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4th March 2014

Classic Boats Sail for Scottish Traditional Boat Festival at Portsoy

Classic Boats Sail for Scottish Traditional Boat Festival at Portsoy

#STBFestival. – Weigh your anchor, fill your sails and get ready for the 2014 Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Traditional Boat Festival. Thousands of visitors are expected to attend the 21st annual festival which will be taking place in Portsoy, Aberdeenshire from June 27-29th 2014.

Scotland's leading celebration of maritime and cultural heritage is one of the key events in The Year of Homecoming, with the theme reflected throughout the festival programme. The event will showcase the best in Scotland's maritime, crafts, food, drink, music and dance, with a special emphasis on boat building, restoration and sailing.

Traditional wooden boats from all over the UK and beyond will congregate in the historic 17th century Portsoy harbour. Visitors will be able to learn how to sail a coracle, climb aboard restored fishing vessels, and see the crews of the St Ayles Skiffs battle it out on the open seas in the annual regatta. This year will also see the official opening of the PORT Boatshed, a community boat building workshop which allows training and restoration to be undertaken.

Aberdeen Asset Management Scottish Traditional Boat Festival Chair, Roger Goodyear, says, "The Festival has a great programme that offers a fantastic traditional maritime experience. Each year our Festival continues to grow stronger and draw in huge crowds- the small town usually only has a population of 2000 people, and this rises to an incredible 16,000 people over the weekend of the Festival.

"Now in its 21st year, we hope to continue to build on its enviable reputation for showcasing the very best in traditional maritime festivities with a range of craft, food, drink, music and dance events. What started as a small community celebration to mark the 300th anniversary of Portsoy harbour has grown to become recognised by VisitScotland as one of the region's flagship tourism events, which is a fantastic boost."

The music programme will feature the very best of traditional music including popular Scottish folk singers and local favourites. The music line up this year reflects the Year of Homecoming by bringing together local musicians and performers from around the world including headliners RURA, festival favourites De Kinkels from the Netherlands and Slogmaakane, fabulous shanty singers from Norway.
The festival craft marquee is set to attract artists and craft workers from across Scotland, while food and drink from the North-east's larder will on show at the Wally Green Food Fayre.

Caroline Packman, Homecoming Scotland Director, says, "Homecoming places the spotlight on our greatest assets and celebrates all that's great about our country, so it's only fitting the Scottish Traditional Boat Festival is part of the packed Homecoming programme of events. Scotland is the perfect stage for major cultural events and the Boat Festival provides a truly enchanting example of the regions rich heritage and culture. Whether you are interested in crafts, historic vessels, boat races or it's simply a day out with the family - there's truly something for everyone at Portsoy."

For more information about the Festival and to buy tickets visit www.stbfportsoy.com. 
An adult day ticket to the festival costs £8, children aged five to 18 and concessions are £5. Adult weekend tickets are priced at £12 and children and concessions at £8. There are also family tickets available which allow entry for two adults and three children for £25 for a day ticket and £35 for a weekend. Children under five go free. Car parking is available and costs £2, with the price including a brochure.

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Dublin Bay

Dublin Bay on the east coast of Ireland stretches over seven kilometres, from Howth Head on its northern tip to Dalkey Island in the south. It's a place most Dubliners simply take for granted, and one of the capital's least visited places. But there's more going on out there than you'd imagine.

The biggest boating centre is at Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the Bay's south shore that is home to over 1,500 pleasure craft, four waterfront yacht clubs and Ireland's largest marina.

The bay is rather shallow with many sandbanks and rocky outcrops, and was notorious in the past for shipwrecks, especially when the wind was from the east. Until modern times, many ships and their passengers were lost along the treacherous coastline from Howth to Dun Laoghaire, less than a kilometre from shore.

The Bay is a C-shaped inlet of the Irish Sea and is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and 7 km in length to its apex at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south. North Bull Island is situated in the northwest part of the bay, where one of two major inshore sandbanks lie, and features a 5 km long sandy beach, Dollymount Strand, fronting an internationally recognised wildfowl reserve. Many of the rivers of Dublin reach the Irish Sea at Dublin Bay: the River Liffey, with the River Dodder flow received less than 1 km inland, River Tolka, and various smaller rivers and streams.

Dublin Bay FAQs

There are approximately ten beaches and bathing spots around Dublin Bay: Dollymount Strand; Forty Foot Bathing Place; Half Moon bathing spot; Merrion Strand; Bull Wall; Sandycove Beach; Sandymount Strand; Seapoint; Shelley Banks; Sutton, Burrow Beach

There are slipways on the north side of Dublin Bay at Clontarf, Sutton and on the southside at Dun Laoghaire Harbour, and in Dalkey at Coliemore and Bulloch Harbours.

Dublin Bay is administered by a number of Government Departments, three local authorities and several statutory agencies. Dublin Port Company is in charge of navigation on the Bay.

Dublin Bay is approximately 70 sq kilometres or 7,000 hectares. The Bay is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and seven km in length east-west to its peak at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the southside of the Bay has an East and West Pier, each one kilometre long; this is one of the largest human-made harbours in the world. There also piers or walls at the entrance to the River Liffey at Dublin city known as the Great North and South Walls. Other harbours on the Bay include Bulloch Harbour and Coliemore Harbours both at Dalkey.

There are two marinas on Dublin Bay. Ireland's largest marina with over 800 berths is on the southern shore at Dun Laoghaire Harbour. The other is at Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club on the River Liffey close to Dublin City.

Car and passenger Ferries operate from Dublin Port to the UK, Isle of Man and France. A passenger ferry operates from Dun Laoghaire Harbour to Howth as well as providing tourist voyages around the bay.

Dublin Bay has two Islands. Bull Island at Clontarf and Dalkey Island on the southern shore of the Bay.

The River Liffey flows through Dublin city and into the Bay. Its tributaries include the River Dodder, the River Poddle and the River Camac.

Dollymount, Burrow and Seapoint beaches

Approximately 1,500 boats from small dinghies to motorboats to ocean-going yachts. The vast majority, over 1,000, are moored at Dun Laoghaire Harbour which is Ireland's boating capital.

In 1981, UNESCO recognised the importance of Dublin Bay by designating North Bull Island as a Biosphere because of its rare and internationally important habitats and species of wildlife. To support sustainable development, UNESCO’s concept of a Biosphere has evolved to include not just areas of ecological value but also the areas around them and the communities that live and work within these areas. There have since been additional international and national designations, covering much of Dublin Bay, to ensure the protection of its water quality and biodiversity. To fulfil these broader management aims for the ecosystem, the Biosphere was expanded in 2015. The Biosphere now covers Dublin Bay, reflecting its significant environmental, economic, cultural and tourism importance, and extends to over 300km² to include the bay, the shore and nearby residential areas.

On the Southside at Dun Laoghaire, there is the National Yacht Club, Royal St. George Yacht Club, Royal Irish Yacht Club and Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club as well as Dublin Bay Sailing Club. In the city centre, there is Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club. On the Northside of Dublin, there is Clontarf Yacht and Boat Club and Sutton Dinghy Club. While not on Dublin Bay, Howth Yacht Club is the major north Dublin Sailing centre.

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