A GREAT success ? that was the verdict following a fantastic trip on the high seas for six students from Tavistock College recently. The Year 10 students were taking part in a seven-day tall ships trip to the Channel Islands, during which all six of the youngsters successfully completed the Royal Yachting Association?s competent crew course. John Collacott, of Tavistock College, who obtained bursaries for the voyage from the Trinity Sailing Trust, said the seven-day trip on the 53ft gaff Golden Vanity was physically and mentally demanding, with the young people learning about safety procedures, rope work and knots, navigation using the compass, dinghy work and cooking and cleaning duties. ?The voyage also involved two night passages crossing the busy shipping lanes of the English Channel, both of which lasted about 18 hours, with alternating four hour watches operating throughout darkness. ?All students recorded about 12 night hours towards their RYA course and voyage certificates,? said Mr Collacott. ?Some 220 nautical miles were covered over the seven days ? we sailed from Brixham overnight across to the Channel Islands, mooring at Alderney, then onto the Island of Sark. We had a good 3/4 force wind which made for a full day sailing down to Jersey before turning around and tacking up to Guernsey,? said Mr Collacott, adding that gannets and dolphins had followed the ship during the return to England. He said the ship?s crew were very impressed with the Tavistock students and said they were a pleasure to work with. Skipper Georgina said: ?All displayed a responsible attitude to safety issues and even tackled the less popular tasks with vitality and enthusiasm.? The ship?s first mate said the group had made the crew?s job very easy. ?We do a lot of teaching and I don?t think I have ever had a group who were so keen and enthusiastic about every aspect of running the ship,? she said. Applications are presently being invited for a further tall ships trip for year 9 students in September. The voyage will take place on the same 98-year-old ship and will involve sailing to France, the Channel Islands or along the Devon and Cornwall coast, depending on weather conditons. For more information on the voyage, which is expected to cost around £200 per student, call John Collacott at Tavistock College on 01822 614231.
