Metro Detroiters can take a trip through history this weekend to see what life on a traditional sailing ship was like as part of the Sail Detroit festival by the riverfront.

Four tall ships — enormous sailing ships that are traditionally rigged — arrived in Detroit on Thursday as part of the Tall Ships Challenge, which is organized by Tall Ships America, a nonprofit sailing organization. The ships are set to be in the riverfront until Sunday.

The annual challenge allows people in host ports scattered across the Great Lakes to board the ships, talk to their captains and crew and learn about the ship's origins. This weekend marks the first time the ships have docked in Detroit since 2001, during the first year of the Great Lakes challenge.

"They're a piece of sailing history and artwork

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