Life on Board During the Tall Ships’ Race
28 July
White Watch
Today marked the start of the race. We had the 4 to 8 watch, and the plan was to hoist the sails during our shift, but unfortunately, there was no wind at all. We waited for it, enjoying a beautiful sunrise, taking plenty of pictures, and observing the other ships around us. Slowly, together with the other vessels, we moved toward the starting line. After breakfast, we set the sails, and at 11:00 we crossed the starting line!
Jeroen spotted a Norwegian fin whale, and Mathijs came up to the bridge to tell us about it. We all looked and tried to spot it too. During our 00 to 04 watch, we tried to beat the red watch by sailing more than 11 nautical miles, which meant maintaining an average of 2.8 knots. We also completed three safety rounds of the ship. Meanwhile, Karla, Liesbeth, and Louise made toast for all of us.
Red Watch
We began the day with a midnight watch, which meant pan-toasts! After that, we sang many songs from the songbooks. It was magical to sing under a sky full of stars. Apart from spotting an oil rig with more lights than a Christmas tree, not much happened that morning. Around eleven o’clock, the race officially started for us—very exciting! With little wind, we stayed close to the other sailing vessels. We were at the front of the pack and had a strong start. To wake up a few sleepy watch members, we brought out water guns for some local “rainfall” and even tested the fire hose—fun and practical! We tried to scare off some seagulls, but they weren’t impressed. Finally, we enjoyed some ice cream before dinner. Just before dinner, someone shouted “dolphin!”—we rushed to see and found a Norwegian fin whale. The last watch of the day ended with a beautiful sunset, and Sander introduced us to the “Small Polar Bear Club,” a tricky riddle that a few of us eventually solved.
29 July
Red Watch
This morning, the Fryderyk Chopin approached us, but after receiving some turbulent wind from our wake, they fell back. Eventually, like many other ships, they anchored due to insufficient wind. We continued sailing, passing them with a traditional Eendracht yell and lots of horn beeps. We got close to an oil rig, and a helicopter took off as we passed. Unfortunately, it didn’t help with wind, and we even slowed to 0 knots at one point. Maarten, one of the bosuns, even made a funny comic about the seagulls overtaking us. In the evening, some people grabbed a guitar and sang in English, Dutch, and Polish. We went to bed early to prepare for the next day.
Blue Watch
The first watch after our last update was the “sunset watch.” We saw a breathtaking sunset and enjoyed singing and dancing to Danish, Dutch, and Swedish songs. The watch itself was calm, with gentle winds and few complications. After a normal night’s sleep, the next day was exciting: the race officially began. Pancakes for breakfast spoiled us, then at 10:00, the race started. Even with little wind, we hoisted all eight sails with many helping hands. Later, we had an incredible vegetarian lasagna for dinner. Most people went to bed early, anticipating the 4:00 watch.
That morning, wind picked up to a peak of 5 knots, though later we were stuck at 1 knot again. The sunrise painted nearly every color of the rainbow, making our early watch unforgettable. Toasts were a perfect finish to the watch. The rest of the watch included a playful water fight while cleaning, as the calm weather allowed. Life aboard the Eendracht was exceptionally enjoyable.
30 July
Red Watch
We made toast again at 4:00! Looking around, we saw the familiar oil rig from yesterday, now behind us. Around 6:00, a beautiful sunrise provided perfect photo opportunities. Our watch officer shared interesting stories, and as the wind picked up to 3 knots, we picked up speed again. Passing close to one of the smaller ships, Tara, was a highlight.
Blue Watch
We were woken at 11:00 by the captain, who called all trainees to the mess room with exciting news: the wind was picking up, and we were now in third place among Class A ships. Our average speed reached 4 knots, and if maintained, we hoped to cross the finish line on Monday. Today’s watch involved more hands-on work with the sails—a welcome change from the recent quiet days. More people also joined the Polar Bear Club.
31 July
White Watch
We’ve been at sea for nearly a week. The race is going well, though the wind remains light. Meals are excellent—better than at home (sorry, mom!). Our watch runs from 4:00 to 8:00 a.m., making toast while writing this blog. So far, we’ve only seen sea—no land in sight—but we’ve spotted swimming crabs, a Norwegian fin whale, seaweed, jellyfish, dolphins, seagulls, and even a floating leaf. Currently, we are in third place in our class. We hope for more wind in the coming days, but not too much, as many just recovered from seasickness. That’s it for today.
Ella & Anne-Mette