Jed Hodson (right) with his grandad Phil during their tall ship voyage up the east coast.
Spending some time with a grandparent is part of the typical school holiday experience, but not in this case. Galong lad, Jed Hodson, worked shoulder-to-shoulder with his grandfather Phil on board the tall ship ‘South Passage’, when it journeyed in rough weather from Sydney to Brisbane from January 9 to January 18.
Jed was the youngest of the 25 on board, and he experienced the full gamut of life on a sailing vessel, which included working the sheets and ropes, navigational duties, as well as the usual domestic chores.
He had previously been on the ship for day sails in Sydney Harbour, but as he found out, things are much different on the open ocean.
“It was the roughest weather the ship had encountered for that amount of time,” said Jed. 40 knot winds and 2-3 metre waves battered the vessel as it sailed for Brisbane, and one wave that swept the deck came up to one of the crew’s waists. Surprisingly, however, most of them were not afflicted by seasickness.
The crew worked in watches of 7, taking responsibility for the vessel in shifts, including at night. “Keeping course in wind is difficult at night,” he said. “I learned the value of teamwork.”
Ages on board ranged from 14 to 60, with six of the crew undertaking their Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.
For anyone interested in undertaking their own voyage on a tall ship, go to www.southpassage.org.au.