Trip report: Night 3

Shipkeeping involves sleeping on the ship overnight and getting up during the night for a period to make sure everything is as it should be. Sleeping in hammocks is optional, I assume, as we were asked if we wanted to.

Made up and ready for me.

We used the ones in the marines' area, because they were easier to get into. I asked how they got into the higher ones and got a demonstration. It involved grabbing a beam and pulling yourself up by the arms. !

There were three volunteers and three, I think, of the crew, which meant a 90 minute session for everyone. At eight, we were taken around and shown what had to done on our rounds.

In the engine room, check the water pressure, check the level of water in the bilge and check the temperate of the cool room and freezer.



It's a little weird, going from recreated 18th C to late 20th C by climbing down a ladder. The masts run through the engine room too, the main mast anyway. Can't remember where the mizzen went.

Go up a level and check great cabin. Up onto the deck to check the mooring lines and gangway. Across the wharf to check the rescue boat hasn't escape. Then record the wind speed & direction, and the state of the sea, well, river. Keep an eye out for anyone causing trouble.

That's done on the hour, every hour.

I was scheduled for 11.30 to 1 am. I considered staying up, that's not that far off my usual bedtime and if you wake me up in the middle of the night, I'm not all that coherent. On the other hand, I could go to bed at 9.30 and have a two hour nap, which I'm used too. And I was tired.



I got in the way I was told, because there was a beam there which made it easier to get in & move around. However that meant I was looking straight into a light, so I turned around in the hammock, and got all tangled up. Sleeping bags are good for getting tangled in on a flat bed. Bah. I did get, sort of, sorted out though. I was also told it's best to lay on your back, or you'll fall out, but you think I can sleep laying on my back? Rolling onto my side is the cue to go to sleep. I also discovered that, see that black square thing? That's a porthole, it's more noticable in the first photo. A draught comes through there. The sides of the hammock come up and cover your body, but it still blows over your ear.

I must have fallen asleep though, because it seemed only a few minutes later that Mark came to wake me up, although I was awake at the time.

In the middle of the night, this ship is dark and very quiet.



Stern windows in the great cabin.

You know there are people around you sleeping and out there somewhere is the rest of the world but it doesn't you touch you.

Especially up on deck.



The masts have lights on them, which makes the timber glow quite nicely. The moon was being dramatic too.









The 90 minutes went quite quickly, and I was soon back in my hammock. I had a large light behind which made it hard to sleep, but I did doze a bit. We were woken up at 6.30 am. Getting out of bed involved leaning to the side and there, you're up. Much easier way to start the day than that get up and out of bed thing.

Had breakfast. Took some more photos.



I'm reminded of one visitor, when I was talking about the guns being fired, who asked "but what about the cannons?" Too easy to forget that not everyone speaks the same "language".

And the visitor in the great cabin the day before, the one who put black and white film in his camera, because it seemed appropriate for the ship.



Went off to kill time until the farewell morning tea at 10 am.

That's a new day though.