Putting the sails back on the Mayflower II in Mystic

April 29, 2020 12:00 am • Last Updated: April 29, 2020 10:01 pm

By Sean D. Elliot
Director of Photography

Whit Perry, left, director of maritime preservation and operations at Plimoth Plantation, watches as Matthew Otto, right, head rigger with The Rig Loft LLC, and Plimoth Plantation's Don Heminitz work to furl the fore sail Wednesday, April 29, 2020, after bending it on the yard on the Mayflower II at Mystic Seaport Museum's Henry B. duPont Preservation Shipyard. (Sean D. Elliot/The Day)
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Mystic — The Mayflower II got its fore sail Wednesday.

Whit Perry, director of maritime preservation and operations at Plimoth Plantation, watched as Matthew Otto, head rigger with The Rig Loft LLC, and Plimoth Plantation's Don Heminitz worked to furl the sail Wednesday after bending it on the yard with the aid of a lift at Mystic Seaport Museum's Henry B. duPont Preservation Shipyard.

The vessel, a replica of the original Mayflower that carried the Pilgrims to America in 1620, is near the end of a three-year restoration. However, sea trials scheduled for this spring off New London and 400th anniversary festivities scheduled for Boston and Cape Cod this year are all in doubt due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Head Rigger Matthew Otto of The Rig Loft LLC and Plimoth Plantation's Don Heminitz, obscured, work from a lift as they bend on the fore sail Wednesday, April 29, 2020, on the Mayflower II at Mystic Seaport Museum's Henry B. duPont Preservation Shipyard. (Sean D. Elliot/The Day)
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Matthew Otto, head rigger with The Rig Loft LLC, checks the progress as he and Plimoth Plantation's Don Heminitz, not pictured, bend on the fore sail Wednesday, April 29, 2020, on the Mayflower II at Mystic Seaport Museum's Henry B. duPont Preservation Shipyard. (Sean D. Elliot/The Day)
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