SAILING A TALL SHIP AROUND THE CARIBBEAN
Last February, before the world went a bit mad, I flew to Antigua and boarded Tenacious, the world’s only sea-going accessible tall ship, and spent 10 days sailing around the Caribbean. Tenacious is owned and operated by the Jubilee Sailing Trust, and is sailed by a mixed ability crew; she has wheelchair lifts, a talking compass so those with vision impairments can steer the ship, and a host of other adaptations that mean that people with many different physical disabilities can participate in every element of life onboard.
I got involved with the Jubilee Sailing Trust last year, when my dad got offered a spot on a Spinal Injuries Ireland fund raising voyage from Cork to Poole, and he needed a buddy to go with him. Now, I am not a sailor. I had successfully avoided boats for the best part of my 26 years on this planet and had no intention of changing that before this opportunity arose. I get pretty travel sick, in cars, on planes, even on trams sometimes, so boats have always been a no-go for me and I was fine with that. But I didn’t want my dad to have to give up his spot, so I volunteered to go. In a very shocking turn of events: I BLOODY LOVED IT! So much so that I decided to book another voyage, this time in the Caribbean.
CHECK OUT THE VIDEO I MADE ABOUT MY TRIP
It’s really hard to properly explain what it’s like to go on a voyage, but I would highly recommend everyone take at least one in their lives. It’s no holiday, you have to do watches at different hours of the day and night, pull ropes, help in the kitchen and clean the ship. But it’s an amazing environment to be in, everyone works together no matter what their abilities are or what experience they have.
As I’ve documented in my previous posts, I struggled with my mental health a lot last year especially while traveling, so I was really nervous about going on this trip. And it was tough at times. There’s a lot going on, you’re in very close quarters with a lot of new people, your sleep is disturbed, there are so many new things to learn, and at times it can be very overwhelming. But when I had those moments, I was able to take a few minutes to myself and I felt better. The thing is, when you’re on the ship, you’re instantly a part of a community, so if at any point you don’t feel well or need to lie down, then there is always someone there to pick up the slack. You also get an opportunity to disconnect from the world and get out of your normal life, but you still have a routine, a structure, and most importantly, a purpose. You have to help keep the ship running and get it from point A to point B. Its hard to put into words how important that feeling is when you’re having a hard time in life.
My favourite thing we did was climbing up the mast and out onto one of the yards. I was so scared before climbing up, and by scared I mean I was seriously freaking out, but it was something I was set on doing. I don’t really have a fear of heights or anything like that, but I just don’t have a lot of confidence in my ability to do things in general. Logically I knew I could do it and I would be okay, but still my heart was racing and my knees were feeling a bit weak. However, I was absolutely fine once I got up there, you actually feel a lot more secure than you think. It’s an amazing feeling to work through those anxieties and show yourself that you can do it. Now I can’t wait to get back up there; I want to go higher and I want to try when the boat is seriously rocking!
Despite the fact that you do have to work, you also get plenty of time to see amazing places. We visited multiple different islands: we went to Bequia and had a great meal all together, we went to an uninhabited island called Petit Rameau in the Tobago Cays and got to hang out on the beach, we got to explore Canouan, which is part of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and we also went to Deshaies on the island Guadloupe, which is owned by the French, where the BBC show Death in Paradise is filmed. it was amazing to experience the way different islands have such different vibes, and see places that I would never have gotten to see if I wasn’t on this voyage.
Even if you’ve never sailed before, I would recommend going on a voyage to everyone. They are amazingly powerful, regardless of your physical ability, mental health, experiences or life situation. If you’re going through a hard time, or need to gain some perspective, you can learn so much about yourself while on the ship. You get to meet amazing people, see incredible sunsets, star-gaze and just get away from your phone for a bit.
If you want to see what the voyage is like, you can watch the video I made, or watch the video Spinal Injuries Ireland made on the voyage we did last year.
