BACK UNDER SAIL

Hi Everyone,

Welcome to day 14 of our voyage. The wind backed and strengthened this morning so we are now back under fore and aft sail and enjoying some favourable conditions. Gone are the large confused swells that we have experienced during the past 24hrs and now the ship just has a slight heel with a nice gentle motion which is conducive for a good nights sleep, the only thing being that we lose an hour tonight due to another time zone change.

It has been another busy day with Captains Setting and Furling Drills, presentations on semaphore, radar and photography and a number of other activities to keep our World Voyagers busy. On top of this it was fresh fish on the menu this evening with another nice tuna caught by our talented fisherman Michael.

Currently we are located 330nm to the west of the Islands of Tristan Da Cunha sailing on a beam reach under fore and aft sail and enjoying moderate to strong NW winds with a 1.5m NNE swell. Our current intentions are to keep on making best speed to Tristan Da Cunha with the hope that the weather conditions may be suitable for us to go to anchor just off Edinburgh Harbour on Saturday morning.

Volunteering to write tonight’s Captains Log is Nathan and Mark from Blue Watch, please enjoy.

Until tomorrow, take care

Yours Aye
Captain Gav

Hello Landlubbers,

Blue Watch reporting in, and oh, what day it has been!

The day started off with an instant hit of nostalgia, the theme song from the classic 90’s kid show Arthur. But there was no time to dwell on that, there was work to be done.

After Breakfast, it was straight into the Morning Brief, led by our team of staffies. We discussed the plans for the day, Dougie gave a few stirring renditions of Mozart and Gav gave us his daily quote, which as always left us feeling inspired, and even a little bit pensive.

Then it was time for Captains Setting and Furling. For those of you who don’t know, this is a practical examination of our abilities as a watch to set and furl the sails. And we all passed, every single watch! Yay! Although I do hear that Blue Watch excelled. Not only that, but we are now all stage 2 climbers! In short, we are now able to climb without the direct assistance of a watch leader. Both of these are big milestones for everyone on board, and we are all pretty excited about the result.

It seems that every day, we get a little more competent at what we do. A little better at setting the sails, and little better at furling, a little more knowledgeable about the sea in general, and we aren’t even halfway through yet!

It seems only fair, that after such a strenuous amount of work that we are amply rewarded. And our favourite chef, Jenko, certainly knows how to put on a good lunch. So much fantastic food that we could barely contain ourselves. Yum Yum Yum.

It was lucky then that Miquela put together a PT session for us all. After the fantastic results from the last session, we all jumped at the opportunity. While in future we are sure our bodies will thank us for exercise, they certainly aren’t thanking us right now.

The afternoon session of activities was preceded by Rope Races. The theme of the day was “Weird Stuff” and Red Watch dominated the field. Thanks to Horto for putting it on for us!

Finally, we settled into our afternoon master classes. Semaphore and Morse Code, Photography 101 and Radar Basics. We all learnt a lot, and everyone is now keen to use their new found knowledge. Big thanks to Adam, Paul and Martin for leading the sessions!

There was a mammoth distraction midway through however, when it was announced over the PA system that Michael’s rod had snagged a fish and it sounds like a big one. Running up to the stern, we all huddled around like school kids when a dog got into the school. After a brief, but highly entertaining battle, Michael won, and a large tuna was hauled over the side. The battle was not without casualties however, as Michaels rod snapped clean in two just as the tuna was being pulled over the side. We mourned the loss of the little rod that could, and feasted on the magnificent sashimi as a starter to our amazing dinner.

And that was our day. The sun is beginning to set over the horizon, and the ship sails onward. It seems ages since we saw land, but there may be a chance to see a small island in the next few days. Needless to say, we are all quite excited about that opportunity. The endless ocean that is before us still amazes us, especially when we try to comprehend how the swell on the port side of the ship seems different to the starboard side, and it is a never ending sea of blue before, aft and beside us. We are constantly reminded about how remote and isolated we are. As Evan our navigator said on our last watch, “We may just be the most isolated people in the world right now”

And I don’t think any one on board would want it any other way.

This is Nathan and Mark from Blue Watch, Signing Off.

Shout Outs

Hello Newmans & co. Things are still well here! Living onboard is starting to feel like the norm. Almost dreading the thought of returning to reality. Luckily our voyage has a while to go  not quite ready to give up freshly caught south atlantic tuna and nightly star gazing. Could really use a half hour shower right now though! Missing you all heaps, lots of love. Kate xx

Hey to all back home. Hope life is treating you well. Daily life here is amazing, got to see some shooting stars last night, and there was even another tuna caught today. We are all loving it here, its just so surreal and amazing. Love to you all. Zoe xx

Hey Family. IU have a little more time to write today, so I can go into a little more detail then my previous shout outs. The boat has been so fun. Every day is a new challenge and a chance to better myself, physically, mentally and even a little spiritually. I have been doing a lot of reading and thinking alongside everything else, and it has really put me into a good place. I am a little concerned about how I am going to fare when I hit land, as I have become so accustomed to the rolling of the ship and the crazy watch hours that I may never sleep normally ever again. But it is totally worth it, and I don’t know how I will ever beat the sensation of sitting 30M up on the main mast looking out onto the vast and deepest blue. It is, in a word, stirring.

I love you all, and miss you all incredibly, and can’t wait to talk to you all soon. It should only be another two weeks or so without comms.

Oh, and P.S every one loves a playlist on my iPod that Jacqui made, so a special shout out to you for that. Love you lots! – Nathan x

Hey family and friends, still having and amazing time aboard, I’m working hard to capture lots of photos for you upon my return. But thinking of you all and hope all is well back on dry land! Be sure to give Bec and Shadow a hug from me! – Mark x