Captain's Log

Voyage 04/23

18 February 2023

Day 6 – Land Ho!

Arrrr Me Heart-eys,

Today’s issue of Young Endeavour CLOG is brought to you by G-Race, Jaz and AJ!

A day aboard Australia’s national sail training ship is unique in so many different, indescribable ways. One of those ways is the fact that our day begins long before the sun’s rays first caress the ocean waves! Our Blue Watch (affectionately known as ‘blueys’…or ‘smurfies’) crewed the Guts Watch from 0001 hours to 0400 hours, and it was not an easy gig… but that’s what we’re here for! In sea conditions upwards of Sea State 3, a gang of youthies braved the elements and climbed aloft to the topgallant in order to pack the sail away, embodying the very word which encapsulates the spirit of Young Endeavour – Gallantry.

And so day 6 of Voyage 04/23 had dawned even before the sun rose. The remainder of the youth crew arose at various times aft of 0630. It was a welcome sight to see so many happy faces in the galley and café after some challenging days at sea, with everyone jovially digging into chef Haydo’s first-class tucker. The usual routines of personal time, morning brief and happy hour were periodically interrupted by several pods of dancing dolphins, only an arms-length off our starboard beam, welcoming us to the uncharted but tranquil turquoise waters of South Australia. It was back to business until a new cry was heard… and it wasn’t the sound of some poor soul hurling over the side of the boat:

“Land-ho!” The Australian mainland was finally in sight.

The towering cliffs of southern Tasmania have long been a beacon of safety for mariners, marking the end to a journey. Three days ago, they were a farewell salute to our adventure into the unknown. Now the not-quite-so-easily-forgotten sight of land once again appeared on the horizon as we ventured towards the entry to Gulf St. Vincent.

The sight of South Australia heralded the time for mid-voyage chats. All our watches, consisting of eight youthies and one staffy, have become great teams in the last six days. But we are so much more than that. This whole ship is alive with a vibrant family feeling, with everyone on their own journeys of personal development, intertwining in a beautiful fabric, making up the beautiful tapestry which is a voyage in Young Endeavour. Goals from the beginning of the voyage were discussed and reflected upon to the tune of beautiful and freshly baked, scroll’s fresh from Haydo’s galley as we made roadmaps for the remainder of our voyage, to ensure that we all arrive at our own personal destinations as well as the ships’.

It was all hands on deck after the lunch as all watches pulled together to bring the ship safely into the lee of Kangaroo Island. Teamwork and hard work really did make the dream work as we furled the mainsail, mainstaysail, forestaysail and jib as the El Capitano, Adam ‘Charlie’ Farley, coaxed the old girl to a safe anchorage. Our maritime skills are certainly being exercised and refined continually as we venture closer to command day, yes… we are venturing, even when we are at anchor.

Anchor was dropped shortly after 1500 and harnesses were gleefully cast aside (but not OVER the side), as the entire ship’s company relaxed, basking in the beauty of this part of the world. The camaraderie and morale was high throughout the ship as we enjoyed a welcome respite from the constant pitching and rolling which are a staple of a Southern Ocean crossing. Haydo once again brought home the goods with a cheeseboard and teak-beach BBQ for all crew to enjoy on deck. Did we already say camaraderie and morale was high? Well, IT WAS!

The evening concluded with a get-to-know you activity for the youth crew. It focussed on immersing the youth crew members amongst youthies from other watches who they may not spend that much time with and sharing some interesting facts about them with the whole ship’s company. Suffice to say, we were all left in stitches! We were so fortunate to have this extravaganza staged against the backdrop of a breath-takingly beautiful South Australian sunset.

That’s a wrap from us as we settle into a gentler routine of one-hour anchor watches spread across the whole youth crew. Until tomorrow, a very special hello to all our loved ones who are following our adventures. We wish you all fair winds and a following sea.

Grace, Jaz and AJ.

Latitude/Longitude:

35 42 S / 137 57 E

Conditions:

Weather: Fine. Wind: SE @ 5kts. Swell: Nil. Temp: 16.

AUTHOR: Adam Farley

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Day 10 – Community Day Sail Sydney Harbour

Good evening shipmates, After a well-earned quality night’s sleep at anchor in Hunters Bay, Sail Master Sara woke us with another of her soothing tunes to get us on deck for a quick early morning activity. After breakfast the staff crew weighed anchor and conducted the transit to HMAS Waterhen, at Waverton. We berthed there at 0900 and prepared to embark our guests for the Community Day Sail. At 1015 we cast off our berthing lines and departed with our 34 guests and commenced our 3 hour tour of the harbour. Our Community Day Sailors were a group 30 members and staff from the Windgap Foundation. We also embarked some defence personnel as well. We again passed under the Harbour Bridge and then proceeded into Rose Bay where we set some sails and commenced sailing back towards Waterhen. Whilst on the harbour our fantastic youth crew helped us host our Windgap special guests. They encouraged our guests to participate in setting the staysails and a square sail by helping to pull on the sheets and clewlines. The youth crew also helped Chef Ash to prepare and deliver the food to our guests on deck. At 1300, after 3 fun-packed hours on the harbour, we berthed back at the southern wharf at HMAS Waterhen. Once we had farewelled our guests it was time to commence our end-of-voyage activities and preparations. The staff crew managed to organise a visit to the RAN Ship MATV Sycamore, which is crewed by a mixture of civilians and Navy staff, is a multi-role aviation training vessel. The youth crew embarked with their watch leaders and were given a 45 minute tour of the ship by some of the Navy crew. On completion they returned onboard and Young Endeavour sailed and proceeded to our anchorage in Athol Bay, which affords a great view of the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. During the transit to the anchorage the Youthies undertook their end-of-voyage chats, facilitated by their watch leaders, to examine if they had achieved everything in their full-value contracts they had completed at the start of the voyage. After the traditional last voyage dinner of home made pizzas, Sara gave the Youthies the Harbour Furl brief, who then donned their climbing harnesses and laid aloft to undertake the ‘Harbour Furl’ of the square sails to make them look immaculate for our ceremonial arrival at the end of the voyage tomorrow. Once that was completed, the youth crew then finished off their final outstanding Command Day tasks, which were planned for the last night onboard. These included the Voyage Slide Show compiled of photos taken by everyone. This was excellent and provided a touching reminder of what we had experienced and the beautiful coastlines and islands that we had visited during the voyage. The final activity of the day was the end-of-voyage administration, which for the youth crew included a feedback questionnaire asking for feedback on their experience of the voyage, as well as a letter for each crew member to write to themselves on their experiences during the voyage, which the Young Endeavour Youth Scheme will post to the youth crew in 6 months time. The aim of this is to help reinforce what the youth crew have learned about leadership, teamwork and about themselves from the experience of the voyage. Once these were completed the crew were encouraged to go to bed. The Ship will remain in Athol Bay overnight and weigh anchor and sail in the morning at 0900 and undertake the transit to HMAS Waterhen, where family and friends will meet the Ship on arrival at 1000. Until you hear from me tomorrow for the final instalment of Voyage 04/24. Yours aye, Captain Mike

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Day 9 – Command Day Part 2

Ahoy from Sydney! For today’s Captain’s Log: the Youthies took over and completed several tasks including singing the national anthem in three different tunes as well as giving salty sea facts to start the day in a nautical way. We finally made it! After a long and weary effort of the command team and watches, we were able to fully sail into Sydney Harbour. At approximately 11:50 we anchored in Hunters Bay. To celebrate we had a groovtastic disco in the 12 berth due to excessive rainfall but the youthies made it work, having a blast dancing to Billie Jean. Afterwards, the youthies as well as the staff reflected on our efforts during command day, following the handover of the ship to the Staffies, where we highlighted what we did well, what we could improve on and what lessons we can take back to our normal lives, of which there are many. Continuing on from the previous log, with command day still ongoing. We encountered multiple problems. One of which being that mother nature didn’t bless us and gave us little to no wind to work with. However with the efforts of the Youthies we were able to successfully gather up to 8 knots of speed after a 4am tack in which the youthies persevered despite a lack of sleep enabling us to make our way into Sydney. Before our reflection the Youthies finished their day strong with a ‘Happy Hour’ cleaning session and one final dance. The afternoon was spent relaxing and recharging from ‘Command Day’, going aloft and furling the square sails. For dinner, Ash prepared a barbecue with steak, sausages, chicken kebabs with buns and an assortment of salads with a delicious chocolate cake for dessert. The Youthies are looking forward to the Community Day Sail tomorrow which will be a great opportunity to give back to Australia and put our sailing knowledge to the test. We have learned many lessons during ‘Command Day’, we pushed ourselves out of our comfort zone and together a crew of 24 youth were able to sail a tall ship into the harbour of Sydney. Today’s score: 9 camels and a donkey (Amazing) Until next time Rock on! Tarvi, Kaeden and Matt. P.S. Happy Birthday for tomorrow little bro, love Lil xx P.S.S. Kai, sorry I didn’t do the thing for Meg. I just remembered and will do it when back.

Thank you Tarvi, Kaeden and Matt for your narrative of today's events. Intentions are to remain at anchor in Hunters Bay, just off HMAS Penguin, home of the RAN Diving School, a place close to my heart, having spent many a day there under training as a young Officer! The plan is to weigh anchor and proceed to HMAS Waterhen, in Waverton, to pick up our Community Day Sailors from the Windgap Foundation and take them for a sail around the harbour for 3 hours. The Youth Crew will help us host our visitors and give them an experience of Young Endeavour. We will drop them back to Waverton and then proceed to anchor in the harbour where we will have a good view of the Bridge and the Opera House for the Youth Crew's last night onboard. Until tomorrow. Yours Aye, Captain Mike

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Day 6 – Land Ho!

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