The Night Watches

Watches do not solely exist on ships but they do define a lot how everything is made possible at sea. It can all be said in one simple sentence: we don’t stop at night. Impossible to drop the anchor and have a collective rest in the middle of the Atlantic. Very much not recommended to leave the ship to drift while we all lay in our cosy warm bunks. Some people have to be not only awake, but also ready for action, and this includes our voyage crew.

We don’t stop at night, we sail. Setting sails or taking them down, it can all happen after sunset and the dark starry sky is no excuse for lack of trimming when you have a good headlamp or the bridge “portable sun”.

We don’t stop at night, we bake! The fresh bread on the breakfast and lunch table doesn’t magically appear out of nowhere; a focused deckhand on rotation to be the “galley fairy” put a lot of attention on that dough. The recipe does clearly states that it must include a “cup of love”…

We don’t stop at night, we repair. A stitch on the main skysail, a coat of varnish on a block, a new cover for the wheelhouse compass… It is said that if you don’t schedule maintenance for your ship, your ship will schedule it for you. So we take advantage of every second available to give some TLC to the rigging.

We don’t stop at night, we teach. When we don’t need to touch the sails, it is a great opportunity to sit down in the deckhouse and share the traditional tricks of the trade. Yesterday, Markus showed some knots and I ended the night watch by inviting the group to put some whippings on our gaskets. Tonight, Aste continued with rope splices. Who knows what will come next…