Day 3 – V07/25, Gladstone to Cairns

Ahoy there Shipmates!

The incredible Youth Crew of Voyage 07/25 had yet another ripper day onboard Sail Training Ship Young Endeavour. Holding their first night watches overnight, the Youthies emerged on Day 3 more confident and more skilled at crewing their fine ship! Wakey Wakey was at 0700, and the whole crew was treated to an absolutely spectacular sunrise with the beautiful Inner Great Barrier Reef as a backdrop. After another delicious Breakfast courtesy of Kingy, we cracked on with the Morning Brief at 0900. Nav told us all a little about the surrounding area and the ‘Salty’ Watch Officer spun us a tale about why we call the toilets onboard ‘the heads’.

After the morning brief, it was straight into tacking stations! I’m very proud to report that the Youth Crew did a marvelous job and safely and effectively tacked the ship multiple times. Well done Youthies! After Tacking Stations it was off to Happy Hour. Remember, a clean ship is a happy ship!! Lunch soon followed after with a little Siesta for the Youth Crew to quickly get their head down for a rest.

At 1300, the quiet was disturbed with cheers and hollers as we commenced the inaugural round of Rope Races! Engineer Sumo ran a great set of Rope Races and the Youth Crew were quickly walking around the deck to find specific lines and safety items. Not only is Ropies a ton of fun, it’s also a great tool to teach the Youthies their ship. After Ropies we had the Nav Brief from our amazing Nav Matt who taught us all about the beauty, art and science of nautical navigation. Sail Master Chucky then got the Youth Crew to set all our Square Sails! We were a sight to behold! We looked magnificient!

A lovely dinner followed before folding into Watches overnight. The Youth Crew will get a great opportunity to consolidate the skills they learnt today and see some spectacular nighttime stars! It’s great to see the Youthies learn more and more each day!

Captain Tomo

Latitude/Longitude:

20 46.87S / 149 46.51E

Conditions:

Weather: Sunny Wind: SE at 20kts Temp: 26 degrees

AUTHOR: James Tomlinson

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22 May 2025

Day 10 – V08/25, Cairns to Thursday Island

Today is our last full day on this wonderful voyage. We started at anchor in the Torres Strait, near our destination of Thursday Island (conveniently located next to Wednesday and Friday Islands). Overnight we were treated to the sight of a large shiver of beautiful reef sharks. We woke up in this lovely spot taking in all the views of the islands, the clear blue water and playing a game of Ubuntu. We then cleaned the boat for some special guests that were arriving. We had the absolute privilege of meeting the whole of government effort in the Torres strait with representatives from; 51 Far North Queensland Army Regiment, the Australian Federal Police and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. We showed them around our ship and the skills we have learnt over this incredible voyage. We also learnt so much off them and the important roles they play in such a remote area as well as the importance of working together to achieve a common goal of keeping Australia safe. We then did our final rope races, with Red watch coming out on top but participation of all watches and staff made this such a fun competition throughout the voyage. We then had our final lunch, and we were treated to a Chicken Parma (not parmi) and teriyaki noodles. We set sail for our last run at sea for a few hours and began making our way to our final destination, anchoring between Thursday and Horn Islands. Whilst at Sea we climbed the yards and challenged ourselves once more by putting on the UV cover of our sails whilst underway at sea but still able to take in the beautiful views of this remote part of Australia. We then went into our end of voyage chats to reflect on our time throughout the voyage. We reflected on how we have all grown and developed into more amazing young people and were also tasked to write a letter to our future selves to read in 6 months’ time. The reflection tasks have helped us to learn about ourselves and the people we want to be and become. After a BBQ dinner we are off to a disco to dance and sing the night away with the amazing people we have become to know over the last 10 days. This journey is truly a once in a lifetime opportunity and all the people we have met and made incredible connections with will forever hold a place in our hearts. The memories we have made and the self-development we have achieved has made this voyage priceless. It will be incredibly sad to say goodbye to everyone tomorrow, not just other youthies but also the extraordinary staff that make this program possible. They are the most passionate people you will meet with huge hearts and a lot of love to give. There is no big enough thankyou we can give to everyone on board. If you’re ever thinking of taking this opportunity have no ride regret and just submit that application because it will truly change your life no matter how big or small. Love youse all x Your favourite ginger twins (Georgia and Taylah) +

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Day 09 – V08/25, Cairns to Thursday Island

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Day 3 – V07/25, Gladstone to Cairns

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