After a trouble free flight to Lanzarote, the ten-strong crew arrived at Puerto Calero to embark on HM Sailing Training Vessel KUKRI, a Nicholson 55 cruising yacht, and to meet the Skipper. The first full day was taken up with finding our way around the boat, stowing the mountain of kit away and buying supplies. However, despite the previous two weeks being almost devoid of wind, our first two days were spent stuck in the marina as a local storm made it impossible to leave. In the meantime, we got through the basic yet essential safety drills and other important lessons, even having a go at rowing the dingy around the marina.
Finally, the storm subsided on day three and so we set sail for another marina a few miles along the coast to practise what we had been had been taught so far, with the more experienced crew members supervising the novices. The crew, having never worked together on a boat before, began to gel together very quickly and everyone was relieved to be sailing at last.
After a night in Marina Rubicon, the skipper was more confident of the crew’s ability and so to make up some time lost to the storm we set sail again for Las Palmas, Gran Canaria. Unfortunately, however, the wind decided not to play anymore and we were forced to motor for 24hrs straight, arriving the following morning. Although the sea was relatively calm, the constant rocking caused some bouts of sea sickness, particularly for those on mother-watch, as the galley appeared to be the worst place to be when on the move.
Despite the sea sickness, the crew quickly adapted to the watch system, in which crew members were divided into two teams to manage four hour shifts.
The daytime routine saw many of the novices and competent crew gain further confidence in the drills they had been taught, but the crew were almost taken by surprise by the rigours of the night routine, where visibility was almost nil and the rolling of the boat affected people much more.
After a few days in Las Palmas and some day sailing, we set out one afternoon on another overnight sail to Tenerife. Finally, the wind was on our side and from the moment we left the marina entrance, we were making upwards of 8 knots. Within 30 mins, we even had a pair of dolphins happily bouncing alongside us through the waves, which has to be one of the highlights of the trip.
As the sun set over the island, the wind picked up even further and it became necessary to change the foresail. The skipper decided that going back to the marina would lose us too much time so some of the crew, including novices, were clipped on and sent forward. The whole process seemed to take hours as everything had to be done slowly and carefully, all the time ensuring that the strong wind did not take the loose sail with it, but once the smaller foresail was up, the boat was much easier to control and we were back to making good time.
Again the weather conditions made life aboard increasingly difficult. The crew had to learn how to recognise other vessels by lights, navigate by compass bearings as well as learning various buoy markers. Even communicating with each other became difficult through the wind and crashing waves and it soon became clear how important the lessons during the first few days really were.
As is often the case during such a challenging situation, it was made so much better as the sun rose and in the early hours of the morning we finally arrived. The crew quickly put the boat to bed and enjoyed some well earned rest, even though the weather was sadly wet for the next few days.
The final leg of the journey was by far the most difficult and challenging. Returning to Lanzarote was always going to be tricky as we would be sailing into the wind and we had to make sure we were back in time for the flight home. However, the day before we had planned to leave, the wind was forecast to be in a favourable direction, so we set off early.
Although now fairly well trained and experienced, 35 knot winds with 4m swells which resulted in sailing speeds of over 11 knots began testing everyone, even the watch leaders. Also, although it was rather exciting by day, the rigours of the night routine proved just how challenging this environment could be. To make matters even worse, the foresail ripped during a tack change and because of the appalling conditions, it took nearly three hours to take it down and replace.
As the waves crashed over the side soaking everyone to the skin, at least six of our hydrostatic life jackets were inadvertently activated, and at one point the steering wheel came loose and the emergency tiller had to be rigged while the crew searched in the dark for the correct spanner.
Despite everyone being soaked through to the skin and most suffering from severe seasickness, we eventually arrived back at Lanzarote in one piece, much to everyone’s relief. After some essential maintenance and kit drying, we were given some time to sort our own kit out before relaxing in a local bar restaurant.
We then set out for our final sail, a few miles up the coast to our original starting point. However, as the weather was so good that day, the skipper decided to practice anchoring along the way at a nearby beach cove where we had the opportunity to dive over the side and enjoy a relaxing swim in the clear blue waters. Some even broke out the snorkels to look at the marine wildlife.
The last few days were spent preparing the boat for the handover, which seemed to last forever as we discovered just how dirty a boat can get after two weeks, as well as our final meal out as a crew before catching the flight home.
Covering over 400 miles in with conditions even the senior crew members found challenging at times, this expedition will certainly be remembered by those who took part and it has set a pretty high standard of adventure for the Battalion which will take some work to beat. However, it would not have been possible without the support of the Ulysses Trust and we are very grateful to them for their assistance.