SAILING, WHITSUNDAY ISLANDS

Last night’s anchorage provided welcome relief from the exhausting routine of sea watches. The hourly requirement for rounds and regular checks of the ship’s position and safety continued, however without the demands of regular sail handling, the numbers required on watch was reduced to three.Dawn broke grey and dull, but with the promise of a brighter day. YOUNG ENDEAVOUR pool opened for early morning activity with nearly everyone onboard ducking in for a refreshing dip in the clear water. The dip was followed with a magnificent BBQ breakfast on deck (special thank you Susannah) and once our hunger was satisfied we repaired below for some warm showers.At 8am we observed the ceremony of colours with the hoisting of the Ensign and Jack. Ian explained the origins of the terms ‘posh’ and ‘shake a leg’ with an amusing demonstration of the finer details, and Whips explained the navigation plan for the day. Once the plan was established we struck the awning and prepared for sea.Today has been a magnificent day for sailing. We have managed to set every standing sail except the Fisherman Staysail, which is only good in light breezes. The ship looked a magnificent sight under all square sails as we practiced our sail handling and tacking in the Whitsunday Passage. The youth crew have become so proficient at their tacking stations that we have started to move the watches around so that they can experience the roles of the other watches during this whole ship evolution.We were also treated with a close view of the DUYFKEN this afternoon. This is a replica of the original DUYFKEN captained by Willem Janszoon, which was the first European vessel to sight the land now known as Australia in 1606. The youth crew were amazed at the differences in the vessels, and it is easy to see how much the technology has changed at sea in the past 401 years. Of course there are still very many similarities that all sea farers face, in particularly those who share the bond of sailing in a tall ship.Yours AyePhil GadenLieutenant, RANRQUOTE’It is the sin of the soul to force young people into opinions – indoctrination is of the devil – but it is culpable neglect not to impel young people into experience.’ Kurt HahnYouth Crew ImpressionsHello my name is Anita I’m from Gympie, QLD. While we have caught a glimpse of sunshine for a few minutes on two occasions now we still are struggling with the wet weather gear on so on. Although we started off this morning with a very refreshing dip in the ocean after a nice long sleep at anchor in Nara inlet. We have now back tracked and mastered the art of tacking we are actually starting to look like we know what we are doing which is lucky considering we only have about three days till the youth crew take over the ship. ARG !!!!!Ella, 17, SydneyAfter starting the morning by bashing pots and pans along the corridors with Jesse and James to wake everyone, we ran. 😀 The SUN was out YAY and the morning swim at Nara was an excellent way for everyone to boast their flipping skills off the bowsprit. The decks were finally drying out today so Red Watch brought out the chalk and soon the deck was covered in everything from noughts and crosses to a river with an island. Team JE kicked ass in the many setting and furling of the sails and overall the food was great “because that is what it’s all about here on the Young Endeavour.”