YTH 1911 Wha ra

Greetings from the good ship,

It’s been another beautiful day in paradise, with loads of sunshine, loads of fun, but very little wind. The morning swim was a bit cold as we jumped into the day, but it warmed up quickly as we did our lessons about weather patterns down below.

We then headed towards Paradise bay for our daily island adventure, once anchored, we filled our water bottles, packed our bags, wrapped up our picnic and went ashore.

During our walk, we learned about bio-security, how to recognize native species from pests and how we can help preserve and protect them. Going up and down the hills around Urupukapuka, we enjoyed the 360* views of the bay before sitting down for our picnic. It seemed a 30minutes of silence was in order before heading back down to the beach.  A little dark cloud came over our heads just as we were jumping in the dinghy, we got back just in time to avoid getting wet!

A game of mafia and hot chocolate was much welcome as we waited for the sky to clear, and so it did half an hour later! Back on deck with our swimming and snorkelling gear we enjoyed the afternoon sun and the clear water. Bethany, Parehuia and Laura were sitting on the bowsprit, Chloe and Aylah were snorkelling around the ship while Patrick, Mac, Te Hana, Cole, Mason, Ben and Zane were swinging, diving, bombing and splashing into the water.

Right now, the whole ship smells of freshly baked banana cake, potato bake and corned beef, tickling everyone’s nostrils and opening our appetites… We’ll have to wait another hour for dinner to be ready. In the meantime, the trainees are drying themselves and changing into warm clothes for the evening. Sitting on deck, they are practising their singing and whistling skills as the sun disappears over the hill.