Replica vessels sail their way through Great Lakes

Includes a Viking longboat and 170-foot Spanish galleon

DETROITKeep your eyes open for some big boats coming your way.

A replica Viking longboat and a 170-foot Spanish galleon are expected to sail up the Detroit River, Lake St. Clair and St. Clair River sometime between Monday and Wednesday.

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The Grand Rapids Press reports the Draken Harald Hσrfagre of Norway and the El Galeon Andalucia of Spain and other replica vessels are making their way through the Great Lakes.

To reach the Great Lakes, the two vessels each crossed the Atlantic Ocean and passed through 15 inland St. Lawrence Seaway shipping locks that raised the vessels 577 feet in elevation between Montreal, Quebec and Lake Erie.

The fleet stopped in Toronto for a festival from July 1 to 3.

It  will dock in Bay City on Thursday for the weekend before sailing for Chicago on July 18. Bay City has been the only official host port in Michigan since 2006 for the Tall Ships Challenge.

The fleet will pass underneath the Mackinac Bridge and transit the Soo Locks twice while en route to Lake Superior.