] Mist of Avalon berthed at Hamilton Princess Hotel in Bermuda, Tallships 2000, June. 2000. [ zoom in - opens new window ] Sailpast in Charleston, S.C., Tallships 2000. Photo by Charlie Sneed. [ zoom in - opens new window ]

In December 1992 began the ship's new life as "Mist of Avalon", named for the mystic Celtic island of re-birth. The Ship was purchased, hauled out, hull scraped and anti fouled. In July 1993, she was ready to leave Nova Scotia for her new home port at Holidays Afloat Marina in Ivy Lea, Ontario, Canada. Here, work continued on the conversion from motor vessel to a fully rigged sailing vessel in the tradition of the late 19th century Grand Banks schooners. 1993: Upper fore deck removed. New transom and cap rails installed. Main engine replaced. Working deck removed, deck epoxy covered. Fish hold sand blasted clean. 1994: Fuel tanks removed, inspected, cleaned and re-insalled. Engine room built. Old pilot house removed. Holding tank installed. Anchor windlass placed on deck. Dry docking for hull painting. 12 tons of concrete ballast poured in fish hold. New sole installed. 1995: New pilot house and forward skylight. Interior work. Booms and gaffs built. New pine deck laid over old. Steel masts built. Standing rigging assembled. 1996: Bow sprit installed. Main and fore masts stepped. Dry docked, hull recaulked. 1997: Interior sleeping cabins and main salon completed. Galley constructed. Crew bunks refinished. Boom and gaffs installed. Sails and running rigging installed. 1999: Top masts installed. Generator rebuilt. 2000: Second generator installed. New planking on the topsides. Copper sheathing on the bottom. Summer of 1997, "Mist of Avalon" return to sea on her maiden voyage under sail, to Bonavista, Newfoundland, to greet another historic vessel, John Cabot's "Matthew". Summer of 2000, "Mist of Avalon" left Lunenburg, N.S. on May 29 for Bermuda and sailed to Charleston, New York, Boston, Halifax as part of the Tall Ships 2000 event. Summer of 2001, "Mist of Avalon" took part of the Tallship Challenge event around the Great Lakes. Crew: Skipper, First Mate & Chief Cook, 8 Seamen Engine: Main 3306 Cat diesel, Auxiliary 12 HP Lister Corporate & Social Events, Festivals, Boat Shows, Tall Ship Events, Sail Training. George Mainguy: grmainguy@gmail.com

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