The Nina....

[seabreeze_97]

Wow. I walked onboard the Nina today. She's a replica of the original, billed as the most accurate replica of this type. 1,919 sq ft sail area, LOA 93.6ft, 66ft on deck, beam (eat yer heart out) 17.3ft, draft 7ft, and a displacement, OMG! 100 tons. There was a storm front approaching, the water was a little choppy, with winds 10 knots, gusts to 20ish. Even the Biloxi Schooners were bucking about a little, and they're not small. The Nina had upwards of 30 people on deck at any time, people transiting back and forth from the pier, and was exposed to the same weather. She didn't even budge. It's all on the web, but to actually be on board. Awesome!

[Boasun]

Well will they let us take it out for a spin around the bay? Or use it to sail east, for a couple of months and see if there is any land out in that direction?

[seabreeze_97]

Ole Chris must've been some smooth talker to get the cash for those trips.
Oh, on the current Nina, they are looking for crew.

[PBzeer]

Is that the Nina on Lake Charles?

[bobmcgov]

This is a broad qustion regarding square-riggers, caravels, round-ship/cogs.... What headings could they effectively manage? Once they developed sprit sails, could they point above a beam reach, or were they always restricted to downwind sailing? If so, what did a round-ship (with minimal or no oars) do if the wind came onto the nose? Reach back and forth, turn around, drop all sails and throw out a drogue, what?

I'm re-reading Dorothy Dunnett, and a fair bit of her stories entails sailing and trading in the Med, the Levant, and the Black Sea. She's competent but not overly-detailed writing about 15th-16th century merchant shipping. (Sounds like those Venetian trading galleys were monsters, tho. Holy Cow! Up to 200ft long and a crew of over 200, mostly oarsmen. Each with a cargo equivalent to (if my exchange rate is correct) about a million US dollars today.)

[seabreeze_97]

I dunno how they sailed in your scenario, Bob.
Lake Charles? Hmmmm. Their schedule has them departing Biloxi, MS the 17th and being on display 2/20-2/24 in Gulf Shores, AL, so I'm thinkin' probably not.