YTH-2116 Wha Ra

Kia Ora Whanau,

We woke up this morning with a beautiful golden sunrise. The trainees made the most out of the weather, and had a long morning swim, even doing some laps around the ship. Caeson helped Sasja make breakfast, providing some cooking tips along the way.

We started the day with morning lessons, Wayne explained the ins and outs of the engine, while Ness took the trainees through a navigation briefing. Kate and Hirini finished the Tucker challenge, Caeson was up on the rigging providing moral support and helping out.

We packed our bags and went ashore to Urapukapuka Island, we hiked from Paradise over to Urapukapuka Bay. Alysha, Martin, Mercedes, Caeson and Niwa frolicked down the hill hand in hand. We then played some games in the grass. There was a lot of laughter, while we enjoyed the last bit of sun of the day.

When we got back to the ship, the adventure began, Wayne got the trainees up on deck for a 2 hour sail. We had most of the rig up, including both top sails. As we hit 7.6 knots, we even had water coming through the freeing ports, it was an exhilarating moment. The weather got a bit rougher, but added to the energy of the afternoon.

Hope had a go at steering, while LJ helped Ness pull the lines, the trainees put their back into it and really impressed the crew. The trainees are learning fast, working well together and loving every moment of it.