“If we sink, stay on the boat as long as you can”: my first week on a sailing boat

On May 4, I joined the crew of Triton a Pornic, an outgoing queer feminist sailboat. I was relatively inexperienced at sailing, but wanted adventure… I was not disappointed!

Willkommen, welcome aboard

When I arrived on the pontoon and saw Triton for the first time, I was a bit confused. In fact, Triton is smaller than all the boats I’ve known, it’s only 9 meters long, there’s only one 2-seater cabin in the bow and it’s already occupied. My “bed” is actually a bench in the living room, namely in the lounge area of ​​the boat.

In addition to these first discoveries, there are the first minutes a little linguistic fluctuation. The people then present, Len, Jana as well as Hannah, our skipper, are all German and I don’t speak German, so we speak to each other in English. It’s been a long time since I’ve worked out and I’m feeling rusty.

Luckily Hannah immediately gave me a little speech upon arrival introducing me to both the safety rules in navigation and the rules of life, concluding that it was normal to feel “strange” the first few days.

First departure, first return

Two hours after my arrival, Hannah offers us to prepare the boat for a trip to sea. put everything away so that nothing falls out when you browse, switch off the power, check the (very) old motor and prepare the sails. The process takes almost 45 minutes.

Only that day, when we finally leave the port, the waves are really big, much bigger than expected, and Hannah quickly announces thatit would be too dangerous to attempt to hoist the sails in these conditions. After just 15 minutes of navigation, we are already at the initial pontoon.

For my part I find it ok, but I feel that Len and Jana are not experiencing it so well. They have been stuck in the port of Pornic for more than 3 days due to bad weather.

Luckily we manage to leave the next day, and after a beautiful crossing under the sun, pushed by the wind, we arrive in Noirmoutier. The opportunity for me to discover the basic maneuvers, but also to lead Triton, that is, lead him, for the first time. The adventure really begins!

Meet and Greet

We stay in Noirmoutier for two days. I discover it in passinga port is sometimes a bit like a campsite, in the sense that everyone is watching each other (politely), everyone talks to each other and we go to the bathroom to take a shower.

I meet an accountant who now lives full time on her boat and two friends who have bought a very old boat and plan to cross the Atlantic in it.

Len and Jana are about to leave, they will soon be replaced by new teammates in two days. Then they do the math and I ask how much these two weeks on board have cost them.

Sailing on a sailboat, an expensive adventure?

Before coming on board, I had read about it Triton asked for €70 to confirm its participation (expenses explained by the time required to organize such a program, with the permanent changes of team members), as well as 60 €/week for general boat maintenance expenses.

Also, you need to count the on-board cash boxMeaning what money used to pay for daily expenses of the whole crew. We count in it the nights at the port (in general between 15 and 25 € per night), gasoline for the engine, as well as groceries.

My teammates explain to me that in the 2 weeks they were a average of 15 €/day. All of this combined, so let’s hang around €165 per week spent on the boat + 70€ registration.

Let’s go to Ile d’Yeu, at 2!

After one last pleasure cruise with Len and Jana, the two leave us to return to Germany. Hannah and I are alone on board and must set sail for Île d’Yeu, where the next crew members will join us. Quickly, we no longer see the coast, we are just surrounded by water. I find it absurd to tell myself that I am so close to France, yet so isolated, right there, right away.

We chat, listen to music, watch a beautiful sunset, it’s all right… But the sailboat is an uncertain means of transport, we are going slower than expectedand soon night falls and the ocean is rough. We are soon in total darkness. For safety we cling to the boat with straps so as not to fall.

The first day, during the safety briefing, Hannah had told me again the number 1 rule on a boat is never to fall. They added that even if the sailboat sinks, you have to stay on it as much as possible, a matter of chance of survival.

When we finally approach the port, Hannah goes to the foot of the mast to stow the sails. They shout instructions in English as I drive, but I don’t understand. I don’t know what they are asking me, which rope I should pull or let go. This boat is unlike any other I have sailed. I panic a little, because Hannah is in an unstable position and that even harnessed, if it fell overboard, I’m not sure I’d be able to pull its weight out of the water.

Luckily, after long minutes, we finally get there, and when we cross the harbor mouth, I finally feel relieved. It’s nearly midnight and we’re falling asleep. Tomorrow will be a walk and a rest, because in a few days, we will embark on a much longer and more dangerous crossing: that of the Bay of Biscay, starting from the island of Yeu to reach Gijon, a city located in northern Spain. It takes 2 to 3 days and this crossing is said to be eventful.

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