Bosun School Marine First Aid, 15-17 November 2019 People who sail in Picton Castle come from all walks of life and, quite frequently, after settling back into their “normal” lives ashore, they stay in touch and do return for more. World Voyage 7 Medical Officer Jen White did that very thing. After months of planning, …
A valuable and essential tool in advancing the learning of seamanship, and an integral part of Lunenburg’s Bosun School, is small boat work. Understanding and competently working small boats is essential in becoming a proper seaman and, eventually, a Bosun. And a Captain for that matter. All the decisions made by the small boat skipper …
It is now mid-October, the Picton Castle is back from her very successful tour of the Great Lakes with the grand fleet of Tall Ships Challenge®, a hurricane has come and gone, and the eighth session of the Bosun School of Lunenburg is well underway at our wharf in this old seafaring town. We have …
The Bosun School at Lunenburg, Nova Scotia- 2019 Read More »
Today we’re wishing that smell-o-vision was a thing. As I walked through the gate towards the warehouse, I could smell the most lovely, smoky aroma that could only be one thing – Swedish pine tar. Pine tar is used liberally in Picton Castle’s rigging maintenance, it coats various parts of the standing rigging and helps …
After a week or so of site preparation, Bosun School students started downrigging Picton Castle last week. All sails were sent down, then much of the running rigging. Sails came down quite quickly, it didn’t take much more than a day to get them all down to deck, bundled up properly, and stowed in our …
Our 8th Bosun School has come to a close, and we had a lovely graduation ceremony at Lunenburg’s historic Dory Shop on Friday 18 December. Closing ceremonies are an important part of the Bosun School. Each of the participants works so hard -it isn’t easy, this school of ours. It takes a lot of hard work and dedication to get through it, and that is one of the reasons we only offer it to individuals who already have some amount of sea experience under their belt; people who already know they want to work at sea. So much hard work deserves acknowledgement, and the closing ceremony is designed to provide that. In the final weeks of the school, Captain Moreland met individually with each of the participants to talk about what they see in their future. He was able to provide them with advice, suggestions, and recommendations, sometimes helping them with their plan and sometimes pointing them in another direction. Some of the graduates are planning going on to take additional courses from other institutions; some are going on to work on other ships; all were offered the opportunity to crew the ship as Picton Castle heads to Bermuda in February. Almost all accepted the offer. Because as important as it is to have the the time to dedicate to learning these skills on land, there is no better place to practice these new skills than at sea. Captain Sikkema is heading south with a very capable crew indeed! The graduation at the Dory Shop was a great night. It started with some music by Bosun School students Cici, Anders & Lars, along with a few drinks and snacks, then a sit-down meal of hot …
We’ve been fortunate to have great weather this fall, which is all the better for rigging lessons! As with most other topics at Bosun School, we’ve been learning, then practicing, then applying the skills. Having learned and been practicing seizings, splices and servings, it’s now time to cement the knowledge by using it to make …
Lunenburg was alive with festive spirit this weekend and the Bosun School students took part in the celebrations. On Friday evening, people gathered on the waterfront to see the lighting of the vessels. Vessels at the Fisheries Museum of the Atlantic and Adams & Knickle usually participate, along with Bluenose II, and this year we …
One of the fun things about sailing with an international crew is celebrating holidays from different countries. It’s the same in Bosun School, with students of a number of different nationalities. We celebrated Canadian Thanksgiving back in October, and are celebrating American Thanksgiving today. Niko is busy cooking up a big delicious dinner and we’ve …
When vessels come alongside to dock, they need to get lines ashore in order to tie the vessel to the wharf. Big ships need big lines. It’s not possible to throw these lines because they’re so heavy, so a lighter weight line is tied to the mooring line. These lighter weight lines, called heaving lines, …
