Pender Harbour will celebrate British Columbia’s maritime heritage at the inaugural Pender Harbour Days festival July 10 to 12.
The keynote event is a parade of 25 classic and historic vessels on Friday at 6 p.m. The boats will enter the harbour and marshal at the government wharf in Madeira Park to a welcome from the Pender Harbour Pipe and Drum Band. Most boats will be open for public viewing on Saturday and Sunday between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m.
Noted boat-builder Barrie Farrell is attending to reconnect with several craft he completed in years past. Knowledgeable boat aficionados, including Bob Fielding, Howard White, Ray Phillips and Cecil Reid, will be dockside during the festival to offer historic commentary.
Festival visitors can inspect and board vessels ranging in length from three to 20 metres (16 to 60 feet). The oldest wooden boat is Gaia, a gaff-rigged ketch built in 1921. The youngest is the John Salisbury, a new handliner built on lines from a century-old Hubert Evans boat. She will be launched Sunday afternoon at the festival by Rick Crook and the Pender Harbour Living Heritage Society.
Besides classic wood sailboats, cabin cruisers and fish boats, the show will feature distinctive fibreglass day boats, weekend cruisers, live-aboards and commercial vessels. The local search and rescue vessel will be on display.
Builders represented include Tollycraft, Robert Allen, Barrie Farrell, Fostad, Don Penson, Nakade, Harling, Gooldrup, Wahl, Trophy, and J&K Hulls. Some participating boats have been hand-built in Pender Harbour by local craftsmen.
The festival highlights Pender Harbour’s maritime traditions. The Pender Harbour Living Heritage Society will display marine artifacts Saturday between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. in Irvines Landing at Sarah Wray Hall, a renovated one-room schoolhouse built in 1930. An art competition begins in the grounds at 11 a.m. with adults and children having two and a half hours to create a work of art on the theme What Pender Means to Me. The Rotary Club of Pender Harbour is providing a hot dog lunch on site at the school.
From Friday evening to Sunday afternoon, music will be on offer throughout the harbour. The Pender Harbour Music Society presents a variety program directed by Ken Johnson at the School of Music in Madeira Park Friday evening at 8 p.m. Saturday at noon the Pender Ukulele Band performs at Sarah Wray Hall in Irvines Landing. The Royal Canadian Legion barbecue on Saturday evening features Skinny Jimmy and the Preachers. Sunday afternoon the Traditional Celtic Big Band will present a concert of traditional and contemporary music at the outdoor classroom beside the Madeira Park wharf, followed by an open microphone session at the Community Hall to celebrate youth talent.
Visitors can get on the water by joining the Garden Bay Sailing Club race at noon Saturday. Kids are invited to try fishing from the dock in Madeira Park Saturday between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. Equipment will be provided if you bring your own life jacket. At the Garden Bay Pub at 1 p.m. Saturday there will be a stand-up paddle board yoga demonstration. On Sunday at 11 a.m., take a ride in the SloCat for a harbour history tour narrated by local historian Dorothy Faulkner, or try rowing one of the small boats on display at the Madeira wharf.
Fun on land includes a hike led by the Pender Harbour Hiking Club Saturday from 9 to 11 a.m. and free golf for kids Sunday evening at the Pender Harbour Golf Course.
Most events are free or by donation. The festival is sponsored by Pender Harbour Living Heritage Society and the Pender Harbour and District Chamber of Commerce under the direction of Mike and Sandy Ryan with a team of community volunteers. For a festival schedule and event registration information, see the website at penderharbour.ca
