Break’s voyage with The Norfolk Boat
The five day trip in June had been planned down the Thames from Lowestoft, however, as the weather had improved, it was decided that the Excelsior would sail instead to Dan Helder in the Netherlands, which the young people were very excited by.
The young people were buzzing as they first met the crew and were shown their cabins, which they were able to choose from. They were first told about the health and safety requirements while on the boat and then everyone got involved quickly as they were split into three groups of four.
Their shifts ran from 8am/pm to 12 noon/midnight, 12 noon/midnight to 4pm/am, and 4pm/am to 8pm/am. Each group had to cook breakfast, lunch and tea; steer the boat; read the compass and navigate; read the map; clean, do watches on the boat, put the sails up and down, and work as a team to get everything done.
All food was made from scratch, for example, they had homemade soup and homemade bread rolls, shepherd’s pie, pancakes, fry ups and a vegan member of the team also had his food needs catered to.
The second night was very rough with everyone being sea sick but still having to undertake all their responsibilities which was very hard, so everyone felt “rubbish”. However, once they had slept they began to enjoy the experience. By the time they reached Holland, the seasickness had worn off and they were able to get onto dry land and have a shower for the first time in three days!
The weather was very pleasant and they explored Dan Helder, did some shopping for souvenirs, ate ice-cream, had a BBQ and played Frisbee on the beach, met some nice locals and made daisy chains.
On the return journey, everyone felt better so they played card games, had late night gossip, played hangman using boat jargon, and had a competition to learn using names of boat equipment.
The young people’s experiences
The young people said they “loved it”, and described the trip as character building and team building and are keen to go on another trip as soon as possible.
One young person said she laughed so much her cheeks hurt and she is still in contact with the other young people that she met on the boat.
Another young person got on really well with the crew and was a real star in terms of being able to do everything asked of her, but she struggled to socialise with the other young people (a familiar theme with her). However, she said she loved steering the boat and that she really enjoyed the trip.
One young person’s comments:
“From my perspective the trip was a real adventure being ‘on the high seas’ and being part of team and having to rely upon each other and share the responsibilities. The worst thing was also the best thing because although being seasick was a very unpleasant experience, going through the same thing with others, looking after each other and then coming through the other side as you adjusted to our new ‘sea-legs’ brought us all closer together.
I would absolutely do it again and feel the trip was definitely worth the title of a ‘once in a lifetime experience’ although there is nothing wrong with twice or more if it’s a good thing! I would encourage others and tell them that it is like being a real adventurer and the close nit experience of being in a friendly team with everyone makes you feel important and valued.”
One young person was asked “Did you enjoy it”, to which she answered “No”. But when asked “Would you go again?”, she responded “Yeah!”.
One young person said “I really liked it, chuffed I went to the Netherlands.”
One young person felt that the worst thing was doing the four hour shifts as it took a bit of getting used to. This young person reported the best thing for him was “the team work, everyone taking part in wherever they were needed which brought everyone together really quickly”. This young person said “I would 100% do it again (though maybe not in the winter!)” and that “I would definitely recommend it as a great growing experience as it takes you out of your comfort zone, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience, company and views and I reckon most other people would enjoy it also. I would tell them to try it and embrace it for what it is.”
Louise Richmond,
July 2019.
