We all met for the first time at Mayflower Marina in Plymouth, today at 13:00. When we arrived on Challenger 2, we were introduced to the safety precautions and equipment and were fitted with our life jackets and waterproofs.

After this, we were split into two watches Starboard (Green) and Port (Red) and helped to prepare the sails in order to sail tomorrow morning.

Starboard watch then prepared our evening meal, Bangers and Mash, and Port Watch washed up. We then chilled until it was time for bed. We made the most of this time, by getting to know our fellow crew members.

By Amelia, James, Leia, Tom, Leo.

The day was good overall, and we got all the sailing done, but a couple of us were sick. The journey was cool and we saw multiple dolphins and seals. Brixham was cool and very bright.

When we finally got to Brixham, it was very fun to go and explore. We ate food from the local shops and had a good look around! We then came back to the boat and made chicken curry which was alrightish. We then had showers and then it was time for bed

By Caitlin, Olivia and Jasmine.

Overall, the experience was different than expected, as the weather was quite violent and the boat rocked a lot. This is Ethan’s view on the experience even though he was asleep for five hours of it. Will really enjoyed it and thinks it was really cool seeing a bunch of dolphins and it was fun below deck as we were being thrown around by the waves.

By Ethan and Will.

We left Brixham Marina at 07:30. As we set off, we saw four pods of dolphins as we sailed across Tor Bay towards Weymouth Harbour. We were unable to sail due to very low wind speeds, so we had to use the engine the WHOLE way.

We all learnt how to tie at least three knots, The Bowline, Clove Hitch, and a Round Turn and Two Half Hitches. Some of us learnt more. We also learnt about all six emergency situations and GMDSS. We were then told about the three types of flares carried on Challenger 2, parachute flares, smoke flares and handheld flares that can be used in emergency situations.

We sailed around Portland Bill as we came into Weymouth where the sea got a little bit rougher. When we moored in Weymouth, HMS Smiter moored in front of us and then we all went ashore into Weymouth and adventured.

We came back to Challenger 2 and had fish and chips for dinner, had a shower and then got ready for bed.

By Tom, Leo and Amelia.

Today was a good day, we left Weymouth in the morning and sailed past Durdle Door and then looked in Lulworth Cove.

We later sailed past The Needles, which weren’t as pointy as we thought they would be. We learnt how to tack properly, that was quite fun to be honest.

Later we had a man overboard drill, which scared us at first, but then we realised there was no person in the sea, which was good.

We arrived at Gunwharf Quays and we had a bit of trouble getting in because there was another boat in our spot, how rude. A big super-yacht parked next to us, which was cool.

We made a really good Spaghetti Bolognese and then cleaned up, which is the boring bit. It is now time for showers, before bed time. Tonight is our last night on board and tomorrow, we must clean the boat from top to bottom.

By Caitlin, Jasmine, Olivia, Ethan and Will.