STS Leeuwin II is Australia’s largest ocean-going tall ship that offers voyages all across Western Australia.

To take part in one of these is a great challenge and an unforgettable experience. 

In January this year, 34 cadets and five staff from the Australian Navy Cadets, Australian Army Cadets and Australian Air Force Cadets took up the challenge of sailing STS Leeuwin for five days.

Our adventure began at Victoria Quay, Fremantle where we were all placed into four separate watches and shown to our bunks. As soon as we were all settled in we left the harbour with family and friends sending us off.

After leaving Fremantle we anchored off and got ready to learn how to sail the Leeuwin. Each watch was given a tour of the ship, an explanation on the different sheets, halyards, vangs, and other ropes, as well as instructions on how to take the helm and the opportunity to climb the fore-mast and unfurl the square sails.

With our little heads hurting from all of the information we had learnt it was time for some food. The meals onboard never let us down throughout the whole trip. Each meal was great!

After our meal, we were ready to set the sails and get the boat moving. It was a great feeling finally setting off and moving with the power of the sails. Once we started to sail off, the watch system came into action. My watch, scored the middle watch, which was from 0001-0400. While we were on watch we got to take part in taking the helm of the ship, doing bow watch and an hourly bilge check.

During the first day of our voyage most of us also got plagued by dreaded sea sickness. This was the toughest day of the voyage. We were 100 nautical miles from mainland Australia, battling up to 50 knot winds and four metre swells, and being drawn down with sea sickness, home sickness and sunburn. Throughout the day we participated in many ice-breaker and team work activities and also successfully completed our first tack of the ship.

Sooner then expected we could finally see land again, and we anchored off to the north of Rottnest Island for our second day, and also got the chance to go ashore. This was a great change from the rocky seas which we had encountered and it was a chance for us to have a swim, go for a snorkel, play some beach cricket and just chill out. Many new friendships were forming and we were only halfway through our trip.

After exploring the shores of Rottnest, it was announced that for the rest of the daylight hours we would have the chance to climb up the main mast. Unfortunately I wasn’t daring enough to take up this challenge. One by one I watched as people climbed to main mast to read the plaque which was found at the top. It was awesome seeing the looks of satisfaction on everyone’s faces after taking on this challenge, with several cadets overcoming their fears of heights making it to the top.

The third day of our voyage began with us departing Rottnest Island for some tacking practice and a casual sail around Garden and Rottnest islands. During this day everyone could see how much more confidence our crew had and the friendships that had bonded within such a short time. The whole crew was looking out for each other and helping out those who needed it.

We anchored within the Cockburn Sound for our final night onboard. When we anchored we had the chance to relax and go for a swim…off the boat that is!  We hooked up the tarzan rope and jumped off the ship into the ocean. This was a huge hit with everyone, and a few of the adventurous ones also jumped off the bowsprit into the water. That afternoon was one of the many highlights of the trip for me. The whole crew was laughing and having fun. You could see there was no rivalry between the three forces or the different watches onboard.

That night everyone participated in the ‘Leeuwin Olympics’. This was a mixture of events that included moving like a seal along the deck, playing charades, bobbing for apples in salt water, making up a song or two, eating dry weet-bix and many more different activities.

We all woke up nice and early on our last morning of sailing. We finally berthed back into Fremantle to pick up another 60 cadets, staff and parents for a two hour sail. This was our time to shine, showing off what we learnt and sail the ship for our passengers. We were all eager to show off our new sailing skills and our teamwork. We did ourselves proud in the end and managed to sail the ship successfully for our passengers. In no time we berthed back into Victoria Quay, which ended the unforgettable experience known as the ‘ADFC STS Leeuwin Voyage’.