MMA’s State of Maine heads for final voyage

CASTINE — The State of Maine, Maine Maritime Academy’s training vessel, will weigh anchor for its last voyage, capping 43 years of service, at noon Tuesday, May 9.

The destinations will include the Caribbean island of Barbados; Jacksonville, Fla.; New Orleans; Charleston S.C.; St. John, New Brunswick; Portland and its home port of Castine on July 3.

Recent training tours have included Gibraltar, Russia, Poland, Spain and Ireland, and last year Normandy, France, was included during a celebration of the 50th anniversary of D-Day.

Midshipmen train 60 days at sea during each of their first three years of study. Sophomores are assigned to merchant ships worldwide and in the future, freshmen and juniors will sail aboard a new training ship, the former USNS Harkness.