The $6.2 million replica of the historic San Salvador being built for the San Diego Maritime Museum is nearing completion and will be launched soon, the museum said Friday.
After four years of work by some 200 volunteers, the scaffolding around the ship has started to come down. Over the next few months, preparations for her launch will take place. Then the rigging process will begin.
The San Salvador was the flagship of explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo in 1542 when he sailed into San Diego Bay. Cabrillo was the first European to explore the coast of California.
Once it’s finished, the full-size, 92-foot-long galleon will be opened to visitors and for educational programs. Museum officials said it would also sail to ports throughout the state “as a travelling learning platform and symbol of our region’s Pacific origins and maritime heritage.”
The project is partly funded by a grant from the Coastal Conservancy
The San Salvador construction site is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily at Spanish Landing Park near the airport. You can watch the progress on a 24-hour webcam.
