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In May 2016 I volunteered as a liveaboard crew on a tall ship in Australia. Since then many people have asked me about the day to day life, so without further ado…

Welcome to a typical day as a liveaboard crew onboard the tall ship Windeward Bound:

0740 – Rise and shine ⏰

The day starts at 0740, when the alarm sounds. Leaving a cosy and warm sleeping bag, to get into uniform was not a favorite moment, but nevertheless had to happen. Next stop the galley (please read: kitchen onboard a ship) to prepare myself brekkies which would normally consist of a toasted piece of bread with peanut butter and jelly 😋

Being on the other side of the world, literally, Social Media was one of the ways of keeping in touch with everyone back home, so this would be my time to check in. Next stop the head (please read: toilet) to brush my teeth and get ready for another day of volunteering on a tall ship.

0830 – Happy Hour 🧹

The official start to the day. HAPPY HOUR – and no, it’s not the 2 for 1 offer at the bar… Happy hour on a tall ship = cleaning. Both inside AND outside. Everyone is assigned a station/place on the ship, which needs to be cleaned 🧽 Then deck scrub and the grand finish 🥁🥁🥁 … brasso time. Brasso time basically means polish all the brass on the ship to make it bright and shiny.

1000ish – Smoko ☕

Smoko time = a short break to hydrate with water or a hot drink together with a piece of fruit. Also a good time to just lay down on the deck and rest for a few minutes.

1015 – Preparing the ship for daysail ⛵

After smoko one crew member is placed on the wharf to sell tickets to passengers, who wants to come onboard for a daysail. Another crew member is sent to town to shop for the daysail (chicken, fruit, etc.).

The rest of the crew gets the ship prepared for the daysail by taking gaskets of the sails (rope used to hold a stowed sail in place), prepare for tea, coffee, milo and fruit for the passengers as well as taking Trim (the little boat) to the other pier and secure her, till the ship is back in port again.

1130/1200 – Lunch time 🍽️

Lunch time = food

1230 – Daysail ⛵

Passengers come on board, safety instructions are gone through with the passengers, everyone stands by on their assigned positions on the ship. I was mostly assigned the stern lines, which belong on the aft deck (the back of the ship). When assigned a line, you await the Captains order to take in the line and then coil it to keep the deck cleared. Being on the aft deck also involves taking the helm, when needed, when leaving the wharf.

A daysail normally lasts for about 3 hours and goes wherever the wind takes you. We would motor out of the harbour and when at a good distance, turn the ship around and set sails. Once on our way, a crew member was assigned to be lookout (the eyes of the ship 👀 ). Another crew member (normally the person on duty that day), would be in the galley to prepare a light lunch as well as the Tasmanian cheese and fruit platter for the passengers.

When coming back to the wharf, you’re back at your assigned line, awaiting the Captains order to throw your line to the “jumper” (a crew member jumping from the ship onto the wharf to then catch the lines). Once back in port, all sails needs to be tucked away and Trim needs to be brought back alongside the ship.

1700 – Time off

At 1700 we would normally be done with tucking away the sails and bringing Trim back alongside the ship. Once done, we were off, so to say. If you were on duty, you stayed on the ship for the 24 hours that your watch lasted.

If you were not on duty, you would normally take the opportunity to get off the ship, go out and get a drink, do some shopping or take a walk. Another option was to stay on the ship during the evening to do laundry, read a book or just relax. Varying day to day.

The person on duty prepared dinner for the rest of the crew which was normally done somewhere between 1730 and 1900.

Normally you would have Monday and Tuesday off (unless on duty) and a maintenance day.

If you think this sounds like fun and you would be interested in volunteering on STV Windeward Bound, you can contact STV Windeward Bound directly here.

*Please take this schedule as a guideline, as I volunteered as a liveaboard crew back in 2016 = some things have probably changed since then 😉