The crew of the frigate Hermione
Yann Cariou, a great sailboat enthusiast and former commander of the Belem and the Etoile, has become the commander of the Hermione. 150 "gabiers" volunteers were trained to live a unique experience : sailing to the United States on a frigate of the 18th century.
On board the crew is composed of 78 people : 15 professional sailors, 56 volunteer gabiers and 7 supernumeraries ; Cooks, technicians ... Each day is punctuated by “the shift” a services of 4 hours between the 3 teams.
The american stops of the Hermione from April to mid-August 2015
For four months, the Hermione followed in the footsteps of La Fayette.
Each American stop was chosen considering the route that took La Fayette on the frigate Hermione in 1780 to join the conflict for the independence of the United States.
After a rest stop in the Canary Islands, stopovers followed one another along the eastern coast of the United States: Yorktown, Chesapeake Bay, Mount Vernon, property of George Washington, Alexandria, Annapolis, Baltimore, Philadelphia, New -York, Greenport, Newport, Boston then Castine and Lunenburg in Canada and finally Saint-Pierre and Miquelon.
On July 4th 2015, the day of the American Independence, the Hermione paraded at the foot of the Statue of Liberty. A magnificent symbol for this frigate that took La Fayette alongside American insurgents fighting for their freedom ...
The return of the Hermione to Rochefort
At the end of August 2015, after stopovers in Brest and then in Bordeaux, the frigate returns triumphant, to Rochefort, her home port.
There were thousands of us, some in period clothes, to greet the return of this ambassador ship, this heroine of two worlds, as well as to honor her glorious crew.
