International Sailing Exchange Canada

Aboard �Fair Jeanne�, Lake Ontario, Summer 2011

Edward Bennett

After being awarded the chance to take part on an international sailing exchange I couldn�t

believe my luck. After being through an interview process I was one of only two to be sent to Canada

in the summer to sail on Lake Ontario and surrounding waters. We would be sailing with Bytown

Brigatine aboard their Brigatine Fair Jeanne.

With an opportunity as great as this I decided to head out a month early so as to explore

Canada as much as possible before the voyage. The month exploring was a brilliant way to turn this

brilliant trip into something even bigger and better, and was a good way of finding a little more out

about Canada before the sailing voyage.

On the 5th of August 2011 in the early evening I headed to Ottawa airport to meet Vicki

Lough, the other exchange participant, where we would rendezvous with the Beattie family. The

Beattie family had very kindly offered to house us for the night before the trip, and drive us to the

ship the next day. Their son Keegan was sailing with us as an Officer Trainee. After dining we all

turned in, Vicki was jetlagged and I was fairly tired from my last few days of travelling. We all had an

early start the next morning as well to get to Brockville in time for the start of the voyage. So I would

like to take this point to thank the Beattie family for their Hospitality; welcoming two strangers into

their house and then driving them around Ontario.

We arrived in good time on the 6th, ready for registering for the boat. Looking at her for the

first time I was so excited to sail her. Having never sailed a square rigged vessel before I was looking

forward to learning all of the new skills I would need to help sail her � at the time I didn�t realise

quite how much new information that would be. I was used to having coloured ropes, flecked with

colour to help them standout amongst themselves on the yachts I sail back at home, here all ropes

look the same and after the foretop you could not always see where they ran to. There were new

parts of the boat to learn, and new ways of doing things. Even tacking was no longer a simple matter

taking more line work and skill to avoid laying the ship in irons.

Once all of the trainees were registered we played a few games to introduce ourselves to

one another. Flipping over a tarp which had all of us and our bags on it without anything or anyone

touching the grass. The other activity was introduced to us by our watch officer Chesterman � only

surnames were used on the vessel � �We must ration the toilet paper onboard, this being a long trip,

so please now take what you want.� I being a little gullible took a fair amount of it. Instead this

turned out to be a way to get to know one another, everyone telling a truth about themselves for

every square of paper. Taking too much toilet paper as I did I think I began to bore people after

running out of normal topics and instead turning to name my dogs.

Shortly after we headed aboard, claimed bunks and started our familiarisation, which

included our lesson of how to go aloft. Heading up the rigging was fun and gave a great view,

however I was a little apprehensive how it would be aloft once underway and the boat started to roll

and pitch in the wave.

We then slipped from Kingston to begin our adventure; we headed for Blue Church Cove to

anchor for the night. Keen as we were to start learning how to sail this boat, some trainees having

never having even stepped on a sailing vessel before, we took the opportunity to day sail the next

day.

Very quickly I realised that a ship like this isn�t as easy to sail as a common sailing yacht.

Just to set a square sail round half a dozen stations had to be set, and some of them such as the

halyard would need multiple people to control. There were also no winches on board which was also

a new experience for me and I sometimes wished for one when that last inch of heaving was proving

too much for my arm. At this stage of sailing the Fair Jeanne, square rigging had been sold to me

already, despite the sometimes hard work when heaving a line other tasks like hoisting headsails was

a breeze and Fair Jeanne seemed to handle herself beautifully. We hadn�t touched the mainsail yet,

and since most of the crew didn�t like talking about hoisting the main I was wondering how bad the

main could be to use. It was also gaff rigged so it was another new type of rigging for me to learn

about.

After the night in Chrysler Park Marina we went to Upper Canada Village, a historically

accurate village built to depict a 19th Century Village. We walked around the village looking in the

school, a blacksmiths and a shoemakers to name a few. Although these are historical buildings they

are still used and the goods that are made there are sold to help pay to run the village. The sawmill

worker whilst busy making planks of wood showed us a brand new mast he had made using old

techniques. It looked brilliant but sadly making a mast for the Fair Jeanne would have been a little

too large a job for him.

We were destined to slip again that night, but before we did we had an introductory talk

about the SCUBA course we were taking part in. Feeling excitement about the idea of SCUBA diving

we were a little put out when we discovered just how much homework we would have to complete

before the practical began, however the course was mostly taught using training videos, which

helped to digest the material. The book work we also had to complete mostly turned out to be

common sense so after that first night I looked forward to the first SCUBA session the next morning.

Before we knew it we had completed enough homework to start the course and we found

ourselves on the breakwater in Brockville on a grey overcast day. The instructors joked �Oh no! You

might get wet!� Once we had shown a proficiency at swimming and had a final set of instructions,

we took to the water. I was really looking forward to SCUBA diving, but I was surprised just how

much I liked it, as soon as my head dipped under water for the first time and drew in that first breath

of dry compressed air I knew SCUBA might have to be the perfect companion to sailing.

The first dive was over before we knew it despite being under for twenty minutes it felt like

three, so I was already looking forward to tomorrow�s dive. Bytown Brigatine throughout the voyage

taught me a lot, not only about sailing square riggers, but also skills you need to maintain sailing

ships, especially marlinspike seamanship. The first of these tasks was being taught how to make a

lanyard that looked nicer and was more secure than just tying a piece of line between your belt and

the sailing knife. I started on my lanyard that night, a four strand weave with an eye splice on each

end. I kept working on it when off watch and on anchor/night watches, it took a few days but was

worth it, serving as a physical memento from the trip (and

stopping me dropping my rigging knife overboard).

Our second day SCUBA diving and we completed two

dives where we worked on maintaining neutral buoyancy a must

when diving. I began to struggle with ear equalisation as well so

often my buddy would have to wait for me as we descended

slower than usual, but I always got there in the end. I was

already planning when I could SCUBA at home, until I realised

that meant it would be in the cold salty English Channel. The next

day featured a morning dive followed by the exam. Which

thankfully I passed as did most of the group, allowing us to

�treasure hunt� the next day, an activity my dive buddy was

particularly occupied by. That night we sailed the small whalers

to one of the nearby thousand islands to camp. This would be

one of a couple of nights we camped on the islands, something I

don�t think anyone could tire of, the islands were stunning and there was something very appealing

about sailing amongst these islands, camping there every night.

Practicing my water entry technique

Preparing to set sail in the whalers after a nights camping. Sailing the red whaler

After our final SCUBA session and a quick shore leave which mostly resulted in laundry duty

we night sailed to anchorage, where we got a good nights sleep and a (well deserved) lie in. After a

couple of small day sails in the area we spent our second night on one of the Thousand Islands,

McDonald Island. We had arrived there earlier in the day so we had a nice evening at camp. We built

a good fire out of deadwood and cooked marshmallows over the campfire, Viki and I were then

introduced to smores (they are so good you want s�more), they are basically marshmallow and

chocolate chips sandwiched in sweet crackers. In the morning we cooked bannock over the fire, a

recipe I eventually recognised from my time as a scout being a great meal to start the day, especially

since we had such a long physical day ahead of us since it would be the first day of the two day kayak

course we would be taking. The ships company also grew a significant amount in size that morning as

the crew from the sister ship Blackjack would join us for the remainder of the voyage.

We spent the evening at anchor watching our second leadership film Master and

Commander, most of the trainees were watching films of leaders in a nautical aspect as part of a

leadership course they were completing for school. A bed sheet had been rigged up on deck, so that

the movie could be projected onto it. Watching a film about old square riggers, whilst sitting on the

deck of a modern square rigger at anchor in a bay was cool, adding an extra element of atmosphere.

The next day we were to start a two day

Kayak course. Paddling around the thousand islands was almost a better way to see it than sailing. It

was a very hot couple of days, which made the capsizing tests seem quite appealing, often the

instructors would roll their kayaks just to cool off. It seemed that we were in the water more than

not since on regular intervals we were invited to try to achieve a brace (leaning over as far as you can

and at the last moment slap the water with your paddle righting yourself once more) or doing other

foolish things like standing up, lying across the kayak, or rolling the kayak under yourself � all of

Standing on the topsaiI I�m the one furthest to the right.

Keeping a lookout from the t'gallant yard

these tasks resulted in me getting very wet! On the last day I persuaded the instructor to try and

teach me to complete an Eskimo roll, where you capsize on one side and continue the rotation until

you right yourself on the other side. The instructor said nobody ever completes it on the first test,

and so once underwater I will need rescuing, I only managed to get up as far as achieving another

breath, something most people don�t achieve so I was pleased enough with that. The Kayak course

was only an introductory one, so after two very short days we were done, the good news being that

it was time to leave the St Lawrence River and head for Lake Ontario, to really stretch Fair Jeanne�s

legs, so after that last day of Kayaking we set sail for Kingston.

We were moored next to a hotel in Kingston that kindly let us moor alongside them for

free, as long as we did �old timey ship things�, and by that it meant we were required to refit the boat

all day. This allowed us all to get lots of shore leave as the boat was worked on for only a short time

of sanding down. The refit mostly centered around revarnishing the woodwork onboard like the Fife

and Pin rails, as well as the masts from the whalers.

We night sailed to Collins bay and in the morning we were awoken to complete the dreaded

swim test, a 400 meter circuit around the boat followed by 20 minutes of treading water . I�ve always

considered myself maybe not as a champion swimmer but at least competent, this swim test had me

questioning that, treading water for 20 minutes was much harder than I expected and at many

stages I felt like the end would not come. A �Tarzan� rope swing was rigged from the course yardarm

that we could swing from the whisker boom out towards amidships. It was also a nice chance to get

cleaned up (the showers on board not being all that), an activity we hadn�t had the chance to do in a

few days.

We then motored to Bullet cove for the evening where we spotted Bytown Brigatines rival

vessel the Saint Lawrence II. We anchored nearby and watched our last leadership film � White

Squall�, a film about a sail training vessel being sunk by a white squall at sea, killing three onboard. It

felt like a bad thing to watch just before we were to start sailing the lake.

In the morning whilst preparing for our day underway, and hoping to get some food down

our throats we hear the dreaded �FIRE FIRE FIRE! FIRE IN THE GALLEY!�, the mate had decided this

morning was the perfect time for a fire drill, so we all scrambled on deck grabbing extinguishers as

we did so. We then spent about an hour learning about fire fighting techniques using the fire pumps

which are so powerful you needed two people to hold and control it.

Soon it was time to head out on our way to Toronto. As we headed out on what started as a

nice quiet sail a front emerged on the horizon. The order came to douse all sails, despite the

efficiency this was done with the squall still arrived before all sails were down. The trainees were

sent down below whilst I managed to stay on deck a

little longer to help tie up the staysail in a torrential

downpour. When I found myself below decks moments

later I was soaked through from my head to my feet,

but still eagerly awaiting the moment I could get back

up on deck. Soon the squall had past and in its wake

Toronto was clearly visible with the CN tower rapidly

growing in size as we got closer.

We had an extended shore leave in Toronto,

which was a nice opportunity to explore and get some

much needed washing done. I found it quite weird

being back to Toronto since it was one of my first stops

Fair Jeanne barely visible at the foot of the CN Tower as she is dwarfed by it

when travelling the month before but this time I saw it slightly differently perhaps because of the

new situation that brought me there. Even though I had only been there a few days before I still

recognised lots of its roads, in fact it turned out I knew my way round the city better than most of

the other trainees and crew.

The next day before heading back out in the afternoon we travelled across to Toronto Island

and visited the park there. It was certainly a nice place to relax in the sun, however I was really just

looking forward to sailing again, squalls or not.

Leaving Toronto on the last leg of our voyage, and we had some very favourable winds, as

the weather came from our stern so we started back to Kingston with good pace. One of the bosuns

wasn�t content with our speed with the sails we had set, so we even went as far as rigging a stun sail

for use the next day.

Looking forward to playing with our new sail I came on deck the following morning to find

most of the crew looking overboard at the same boson adrift in the whaler. In the night the weather

had worsened and the whaler had cut herself free and during the rescue effort the tender had failed

just after the bosun had got aboard the whaler to begin bailing it, so he was left there adrift. Once

the whaler and the bosun were recovered we started out on our way again, but by this stage a few of

the trainees were beginning to look a little pale and over the next few hours you could count as each

crew member began to succumb to sea sickness. Soon enough there were only a handful of people

still active including myself. This mostly left me on �Zodiac Watch� where I had to watch the tender as

it was towed behind us to make sure the tender didn�t break free. When I saw my watch officer put

her head over board I realised just how bad the sea state was and Fair Jeane's round hull bobbing

around like a barrel wasn�t helping much. I was surprised at myself as I often get sea sick first.

However as I completed a safety check down below and stepped into the hot smelly engine room

being thrown about all over the place I felt the sea sickness finally grip me, I had to politely ask the

bosun to finish the safety check on his own and go back to my favourite past time, watching a Zodiac

roll about in our wake. The weather improved as we headed east and slowly the ships company

became active again and jobs could be rotated again.

For our last meal on the ship, the tradition on Bytown Brigatine vessels is to eat spaghetti

using only kitchen utensils rather than table cutlery, some had it harder than most with utensils

ranging from ladles to measuring spoons and a singular chop stick. I had to make do with a potato

masher.

I awoke on the last day to find the

boat underway rather than at anchor as

expected, during the night the anchor started

dragging and so the decision to leave was made

amongst the crew to cut it loose and get

underway. We had the chance for one last

swim before heading back to Kingston. Whilst

swimming a Tarzan swing was rigged and I had

a few last attempts at back flipping and other

interesting jumps from the swing all of which I

failed at and often slapping my back as I

entered the water.

As we arrived in Kingston we had all

sails hoisted to make the ship look impressive for the crowd of parents now gathering for us.

Spaghetti and masher? Good choice!

Throwing the heaving lines was made a little more complicated as you had to avoid hitting the

parents with the line, but we came alongside nicely and after tidying up the long and sad process of

saying goodbye to all the amazing people Viki and I had met, we both hoped to meet them again and

I�m sure we both will.

I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone that made this trip possible for me, For

ASTO for their part in the exchange scheme organisation and interview process, to Bytown Brigatine

and all of the crew and trainees aboard Fair Jeanne for making the trip memorable, and especially

the James Myatt Trust for funding such an incredible voyage.

Edward Bennett