Empty tents will teem with people Thursday through Sunday

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Ready For Tall Ships

Volunteers and Organizers Completing Final Preparations for Big Weekend

July 14, 2010
By: Stephen Kent

By the time you read this the biggest weekend of Bay City's Summer Season will be getting underway. Tall Ship Celebration 2010 starts Thursday July 15 and runs through Sunday the 18th. Based on the 2001, 2003 and 2006 events, organizers expect well over 100,000 people to visit the festival.

Late Wednesday afternoon preparations were all coming together. Tents are up on both sides of the river. Vendors are setup and ready. Volunteers have been organized and trained. The 100 singers and musicians who will stage a free Pirates of Penzance performance Thursday evening are at their final rehearsal.

MyBayCity Photographers made a round of the city Wednesday afternoon to get a few "before" shots, which are shown below. By Thursday evening it will be an entirely different picture, which we'll bring to you in later articles.

The Grand Arrival of Tall Ships is scheduled for Thursday beginning at about 1:00 pm. Ships will arrive in groups gathered on the Saginaw Bay and then sailing up the Saginaw river, passing through two draw bridges, to dock in the downtown area.

The free Pirates of Penzance presentation will be staged in the Friendship Shell in Wenonah park. Billed as a "gift to the community" by the Bay Arts Council, the free concert will feature some of the best singers and musicians from Bay City, Saginaw and Midland.

According to TallShipCelebration.com the visiting Tall Ships will be available for boarding and touring during festival hours on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, July 16-18. Boarding and touring these vessels requires a Souvenir Passport which is available for $15.