Sun and a dry deck

2. Last night was a particularly restful one after a very hectic fewdays. After beating our way down the coast into some rough seas, wefinally reached that sought after shelter, that only Broken Bay couldprovide. With the Youth and Staff Crews safely hunkered down intoAnchor Watches, many spent the night catching up on some long overduerest.This morning we rose at 0630 looking forward to a busy but rewarding day. For the first time in a while we were greeted by some sun and a dry deck, and the opportunity did not go begging as we tooka light jog around the upper deck and then busily engaged ourselves in a few early morning games.Once our normal morning routine was complete, it as time for the YC to prove their mettle, and be assessed on all the sail handling they had learnt over the past seven days. May I say that they did not fail to impress. They have most certainly excelled themselves in this area. After the Setting and Furling Drills we all turned to another tasty lunch which Kazza had prepared for us. It was then time for the Youth Crew to finish off their preparations for Command Day and electtheir team.At 1400 this afternoon the Youth Crew finished up their elections and their newly elected Command Team spent the next few hours trying to glean any final information they could from the staff beforeassuming command of the ship. At 1700 all Staff and YC members mustered at midships and Captain John handed command of the Ship over to the YC Captain Mel and her fine team of sailors. After a few speeches and a well sung chorus of ‘Advance Australia Fair’ all hands turned yet again to the Cafe and Kazza’s culinary delights.The YC have now assumed full command of the ship and after successfully sailing from anchor, they have been forced to beat their way up Broken Bay by several successive wind shifts. They remain infine spirits despite the frustration of these light and variable wind conditions and I am sure will continue to push through the next twenty or so hours in the same vain.On a more personal note I would like to take this opportunity to say a big hello to my wife Rachelle and son Tristan and wish them all my love. It has been a while and I am looking forward to seeing you guys next weekend after having missed both your birthdays in the lastfew voyages. Miss you and love you both, and I can’t wait to see you.YOUNG ENDEAVOUR Fact File: YOUNG ENDEAVOUR first entered Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour) at 2100 hours on 19 Jan 1988. This was the second last time she sailed under the Royal Merchant Ensign and Union Jack. Six days later she was handed over to the RAN and flewt the Australian National Flag and Australian White Ensign for the first time. YOUNG ENDEAVOUR Glossary: Davits – Small curved cranes for raising or lowering ships’ boats or anchors.Thought of the day: ‘The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you can’t do.’ Walter BagehoffYours, AyePaul ‘Chooka’ BarrieLEUT, RAN’Executive Officer and Celebrity Log Writer’Casey Hawkins, Age 20, of Hoppers Crossing VIC writes:Hi Riki, Mum, Dad and Wendy…well what a day… we took command of the ship at 1700 and after days of 30 knot winds and winds up to 50 knots we are currently attempting to sail with winds that at one point got down to 0.8 knots. However, as frustrating as this is, we are all working hard and making the most of it. It’s been a huge learning experience for the entire youth crew even in this short time we have been in command. Our elected leaders have been especially inspirational in their roles. Who knows what tomorrow has in store? I am over my seasickness and am now having the time of my life. I missyou heaps and I’ll see you soon, Love Casey