The HMCS Oriole tall ship is in the Owen Sound harbour this week.
It’s a sail training vessel of the Royal Canadian Navy. It’s currently on a great lakes deployment
Free deck tours are being offered Wednesday, (July 13) from 1-4 p.m. and Thursday, July 14th from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
The Oriole is located along the east harbour wall, in front of Mudtown Station.
A release says, “As part of its Great Lakes Deployment, Her Majesty’s Canadian Ship Oriole will visit communities throughout the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway, bringing the Royal Canadian Navy to Canadians who live far from our oceans.”
You can walk the decks of the 101-year old sailing vessel, and talk to sailors about their training and experiences on the ship. The ship currently has 21 crew members who come from all over Canada.
Sub Lieutenant Scott Ferris says, the HMCS Oriole is the oldest ship in the Royal Canadian Navy. It was built in 1921 for the Gooderham family, a wealthy family in the grain industry. They donated the vessel to the Canadian Navy during the Second World War, where it was used for training on Lake Ontario. Following that, it was returned to private ownership before coming back to the Navy during the Cold War when the family sold it to the Navy for $1 on the condition it be maintained and kept by the Navy as a training vessel. ‘
Since then, it has been used to train members of the Navy in seamanship, navigation, ‘rules of the road’ on the waterways and more.
The Oriole will sail to Collingwood next where it’s set to offer tours on the 16th and 17th. Following that, it’s scheduled to go to Tobermory, then Midland, then Goderich. You can see the schedule here: https://www.canada.ca/en/navy/campaigns/hmcs-oriole-great-lakes-deployment.html
Sub Lieutenant Scott Ferris is set to be on the Open Line show on AM 560 CFOS after the 9 o’clock news on Thursday, July 14th to talk more about the ship, its history and more. You can listen to it live online HERE or find a podcast version after the show HERE
