The history of Castor
The history of Castor has a lot of surprises. Explore the timeline and get to know more about how Castor went from being a galeas with fishing in the North Sea to today, where she sails in Bogense with locals, tourists, and charter guests.
- 1936
Castor is an older and beautifully lady. She was built in 1936/1937 at Jensen & Luridsen’s Shipbuilding in Esbjerg. She is a galeas with a beautiful spread of canvas. Castor was used for fishing and that is why she was built as a Danish Seine (cutter) with a well. Flatfish were typically caught like plaices, dabs, and soles. She has also been to Lofoten in Norway to catch codfish
- 1950s
Until the 1950s Castor sailed in the Northern Sea to catch fish. Meantime she was supplied by a big diesel engine, and the whole spread of canvas was removed. The purpose was to get more space on the deck, and the drift became more rational
- 1960s
In the 1960s she went through a big transformation, because she should work as a camp school ship for young criminals. The well was changed with a saloon, that you can see today too. I many years she sailed with young criminal, who were assisted with their stay aboard the ship. Later she sailed with tourists, locals, and charter guests at Kattegat and at the Little Belt – almost like we know her from today
- 1996
In 1996 she changed her environments, because she was bought by a private limited company, which consisted of local citizens from Bogense. They decided to buy Castor because they could see the good idea of sailing tourists. Since then, she has belonged to Bogense
- 1998
In 1998 she got two new masts made of larch from Gyldensteen
- 2002
In 2002 she was rigged as the galeas she is today
- 2014
After 18 years as a private limited company, she was in 2014 owned by “Den selvejende Institution (DSI) Castor af Bogense”. It opened more possibilities, because they could apply for funds and subsidies so they could ensure the operation of the ship. To keep Castor sailing require many volunteer hours
- 2018
On September 20th, the skipper raised the alarm. There was a big crowd of people watching because the sky was covered with a thick black smoke, which came from the engine room. Castor was unfortunately on fire when she was moored to the quay at Bogense Gl. Havn. Luckily, the fire got under control, but the damages were a lot more extensive than expected. She was declared written-off and she was to be rebuilt. She came at the shipbuilding yard and it was a big going-over. The workmen installed a new kitchen, toilet and then Castor got the best quality of oakwood too
- 2020
August 2020 she was ready to sail again, but due to Corona there were not many boat trips
- 2022
Today Castor can’t wait to sail with a lot of passengers again
Facilities on board
- Saloon with dining area for 25 people
- Kitchen with cooking plate, fridge, and tableware for 40 persons
- Toilet
- Sale of coffee, beer, water, and wine
- Speakers
See pictures of the facilities in our exciting gallery
Castor in numbers
- Castors no. E. 393
- Length: 52 feet / 15,8 metres
- Width: 16 feet / 4,8 metres
- Weight: 40 tons
- Draught: 3 metres
- Numbers of passengers aboard: 39 passengers
- Sails: 4 sails (mainsail, spanker, foresail, and jib)
Did you know…
… some volunteers (retired persons) renovate Castor?
They consist of retired persons, and they are all enthusiasts. After the break in the winter, they renovate Castor where they are scrubbing, sanding, washing, and installing. They call themselves Bundholdet, and they have an amazing community.
You can read a lot more about Bundholdet under “Castor’s Friends and jazz”.
… Castor every spring is at the shipbuilding yard?
Every spring Castor is at the shipbuilding yard, because the ship requires a lot of maintenance where the focus is on the safety conditions in the ship’s constructions, life rafts and engine. In this way, it is ensured that you as passengers can sail safely with Castor.
