New Bedford Guide Your Guide to New Bedford and South Coast, MA
For the eleventh straight year New Bedford has been ranked the top fishing port in America, taking in $306 million in sales for 2010. Each year the Working Waterfront Festival showcases New Bedford’s fishing industry by offering visitors a chance to enjoy music, contests, food and the chance to meet the men and women that bring the seafood to your plate each day. For 2011 expect a larger crowd than previous years because the Working Waterfront Festival was spotlighted on National Geographic’s Traveler Magazine as a “Top 20 Travel Event.”
This year’s Working Waterfront Festival is scheduled for September 24th and 25th at the Fisherman’s Wharf/Pier 3 (Steamship Pier). The festival will occur from 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. on Saturday and from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. on Sunday. The theme for 2011 is “Then & Now: Tradition and Innovation in New England’s Working Ports.” Full details with a schedule of events can be found here.
Some of the crowd favorites are the contests. This year expect scallop shucking, net mending, survival suit racing, rilleting and link squeezing contests and whaleboat racing. The Working Waterfront Festival is a family event that features a kids area, vessel tours, exhibits, author readings and much more.
After the festival on Saturday, head over the the Zeiterion Theatre and catch Whaling City: a feature film that tells the story of a modern-day fishing Captain in New Bedford. Tickets can be purchased here.
