Baltimore Wooden Boat Festival

Friday 26^th May HW 06:00 LW 12:10

Saturday 27^th May HW 06:51 LW 13:04

Sunday 28^th May HW 07:43 LW 13:59

Festival RETURNS!

2023 Festival will run weekend of 26-27-28 May

A big thanks to Garry McMahon and the designers at Copper Reed Studio for designing the poster for this year’s festival. Copper Reed Studio have designed all of the posters since the festival began in 2002.

We are very excited to have John Kearon, Master Shipwright and Historic Vessel Conservator present the talk at the opening of this year’s festival. The presentation entitled ‘Asgard – Conserving Erskine Childers Historic Yacht‘ will take place at Baltimore Castle at 6pm on Friday 27th May.

He will provide a concise account of how Erskine Childers yacht Asgard came to be designed and built by Colin Archer, the noted Norwegian Naval Architect. He will discuss the events that caused the vessel and her owner to become inextricably linked with a most dramatic period of both European and Irish history, and examine the pathway by which the decision to have her conserved and not restored to sail came about and of the key principles involved.

The talk will mainly deal with the vessel’s conservation and restoration to original built form in a museum-led conservation context and of the related research, issues and differing paths to be considered in achieving that goal. Of particular interest will be the findings in relation to the vessel’s condition and the various processes considered and taken in striving to save as much of the damaged original build structure as possible.

A Nation Born, A Boat Built

A 1916 Centenary exhibition of the fishing vessel Free State.

C1 was the first motor fishing boat to be registered in Cork after Irish Independence.

Exhibition by Cuas, The West Cork Maritime Heritage Company, kindly supported by Cork County Council.

Researched and compiled by Eoin Ryan, Baltimore and Peter O Shea, Ballycotton.

Design by Cecilia Scholte Lubberink

With thanks to Cork County Archives, Cormac Levis, John Finn, the O’Riordan Family and Hegartys Boatyard.

Official opening at 16.30, Saturday 26^th March by Joe Carroll MCC at the Baltimore Harbour Building near the Ferry Pier.

Image of Free State at centre of picture as the first motor lifeboat the Mary Stanford arrives in Ballycotton in 1930

Baltimore Wooden Boat Festival brings you the Annual Quiz Night – a fun fundraiser in the Algiers Inn on Thursday 24th March at 8.30pm. €5 per person – 4 to a crew. Test your nautical knowledge in aid of Baltimore Wooden Boat Festival and Baltimore RNLI. Spread the word…

Join us for an evening of old whaling movies

Thursday 4th Feb at 9pm in the Algiers Inn, Baltimore

A beautiful series of bespoke trophies designed by sculptor Paddy McCormack (www.paddymccormack.com) will be awarded for the Ilen Challenge at this year’s Baltimore Wooden Boat Festival. The striking design features the bull and pins of a currach. The Ilen challenge is an 8 mile race (or leisurely trip for some!) from Skibbereen to Baltimore Harbour for wooden rowing boats including naomhogs, racing curraghs and gandalows.