PROVINCETOWN — The return of public sailing trips on the Kalmar Nyckel, a tall ship based in Delaware, after a five-year hiatus has revealed a pent-up demand for time aboard the replica colonial-era vessel. Its entire two-week stay here, which includes 15 public trips, sold out within hours of its arrival on July 31 — something that had never happened in its 21-year history of making port calls to Provincetown.
The Kalmar Nyckel stopped making regular trips here during the pandemic and has struggled to find a summertime berth on MacMillan Pier since then.
“There were cruise ships coming to Provincetown every weekend that were using this dock, and they take up the whole space,” said the Nyckel’s longtime captain, Lauren Morgen. “It just didn’t leave enough time for us to come, set up our system, and make it worthwhile.”
Morgen said they had considered docking at the nearby Provincetown Marina but felt they needed to be on the public pier where people could see the ship more easily.
The original Kalmar Nyckel was built in Amsterdam in 1627 and purchased by the Swedish Ship Company shortly afterward. It carried the settlers that founded Fort Christina in 1638 — the Swedish settlement that eventually became Wilmington, Del.
The ship crossed the Atlantic eight times on four successful trips and went on to fight in the Baltic Sea in the Thirty Years’ War. She was eventually sold back to the Dutch in 1651 and sank off the coast of Scotland during a battle between the Dutch and English navies.
The current Kalmar Nyckel was built in Delaware and launched in 1997 only 200 yards away from where the original is supposed to have made landfall in March 1638. It is the official Tall Ship of Delaware and supports educational programs throughout the school year there.
Although the Kalmar Nyckel made a brief resupply stop in Provincetown last year, its arrival last Wednesday was the first time since 2019 that the 141-foot vessel had secured a window of time sufficient for public sailing trips.
Morgen pointed out that the view of the Nyckel from Provincetown’s other recreational boats is outstanding.
“We have a blast on the ship when we go sailing, but it’s also magical to be on another boat watching us,” she said.
Morgen said she could not promise the Nyckel would return to Provincetown next year, as there are many factors to balance when building a summer schedule. She did say that Provincetown is a good port of call, however.
“With due respect to all of our wonderful ports, the tip of Cape Cod has the best day sailing,” Morgen said. “It’s a big, open, protected water space with no obstacles and tons of room to sail. You can really stretch the legs of a boat like this.”
