On arrival, we were greeted by 2 lovely crew members who took us to our boat for the week. The Challenger 1, a small but mighty vessel we have learnt about over the first day. The first day consisted of getting to know our fellow apprentices and crew members, we have carried out various team-building exercises and games. A favourite was the wooden planks challenge which we completed in the fastest time the leader had seen. All the members of the boat are very nice people, and everyone is looking forward to the week ahead to get to know one another better. Tomorrow we will be able to set sail for the first time and really try get to grips with the boat.

By Mitchel & Chris

Our first full day at sea was great, everyone was getting stuck in finding out the dynamics of sailing and being part of a trip from Portsmouth to Yarmouth. We started off getting the sails up and ready and began tacking the boat, which is zig zagging to make way into the wind. The crew members have been great in teaching the right techniques and getting us all involved. Everyone got a chance to do a variety of tasks including sweating, which was the hardest part and steering the sailboat, which was most exciting part for us all. The weather has been nice to us, suns been shining and despite being advised to put suncream on, all of us have a slight sunburn to the face. Overall, it’s been a great day and we’re all shattered, but we look forward to tomorrow for another day and learning more about sailing.

By Chris & Mitchel

We woke up early to set sail for 0800hrs from the Isle of Wight to get to Weymouth for approximately 1500hrs. Unfortunately, with low wind speeds and a forecast identifying poor conditions, we ended up using the engine and motor sailing.

We hoisted up the main sail and set off for Weymouth at a steady 10-12 knots. Along our leg of the trip the skipper brought us into Lulworth cove and alongside Durdle Door, highlighting some of the sights to see on the Dorset coastline from a different point of view.

Due to not being able to sail we did some self-learning with various knots and worked as a team to say on top of the daily tasks of meals and keeping the boat tidy. We also had teaching from the skipper, this session included accidents and dangers and how to prepare for the weather (using the met office forecasts).

As we came into Weymouth harbour, we had the mooring rigs set ready to be deployed as we came up to the pontoon. Once set we did deck preparations and checks ready for the morning and then we had some free time.

By Danii