“Aye, aye captain!”
That’s the extent of my sailing lingo – but I was excited to hopefully add more terms to my vocabulary when I found out I would be cruising the North Sea on a Tall Ship.
Working at The P&J, I am often in a privileged position to see and do things that I wouldn’t be able to do in most jobs.
And this experience was certainly up there with the best (minus the seasickness).
I was only four years old when the Tall Ships came to Aberdeen in 1997 and even though I have little interest in boats, anything that helps boost tourism and the Granite City’s economy has my backing.
Reporting for my duties at sea
The week before my expedition on the Swan I got a sneak-preview of the vessel and met one of the youth ambassadors for next year’s event.
Like most people in Aberdeen I’m sure, the harbour – now officially the Port of Aberdeen – doesn’t usually pique my interest, unless I’m driving down the southern part of Market Street and spot an interesting looking boat.
But this all changed as I reported for my duties at sea.
Swan sailing is the ultimate adventure
The Swan was built as a herring drifter in 1900 up in Lerwick and was fitted with an engine in 1935.
In more recent years, a dedicated team of volunteers have worked to restore the ship to its former glory having survived two world wars.
The Swan Trust usually offers voyages around the Shetland Islands, and further afield including Orkney, the Western Isles, St Kilda, mainland Scotland, the Faroe Islands, Iceland, Denmark, Norway and Sweden.
Anyone who sets food on board the vessel is given quite clear guidance, in that you are undertaking an adventure, that you’re part of the ‘hands on’ crew for that trip, and that you come under the command of the skipper.
Thirteen people joined our sailing adventure day, a ‘taster’ session to promote interest and help select Tall Ship trainees to take part in next year’s event, which runs from July 19-22.
Among the potential recruits was Shetland-born and raised Ailis Morgan.
She said: “I’ve done a bit of sailing back in Shetland and been on boats my whole life, so I thought ‘why not’?
“It’s a great experience.”
Also on-board was Shetland native Anja Kurtz, who worked as a bosun on the ship last year.
She first boarded it as a 16-year-old through charity Sail Training Shetland on a trip to Scandinavia.
“Back in Shetland everyone’s aware of the Swan, always keeping an eye when she’s coming and going out of the harbour and sailing about throughout the summer season,” she said.
“It’s great getting everyone involved on-board.”
Despite some people suffering sea sickness, myself included, every crew member got involved to complete the sailing tasks for the day.
On the sea sickness point, if there is any advice I can pass on it’s to take sickness tables out on the water with you – even if you think you have a strong stomach.
The first mate of the Swan is Shetland native Scott Sandison, who said he was impressed by the calibre of potential young sailors on-board.
“They’re really good and they’re really keen. There’s some sea sickness among them, but that’s completely normal,” he said.
As my bout of sickness eased, I felt more jolly and spent the remainder of my trip getting stuck in.
It was a sight to behold when we unveiled the mast and, as we arrived back at the Port of Aberdeen, onlookers on dry land waved at us as we went past.
Is life at sea for me?
After the trip out to the North Sea, I realise that I will never be a sailor – but I will always respect people who work at sea as it’s not for the fainthearted.
And who isn’t excited about the Tall Ships coming to Aberdeen next year? Especially with 400,000 people are expected to attend.
Maybe I’m just a suburban stereotype, but give me my simple life in Bridge of Don over adventures at sea any day of the week.
As for the Tall Ships, I will gladly watch from dry land.
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