Cast Away

Datum: 09.01.2024
Position: San Blas Inseln
Etmal: 14 nm
Total: 6101 nm
Schiff: Regina Maris

Today, we sailed to another island group called “Hollandaise”, with some of them being uninhabited. After throwing anchor next to one, we grew a big smile on our faces seeing all the cyan water and the coconut trees beyond the white sand.

The impression was that magnificent that some of us swore to come back sailing at a later point in our lives. But the most exciting thing was the adventure awaiting us: Spending a whole night at this island!

We started packing our stuff for the sleepover. Hats, sunscreen and water bottles was what everybody needed. But not everybody wanted to sleep on the island, so, just some people took their tents, hammocks or their sleeping bags with them (the smart people took both with them (not me;)))

After lunch and after “lost and found” was the time to start the adventure: Most of us swam to the island with their water tight backpacks, others took the SUPs to get there.

The island had a very bad vegetation in terms of camping because there were a lot bushes and mangroves and there were not many coconut trees next to each other. So, it was really hard to find a good place for your hammock. That was why some students decided to sleep on board.

Anyways, we had a lot fun exploring the island and the tropic waters. It didn’t take a long time and the first people started snorkeling in the mangroves. The water was crazy clear and there were a lot of fish. For example small barracudas, small stingrays and lion fishes that had found shelter in the mangroves. A bit further out, there was a bigger stingray what definitely was a snorkeling highlight.

In the meantime, the first people started collecting some coconuts. We had some tools to open them like an axe, a screwdriver or a machete, but it was still hard if you don’t know the right technique. We already had some coconuts at the previous island but the ones here had delicious coconut water and a lot of fruit pulp.

A little bit later, we made a campfire out of coconut shells and wood pieces that were laying around and a flint and steel. We had a noodle salad for diner. We also tried experiments with coconuts that we cooked in the fire, but it tasted really bad like coal.

Some people still needed something from the ship, so a group of maybe 10 people – including me – went back to the ship to get some things like water, tents or ketchup. But our captain Martin got really, really angry when we arrived at the ship because he thought that we drove over a sandbank with the Dinghi without getting up the engine (that would destroy the engine). So Martin decided that everybody on board stays on board and everybody on land stays on land!

After 10 minutes we talked to him again and he allowed us to get back to the island to bring medicine for some people and stay there. That was when the aventure really started because some people weren’t prepared to sleep there. I don’t know how, but we managed it someway that everybody got some sleep!

In the next morning we got woken up by the sound of tropic birds and waves that were almost at our tents! We started to fold our tents to do a beach clean up. It was sad that there was that much plastic on such a beautiful place on earth. We didn’t have much time because we wanted to leave, so we did our best collecting as much trash as possible.

The adventure ended suddenly, but it was definitely a highlight in this big adventure called Ocean College.

PS: Jonna: Moin Lara, ich wünsch‘ Dir alles Gute zum 16.!🎉🥳🥳.

Isabel: Miri, ich wünsche Dir alles Gute zum 17 !!! Hab‘ Dich ganz doll lieb.<3

Julius: Alles Gute zum 11. Geburtstag, Leopold! 🥳🎉🎁🎂