A FREE festival celebrating Glasgow’s unique maritime heritage and promoting activity on and around the River Clyde is back for a second year.

The Clyde Maritime Trust, in partnership with the GalGael Trust, is hosting the Clydebuilt Festival this weekend at the Riverside Museum and Tall Ship beside the Clyde.

On Saturday the festival will host year two of Castle to Crane, Scotland’s biggest open water rowing race, 13 miles of racing from Dumbarton Castle to the Finnieston Crane. 

The race has a confirmed fleet of 76 open rowing boats, with teams from across Scotland and as far afield as Cornwall, Orkney and the Netherlands.

At the shore-side on Saturday and Sunday, the festival offers live craft demonstrations from GalGael and The Tall Ship, beautiful boats from the Scottish Maritime Museum, hunter-gatherer skills with Backwood Survival and much more. 

There will be live music from local bands, including Brass Aye?, Arkansas Ramblers and Muldoon’s Picnic. 

Food will be on offer from Scotland’s premium street food trucks; Loch Fyne Oysters, Prague Shack, Prime Street Food and Wanderers Kneaded and a licensed bar will be provided by Galvanize Events. 

The Clydebuilt market will host a variety of stalls, from the RLNI, Glasgow Coastal rowing club to The Clydeside Distillery and Olive Pearson Designs.

On Sunday Glasgow’s Lord Provost, Eva Bolander, a keen rower, will be at the festival to launch a coracle, custom built at the festival.

The Lord Provost said: “I’m delighted to support the Clydebuilt Festival.

It’s a great, fun, active event for all the family that allows us to celebrate the Clyde, its history and heritage, giving us recreation at the river and on the river with a real community connection.”

Dorothy Graham from GalGael Trust said: “Excitement is building here at GalGael as preparations for the festival are in full swing.

“We are delighted to be hosting the festival with the Clyde Maritime Trust again and look forward to celebrating Glasgow’s rich maritime heritage at the River Clyde. 

“The GalGael team have been training relentlessly to enter ‘Orcuan’, our 30ft Berlinn, into the Castle to Crane race.”

Frank Brown, of The Clyde Maritime Trust said: “The trust is delighted to be co-hosting the second year of the Clydebuilt Festival at Riverside. 

“This celebration of boats and the folks that use them was very well received last year and with this year’s programme bigger and better we think it’s an event not to be missed.”

Opening hours are from 10am-6pm on Saturday and 11am-6pm on Sunday.