From our last workshop (fire fighting), onward and …upward…
Literally…
PICTON CASTLE is a sailing ship. A square rigger. A handy barque as she would have been found on the world’s ocean trade routes in abundance in what we call the ‘age of sail’. Most of the oceanic world was explored in ships of this scale, or smaller, actually. While the most stunning and famous ships from the age of sail were much larger than PICTON CASTLE, ships like CUTTY SARK, FLYING CLOUD, MOSHULU and others got the headlines, there were ever so many ships like our barque trading across the oceans of the world. In fact, ships like the BOUNTY, Cook’s ENDEVOUR, MAYFLOWER were all smaller than this barque. PICTON CASTLE may indeed be a small barque, but she is no miniature…
Her rig was designed to be utterly conventional, proven, solid. No radical modern experimentation, only solidly proven and tested rigging technology in this ship. And based upon Germanischer Lloyd’s masting and rigging specs from the peak of this famous age of sail. They knew their stuff on the subject.
Any seaman from that latter age of sail would feel at home aloft in our rig, and feel and actually be, safe. While our excellent engineer, Julien, likes to think otherwise, the ship’s main engine is actually above the deck and not in his engine room. Do not tell him this. Sail and wind are what propels us across the seas. And her deck gang are thus the ‘engineers’ of this propulsion plant. Her marvellous Danish Burmeister & Wain diesel engine is a powerful and reliable means of auxiliary propulsion, to be used as little as can reasonably be, to push along in calms or headed into a harbour. Let Julien paint, grease, oil and love up the gear in the engine room through which, in the quiet at sea, as we make passages with only the wind’s songs in the tradewinds, under square sail, a cool breeze is wafting.
On her long blue water ocean passages, PICTON CASTLE is under sail most of the time. Much of it trade wind sailing. Just the way we like it. Patrick O’Brian, in his well-informed novels about life in the Royal Navy in the times of wooden ships likened trade-wind sailing to “neither touching sheet nor brace”. Maybe so. Mostly so. Well, actually, there is plenty of sail handling in the trades, but we can go some days with all lines moving nary a millimetre. On other days, its ‘pully-hauly’…
PICTON CASTLE is sailed by her crew, the entire gang on deck. That also means that her rig is not a place devoid of people. It is an inhabited place. As it is designed to be, lived in by us in such a ship, at least in a square-rigger. Big schooners are a bit different but that is another story. Loosing sail ready to set, stowing sail, shake sail out to dry after rain. Sending sail up and down. Sending yards up and down. Rig upkeep and maintenance. A hundred and one things to do, tradewinds or no. All done by those hands adept at clambering about aloft, and doing so safely.
And that means that those who are intending on going aloft need to be primed and well trained in the ins and outs of functioning aloft safely. PICTON CASTLE does not require all her people to go aloft. On the contrary, even if someone’s burning desire is to go aloft, it is the captain’s call to allow (or revoke) the privilege. Or in his stead, the duty mate as required. This call is nothing personal, but has everything to do with appreciating and holding respect for safety aloft.
We will not go into every detail here and now, but we can say that our safety aloft workshop, followed by “up and overs” is the time of initial orientation in depth, practice, and also when evaluations are being undertaken, individually as well as generally, to examine where our strengths lie. It takes up half a day. Like our emergency preparedness workshops and emergency drills, this is an All Hands affair. Even if you chose not to go aloft, attendance in this session is still required. This session requires the full attention of all hands and thus quiet. Machinery is being shut down, distractions are being removed. No “multi-tasking” as the phrase would have it. No loading stores, no scraping and painting, no work anywhere, no receptions on the quarterdeck, no stray visitors, no music, nothing apart from the task at hand. Background noise and chatter is a no-no. Our focus is entirely 100% on the subject at hand. Safety aloft is as important as it gets. It is key. Makes sense, no?
After a general introduction to PICTON CASTLE’s rig and to the concept of “aloft”, it is laid out very clearly what safety aloft is. And, just as importantly, what it is not.
Without going into much detail here, safety aloft begins way before a discussion about harnesses and various industrial fall restraint systems. Truth be told, once a fall restraint system has kicked into action, safety aloft has ended. Over. Ceased. Finished. Many do not think of it in this way at first but a fact, nonetheless.
Harnesses and their proper use aboard PICTON CASTLE are mandatory. Quite keen on them, in fact, all to the good. As the fail-safe life insurance policy they are, but not as the primary mainstay, backbone or be-all-and-end-all of our safety aloft system. Harnesses are the philosophical equivalents to seat belts, air bag, and parachutes, or life rafts for that matter. If you have fully engaged in one of these items something has gone wrong. If you are in the life raft, there must be a ship missing, no? if your air bag has deployed most likely safe driving has taken a back seat to an accident.
After extensive explanation on a myriad of issues, ‘ups and overs’ are witnessed by all hands, whether one is an aloft goer or not. Experienced crew get placed at strategic points in the rig to physically guide the novice on this their first time aloft – or if joining from another ship. And after a warming-up break (it was rather chilly out this go around), the second stage is back up in the rig and laying out on a yard. All hands again. Full focus.
On this day a couple crew did not go aloft, others gave it a shot but returned to the deck. This self-selection out by the crewmember him/herself is well encouraged by this ship. A couple of the gang were called down by the captain. Maybe they will try again later – not a problem. The opportunity will be there. In the meantime, PICTON CASTLE needs plenty of hands on the deck. Imagine if everyone was aloft? Who would then tend to the tasks required on deck? Equally important tasks, equally necessary. There is no special glory attached to working aloft over working on deck, it all needs to be done. It is an everyday occurrence in a square rigger. And we do it matter-of-fact, and safely. And plenty that needs doing on deck, anyway.
On this day we had a good session in going loft for the first time for the new crew in the Barque PICTON CASTLE. It will be so far from the last time, no doubt. But then, they won’t be new crew anymore, will they?
Our “engine” of sails churning off the sea miles…