Heave ho me hearties, pirate boat has to up-anchor
Shiver me timbers – Shrewsbury’s own pirate boat the Black Pearl is to disappear from the River Severn as its owners pledge to become more eco-friendly.
The Sabrina Boat Company has signed up to the Shropshire Climate Action Partnership, which aims to reach net zero emissions by 2030.
The company’s Dan Atkinson explained that the pirate boat – which has in the past been a feature of the Shrewsbury River Festival – had an older engine than the rest of the fleet and did not fit with the company’s greener initiative.
“We will be sad to see it go as there was always a great atmosphere on board as passengers often dressed as pirates when they hired it. But we want to be more eco-friendly,” he added.
The good news is that the smaller picnic boats are getting ready to relaunch on March 29.
“People can bring along their own food and drinks and we will provide a skipper who can take them upstream or down stream.
"Friends and families have not been able to get together for such a long time and the picnic boats are an ideal way to simply meet up or celebrate an event,” he said.
The boats will be available for hire during days or evenings.
“Fingers crossed we are looking to open our Sabrina boat to the public again from April 12," added Dan.
