Ever wonder what it's like to sail a tall ship? Over the next five days, curiosity-seekers in the area will be able to find out.

The A.J. Meerwald, a wooden 115-foot schooner with a pair of masts, one 68 feet and the other 65 feet, is booking hands-on tours out of Atlantic Highlands Wednesday through Sunday.

The 95-year-old ship owns a colorful history of oystering in the Delaware Bay, then serving as a stateside fireboat during World War II, then clamming in the Atlantic Ocean. Based in Commercial Township in Cumberland County, it’s been used for hands-on tours since 1996 and just underwent a 10-month restoration.

Maintained by the aquatic advocacy nonprofit Bayshore Center, the A.J. Meerwald operates as a sort of traveling classroom about marine life and gives passengers an opportunity to set its three sails and haul in lines during a two-hour tour of Sandy Hook Bay.

The A.J. Meerwald is New Jersey state tall ship

“It’s used to teach not only about the history of oystering and the shellfish industry, but connects that world to environmental sustainability,” said Rachel Dolhanczyk, the Bayshore Center’s museum curator. “An oyster is a keystone piece to the (underwater) environment. Oyster reefs provide habitats for fish and crabs. The more oysters you have, the more fish and crabs you have.”

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The A.J. Meerwald is one of about eight such schooners from the period still in operation. Built during an “oyster boom” in the 1920s, it was converted to power with an engine that was used during parts of the oystering process (for other parts, sail power worked best to tread lightly on the environment).

Through the years the ship’s fortunes rose and fell with circumstances. The Great Depression bankrupted its original owners (the Meerwald family). During World War II, it was sold to the U.S. Coast Guard and outfitted as a fireboat to support ships loading and unloading munitions at the Philadelphia and Camden ports (there are no records of it actually responding to a fire).

After the war it returned to oystering, but the business was devastated by a parasite that wiped out most of the oyster population in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic. In 1959 it was converted to dredge clams offshore and continued working the waters until 1979.

The Meerwald’s retirement gig, so to speak, of giving educational tours began in 1996. Its last appearance in Atlantic Highlands came in 2019, before a COVID pause and a $1.3 million restoration project.

“This is the first year since 2019 that it’s actually back out and filled with people,” said Jessica Yorke, the Bayshore Center’s executive director.

Tickets are $50 apiece and can be purchased at www.bayshorecenter.org/our-ship/public-sails. Tours out of Atlantic Highlands take place Wednesday (noon and 3 p.m.), Thursday (noon and 6 p.m.), Friday (noon and 3 p.m.), Saturday (noon, 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.) and Sunday (noon, 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.). For more information, go to www.bayshorecenter.org or contact the Bayshore Center at 856-785-2060 or info@BayshoreCenter.org.

Jerry Carino is community columnist for the Asbury Park Press, focusing on the Jersey Shore’s interesting people, inspiring stories and pressing issues. Contact him at jcarino@gannettnj.com.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Tall-masted schooner offers sailing out of Atlantic Highlands NJ