Learning the Ropes on the Soren Larsen (1) - 22/1-26/1

I first saw a picture of the tall ship Soren Larsen in a holiday brochure five years ago and was immediately smitten. All billowing sails and gleaming timber, she looked like an illustration from a history book. During summer, she takes passengers on week long jaunts up the coast from Auckland to the Bay of Islands. I had signed on for a shorter 4 day voyage around the Hauraki Gulf, imagining leisurely cruises between little visited islands, lots of sunbathing on the deck and learning a bit more about sailing. Little did I know that within forty eight hours of setting sail, I would have done neither of the first two, and a great deal of the third.

There were 16 “Voyage Crew” on this trip, slightly more than the number of permanent crew. We were a mixture of nationalities (Aussies, Kiwis, Brits and Canadians) as well as ages. Almost all of the VCs were travelling with family or in couples, so I ended up in a cabin with the other single travellers – Kylie (formerly known as Jackie) and Trine, a mad Norwegian. There were 2 bunk beds in the tiny cabin, with a small wardrobe wedged in between. Unfortunately for me, Kylie and Trine had already bagged the bottom bunks, so over the next few days I frequently bashed my head against either the huge wooden beam or the metal grille-covered ceiling light above the top bunk. Owww.

We left Auckland late morning under engine power. The sails remain furled whilst in the harbour, as it can be dangerous if the wind is blowing in the wrong direction. This didn’t seem to put off the crowd of fascinated kids clustered by the railings. “Bye bye pirates!” they shrieked as we went past. It was then time to be inducted into the mysteries of the countless ropes. Diagrams of the various rope positions and their names had been included in the induction booklet sent out to us. I had given them a cursory glance, thinking that surely we didn’t need to know them in any detail.

However, within minutes of leaving the harbour, shouts like “Haul the peak halyard!” were being yelled in our direction. The VCs hovered uncertainly by the railings. These were studded with wooden pins, around which were coiled ropes of various thicknesses. Sadly there were no labels or colour coding to help decipher what they were. Only Trine and Kylie, who had both done some tall ship sailing before, seemed to understand the various commands. The permanent crew zipped around thrusting ropes into our hands with brief instructions, which we obeyed meekly without really understanding what we were doing. Those first few hours were horribly disorientating, like being stranded in a foreign country with totally alien customs and language. As I hauled away at yet another rope, I wondered what the bleep I’d let myself in for.

Magic was happening above us though as the sails filled with wind and finally the engine was turned off. Gliding along at 6 knots, the Soren Larsen was slower but more stately than the 11 knots of the America’s Cup yacht from the previous week. It was mind-boggling to think that over 200 years ago, Captain Cook was mapping the New Zealand coast in Endeavour, which was roughly the same size as the Soren Larsen, but with 3 times as many people on board.