A piece of maritime history is wrapping up its stay at the Sault’s port

The Roberta Bondar Pavilion saw a special visitor this weekend, the Nao Trinidad, a replica of the flagship of famed explorer Ferdinand Magellan.

Diego Bermudez serves in a number of roles on the ship. One of those roles is informing visitors on the attention to detail of the replica.

“She’s true to scale in size. A 1:1 replica in shape and form. She was built in Spain in the same way as many of the ones were 500 years ago. So she has the look and feel of a ship but we do have modern amenities,” said Bermudez

The docking in the Sault is one of many.

The Nao Trinidad has visited ports all along the United States’ east coast and a number in the great lakes. All for the purpose of teaching history says Bermudez.

“This ship is around the 16th century so there is that time period of early Spanish exploration that started really the exploration of the new world. We want the idea that you can have a tangible piece of evidence that this actually happened.”

The eye-catching vessel is very popular at each port they visit according to Bermudez, with lots of questions from locals.

Among the most frequently asked questions is “Is it a pirate ship?” said Bermudez.

The answer; unfortunately for some, is technically no. It flies under the Spanish flag.

However, for Molly MacDonald and her family, who all dressed as pirates for the occasion, there is more fun in pretending they’re aboard an old timey pirate ship.

“I like pirates and I want to explore the ship and steal the treasure,” says MacDonald

Over its 3 day stop on the St. Mary’s Canal, officials say upwards of 3,000 people stepped aboard the replica flagship of Magellan.