As a local BBC radio reporter for more than 30 years, Rob Salvidge knew every interesting character living in and around Bristol's Floating Harbour.

Little did he suspect back then though, that one day he would be counted among them.

Now, aged 50, Rob is living the windswept dream of waterside life that he used to live vicariously through the men he interviewed. He says: "I used to spend so much time down at the harbour, because the place was full of interesting characters back in the early 1970s, when I was a young radio reporter."

He looks out across the harbour's still waters, adding: "This was the place that made me fall in love with boats and ships, so it really feels like home to me."

Since stepping away from his radio career almost a decade ago, Rob has become best known for his passionate championing of Bristol's maritime life. He has become the face of the harbour, whether it's with the Bristol Ferry Boat Company – the business he turned around when he took it on eight years ago – or The Matthew, the reconstruction of the medieval tall ship John Cabot sailed to America. Now he's behind an exciting venture that brings to the city the kind of ship we usually only see during the Bristol Harbour Festival. The tall ship Kaskelot is a majestic sight, gracing the Harbourside beside the Arnolfini gallery.

"The Kaskelot is a beautiful ship," Rob says, as he leads the way up the gangplank. "She's been a regular at the Harbour Festival for the last few years and she's always very popular.

"I felt we needed to make more of an effort to keep the Harbourside buzzing through the winter. There are so many bars and restaurants that look out on to the harbour, it's nice if there's a good tall ship here for them to look out at. And we still get a steady flow of tourists visiting the city all year round, so it's good to have another big ship here for them to see.

"I love the harbour. It's in my blood. I'm a true Bristolian like that, and knowing that my father and my grandfather walked along these quays before me means a lot."

The Kaskelot is part of the Square Sail fleet of tall ships, based in Charlestown, Cornwall.

"Square Sail used to be based in Bristol back in the 1990s," Rob explains. "So there's been a long-standing link there with the Kaskelot and her sister ships. We've often sailed The Matthew with her at festivals all over the world, and both crews are very close.

"We were both at a tall ships festival in Brest last year, and I put the idea to the guys from Square Sail of bringing the Kaskelot to Bristol for the winter." Rob's dream came true a couple of weeks ago, when the tall ship edged her way along the River Avon and entered the city beneath the Clifton Suspension Bridge.

Now the master of The Matthew has taken charge on the Kaskelot throughout her stay in the city.

"She'll be here until January, largely as a venue for parties and events," says Rob. "We're also welcoming visitors on board each day, to just come and have a look around, as well as doing talks to school groups."

Every Tuesday night, the ship will be turned into a music venue.

"We'll have live roots and acoustic music every Tuesday throughout November and early December," he explains. Performers include Mike Silver, BOY and Rozi Plain. "It's a wonderfully atmospheric venue for acoustic music," he adds.

Rob's metamorphosis from BBC radio presenter to salty seadog came eight years ago, inspired by Bristol's most famous yachtsman, Tony Bullimore.

"I joined him aboard his catamaran as he sailed in an epic race to New Zealand," says Rob. "I was supposed to be on board for just the first couple of days, so that I could get together an atmospheric piece for the radio.

"But once I was aboard, I got completely swept up by the adventure. I simply decided I didn't want to get off and return to my relatively conventional life as a radio journalist."

So Rob packed it all in, and signed up to Bullimore's crew for the duration of the voyage.

He says: "My wife, Jane, was also taking part in a big yacht race at exactly the same time – she was sailing across the Atlantic, through Panama to Hawaii. We'd just bought a 32ft yacht to live on, and I was supposed to be spending the time while she was away working on in the harbour, making the yacht habitable. But once I was on the yacht with Tony, I figured, if Jane is away on her adventure, there's no harm in me staying on and having an adventure of my own."

Rob says the 60-day voyage was truly life-changing.

"We worked our way down through the Atlantic, and around Cape Horn," he says. "We went for weeks without seeing another ship, it was an extraordinary experience, and not the sort of thing you can return from and just carry on as normal."

Rob went in to business with the owner of the Bristol Ferry Boat Company, Ian Bungard, and when he retired shortly afterwards, Rob decided to buy the company.

"It was the right time," Rob says. "Bristol's regeneration was starting to come together, and I knew that the harbour would be at the centre of things. The company has developed well ever since – and we recently took on another ship in the city, the Corrine Marin, which is moored opposite the Watershed. It had formerly been a restaurant, but we now use it as a base for the ferry boat company – a ticket office and a cafe."

Shortly after taking on the Bristol Ferry Boat Company, the opportunity also came up to buy The Matthew.

"Again, the time seemed right to do it," he says. "These opportunities don't come up every day."

With the ferry boats, The Matthew, the Corrine Marin and, for a while, The Kaskelot under his belt, Rob is amassing a small flotilla in the Floating Harbour.

"Yes, it is turning into a sort of armada," Rob laughs. "I'll get my hands on a few more ships in the next few years, then we'll all sail out and invade Spain!"

For more information about the Kaskelot's stay in Bristol, visit the website at www.shipshapeandbristol fashion.co.uk