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Captain's Log
22 April 2012
Same oh, same oh – No wind
Day 5 Sunday 22 Apr 12 Hello me hearties, Well this lack of wind is doing my head in. We woke this morning to another beautiful day and my first thought was ‘oh no, not more’. You guessed it, we were in for another day with very little wind and lots of sunshine. After happy hour we weighed anchor and motored through the Solway Passage and then did our very best to sail. We were rocketing along at breakneck speeds of 2kts!!! After lunch I provided a lecture on the theory of sail and the first point to be made was that to sail effectively one needed WIND. Anyway we persevered and afterwards we went to tacking stations and conducted rotational tacks where tacking stations are swapped around. The tacks were very slow and in fact we were actually going backwards as the ebbing tide carried us northwards through the Whitsunday Passage as we tried to work our way southwards. Something desperate was required and I put in a special request and summonsed the presence of Brother Nutsie (or is it Nutze – no one actually knows) whose special powers have been put to good use previously to conjure up some decent wind. He duly arrived with his man servant and demonstrated his powers by levitating the YC – quite extraordinary! Brother Nutsie disappeared as quickly as he arrived and within two hours the engines had been shut down as the ship worked southwards in 10kts of sou Easter making good a cracking speed of 4 kts – woohoo! I wish I were more confident that the wind will last. Captain Gunna Carpe’ diem
Latitude/Longitude:
20° 45' South / 149° 5' East
Conditions:
Co 133, Sp5, Wind 150 5-10 ktsÂ
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As the day progressed, all watches utilised their newly found skills to undergo "Captain's setting and furling". This entailed setting and furling the fore staysail and main staysail while Captain Adam Charlie Farley and a few other staffies assessed our safety without our watch leaders' guidance. All watches passed successfully, leaving the Captain very satisfied that we would be able to safely handle the sails on Command Day. Some of us saw a pod of Short-beaked common dolphins (Delphinus Dolphus) swimming along the side of the boat, with a very cute infant dolphin beside them. After anchoring in the beautiful Broken Bay, we settled into a delicious lunch of Ham & Cheese toasties, Satay Chicken, or Sweet and Sour Pork made by the incredible Steve; followed by a much needed siesta.
Of course we had to take advantage of the sunny weather, so we enjoyed a refreshing swim at the beach with a game of dodgeball and tug of war (won by Blue Watch). We then had our mid-voyage chats with our watch leaders, reflecting on our goals which we set at the start of our voyage, and set some new ones to ensure we make the most out of the busy days ahead.
Just when we thought our day couldn't get better, we were treated with a BBQ and salad on deck for dinner and an impromptu dance party at midships. This was followed by another round of rope races (Dan is the man!!), where different items had to be located around the ship. An intense bonus round of racing Fenders (taken out by white watch) was undertaken, which got very competitive very quickly.
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Tonight, after a fantastic day, the youthies will be completing 1-hour anchor watches while also solving a navigation challenge during this time.
We can't wait for another busy and exciting day tomorrow!
Ava and Ruby, out!
Shoutouts:
Hey Mum, Dad and Zane! I hope you are all doing well and enjoying the quiet household, I miss you guys so much. I am having so much fun and have had the most amazing experiences with the most amazing people (and yes Dad, I actually got to the top of the mast); I can't wait to tell you all about it when I get home. I love you guys so much! xx
Happy Birthday Kai! I hope you have an amazing day and enjoy being an official adult, I can't wait to see you. - Ava
Hey Dad! I hope you are remembering to be super rad. I miss you lots but I am having an incredible time on the ship! Some of the stuff you taught me has actually helped (sorry for not paying attention earlier). I have seen so many incredible things and hung out with some great people, so I can't wait to tell you all about it. I love you so much x - Ruby
Lat/Long: 33 34.7'S - 151 16.6'E
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Hi Mum, Dad, and Lincoln. I just wanted to say that I am having a lot of fun on the Young Endeavour and I cant wait to get back home and tell you all about it. Love Harrison.
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- Hey Mum, dad, Alex, Darcy and Harrson. I'm having a great time out here! Loving every second of it. We've been doing lots of stuff and I am missing you all so much. Time has been moving so fast, I can't believe that It's already day 4! I love you all and please say hello to the pets from me. - Damien
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