Datum: 17th Oktober 2019
Autor: Paul
Position: Bay of Biscay
Geographische Position: 43°36’N, 4°15’W
Etmal: 313 (total distance NM)

With calmer waters we are slowly getting into the daily routine on board the Pelican of London. Over the next few weeks you will probably read the word “watch” here in the daily reports. So here is a short explanation of what that is:

General watch system

We are devided into three watches; red, blue and white watch. Each watch has eight hours watch a day, split into two four hour blocks. The students of each watch are also split into two blocks (A & B). They do one of the two four hour watches a day, the second four hours they have lessons. The mentors as watch leaders have eight hours of watch a day. I am a mentor and I really look foreward to this system because then the mentors learn a lot about sailing and navigation. I am in the blue watch so I have watch from 4 to 8 o’clock. Red watch is from 8 to 12 o’ clock, followed by white watch from 12 to 4 o’clock. 

The first two weeks

In the first two weeks we have a rotational watch system which means that we have seven watch times a day and the watches are rotating. That also means that the whole watch is on duty at the same time. So the bridge is a bit crowded and especially when two watches are on the bridge because of a handover it is a bit overcrowded.

Tasks to do on watch

On watch we have different duties. On anchor watches we have to check our position on the radar every 15 minutes. We also have to check several parameters, such as air pressure and wind speed. On normal watches we have three positions: the helm on which you steer the vessel and the port and starboard lookout. Every half hour we also have to do a log book entry with positioning, wind speed and direction, air pressure, temperature, clouds, waves and all these things.

P.S. Until now we have still had no toilet blockage.