A day in the life of a Bosun with Wind Force 7

Date: 15th of April 2024
Geographical Position: 49°59.0′ N 003°47.2′ W
Etmal: 230 nm
Total: 11924 nm
Ship: Regina Maris

Today the third handover started. For me, this meant that I would be a Bosun for the next four days, together with Tobi.

All Hands on Deck

After I went to bed at 01:00 because I had Alpha watch from 21:00 to 01:00, I got woken up just five hours later by an all hands on deck manoeuvre. We took down the Course sail and set the Fore Stay Sail and the Outer jib because the wind increased and the watch couldn’t handle it by themselves.

At an all hands on deck maneuver, you don’t have much time to get up and get ready. After you get woken up, you have to be outside in five to ten minutes. With full weather gear. So I simply put my Musto trousers over my sleeping shorts and put on a hoodie and my Musto jacket.

Outside we got assigned our positions and it was reasonable that the watch had woken us up. Normally you need eight to ten people to take away the Course sail, but we were around 18 people pulling the ropes. After 20 min, we were released and could go back to bed. Such a maneuver is always exhausting but also exciting.

Good Morning

The next time I was woken up, it was 10:00 am. Normally, I should have been woken up at 07:45 am, but today I didn’t wake up at the wake-up call. (That happens quite often at the moment because we are tired all the time.)

Stella, who woke me up, explained to me that Kilian, one of our officers, needs us bosuns and expects us on the poop deck. I was told that it was quite cold and windy so I put on full weather gear and went into the messroom. There it was told to me that I had to go through the galley in order to get outside because our normal watertight door is constantly flushed with water.

Fixing the Rescue Boat

Up on the poop deck, the atmosphere was crazy. On the one hand, it was really windy and there were a lot of waves. We even had to clip ourselves into the lifelines (small ropes on deck where you clip yourself in so that you can’t go overboard). But on the other hand, there was music playing, nobody was seasick and the atmosphere was great.

I talked to Kilian and he explained to me that Tobi and I had to build a rope system to hold our rescue boat. We went into the PL Cabin where all of the Bosun equipment like ropes, shackles and blocks are located and 30 minutes later, we were finished with the whole construction.

After 45 more minutes, we were finished with securing the rescue boat and were permitted to go downstairs. There, I just spent the remaining hour until lunch writing letters to the other people onboard.

Preventer of the Stay

After lunch and my presentation in history about Russia in the 20th century, Tobi and I got back to work. The lock on the door of one of our showers was not working properly, so we got our tools and soon after, the door was closing perfectly again (now you can shower in peace without the fear of someone coming in).

In the morning, the preventer of our Fore Stay Sail broke. It was our task to splice a new one. In order to do so, we took the rope out of the PL Cabin, and one hour later, the new preventer is ready to be installed as soon as the sail isn’t set anymore. Then it was already time for dinner. Now, in the evening, there is a group playing werewolf and others are writing letters or talking.

Tasks for the Next Days

In the next couple of days, we have to sew a big hole in the course sail and also a small one in the Mizzen. In addition to that, we have to do some small repairs like whipping and splicing. I am really looking forward to learning more and finding out our own ways to repair things onboard. Tobi and I are a really good team and it is a lot of fun to work together.

Thank You

This was now my last daily report. It feels strange knowing that I will be home in just one week. It feels like this voyage could last way longer and isn’t done soon. We have grown to a family and I can’t imagine leaving these people.

I am grateful for every single one onboard. At the same time, I am excited to see my „old“ family again. I am grateful for every day onboard and want to thank everybody who supported me on my way. Especially my parents. Thank you for everything. I miss you. See you in five days.

Greetings:

Lilia: Mama, könntest Du mir nach Amsterdam bitte 50 Cent mitbringen? Danke <333

Lehrkräfte: @alle anderen Eltern – bereiten Sie sich vor, auch Ihre Kinder könnten noch offene Lost & Found-Schulden haben 🙂