Owensboro Goes Back in Time to 1492 This Week [Video]

Ah, if you enjoy sailing and history  as much as I do, you'll enjoy this week in the Big O. There is nothing so exhilarating as taking the helm of a wooden ship and setting sail for Tahiti or other far flung lands.

Here I am aboard the Bounty in 1789. Photography was not very good back then, so it is a little fuzzy.

But, I digress. On to the story at hand.

Wonder what it was like for Christopher Columbus and crew and when they sailed the ocean blue in 1492? Well, you can find out this week when the replica ships, the Nina and the Pinta return to Owensboro’s English Park for an eleven-day stay. The Columbus Foundation commissioned these replicas to be built so that Americans and visiting tourists can enjoy the flash back to a simpler, but very dangerous time.

You’ll be able to walk aboard and spend as much time as you wish on a self-guided tour. It’s $8 for adults, $7 for seniors, and $6 for students 5-16. The ships will be open from 9am-6pm daily. For more information, contact the Convention & Visitors Bureau at 270-926-1100.

The twosome will be here through the city’s celebration of the reopening of Smother’s Park and the River Front August 23-25.

It looks as though the weather will be extraordinary, too. Fun Times.

The Niña – Most Historically Accurate Columbus Replica Ship Ever Built

The Niña is a replica of the ship on which Columbus sailed across the Atlantic on his three voyages of discovery to the new world beginning in 1492. Columbus sailed the tiny ship over 25,000 miles. That ship was last heard of in 1501, but the new Niña has a different mission. It’s a floating museum!

Pinta – The Second Columbus Replica Ship

Pinta was recently built in Brazil to accompany the Nina on all of her travels. She is a larger version of the archetypal caravel and offers larger deck space for walk-aboard tours and has a 40 ft air conditioned main cabin down below with seating.

To see the ships in action you can visit this website.