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Unable to raise money needed, Viking ship to end Great Lakes journey early

A replica Norwegian Viking ship that stopped in Chicago last month won't make it any farther than Green Bay, Wisconsin this summer. The ship was to head to Minnesota to be part of Tall Ships Duluth later this month. But, Draken Harald Harfagre says it's been unable to raise the money needed to complete the expedition in Duluth. After this weekend's event in Green Bay, the ship will leave the Great Lakes. The organization behind the expedition, Viking Kings, discovered after they reached the Great Lakes that they were not exempt from a requirement to hire U.S. pilots as they had originally believed. The U.S. Coast Guard said it lacked the authority to waive the fees. WDIO-TV says that despite fundraising efforts and a reduced fee, Viking Kings says it wasn't able to come up with the $250,000 needed to complete the Great Lakes journey. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/midwest/ct-viking-ship-great-lakes-20160805-story.html

Viking ship on the move again

Thanks to the plight of a Norwegian Viking ship touring tall ships festivals on the Great Lakes this summer, pilotage has made headlines up and down the lakes, even in the New York Times. For the pilots, the attention does not play to script. "It is the life mission of every pilot to keep out of the headlines," said John Swartout, president of the Western Great Lakes Pilots Association based in Superior, who was expecting to pilot the Jamaican-flagged Puffin after it took on a load of grain at Superior's CHS. "All this attention doesn't help. We do our best when nobody knows we're there." But with the Draken Harald Hårfagre sailing out of Chicago and on to Green Bay for the festival preceding the one in Duluth on August 18-21, pilotage has become a buzzword like never before. http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/news/4087439-viking-ship-move-again

Viking Warship Captain Is Not Happy With The US Coast Guard

There’s been a misunderstanding between this Viking longship captain and the Coast Guard over the cost of next week's Tall Ships festival at Navy Pier. When the captain of the world’s largest Viking warship is accusing you of rudeness, it might be time to check your manners. That’s the unmistakable message for U.S. authorities from Bjorn Ahlander, captain of the Draken Harald Harfagre, a fearsome historic 115-foot wooden longship that crossed the Atlantic from Norway and is now bearing down on Chicago. Ahlander and his crew say they are upset that they were invited to make the harrowing three-month voyage to compete in next week’s Tall Ships festival at Navy Pier, only to be told once they arrived in U.S. waters that they could not sail on the Great Lakes without a $400-an-hour licensed pilot. Further reading at http://taskandpurpose.com/viking-longship-captain-not-happy-us-coast-guard/