Sailing Heritage

Story and photos by Doug Mills


It is late afternoon on a cool April day as the 95' schooner Heritage is guided gently into the marine railway cradle at the North End Shipyard in Rockland Maine.  This is the same railway she was built on 29 years ago.  Captain Doug Lee oversees the operation.  He is not only the owner captain but he also designed and built the Heritage.
Schooners have been built on the coast of Maine for over 200 years.  During the "age of sail" they were the fastest and most reliable way to get around.  They were also the most efficient way to move merchandise up and down the coast.  During the late 1800's and early 1900's Rockland was home port to more than 300 schooners.  Today only a handful of these boats still sail the coast of Maine.

Heritage is a new breed of schooner drawn from those very old blood lines.  Built in 1983 for the windjammer trade She is the embodiment of form and function, strength and graceful beauty.
Heritage sails every week from late May to October from the North End Shipyard.  For the old salt or the landlubber captains Doug and Linda make sure that every trip is one that their guests will not forget.

**WARNING: Sailing with Doug and Linda is habit forming!**