Report From the
10/08/06
Boom day out fort mizz 'n' masters
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STEADY HANDS: From left, Alison Gordon, Jonathan Price, Oliver Hando, Leo Milton, Nick Hamersley, James White and Andrew Jeffs on the tall ship Prince William |
GOING down to the sea again, to the lonely sea and the sky is a distinct option for a group of Gwent scouts.
And if, like the mariner in the Masefield poem, they want a tall ship to do it in the TSYT Prince William is just the thing.
The Prince William was moored at Barry, where she will take on a fresh young crew before sailing for Liverpool.
As members of the Newport 10th Tan Gwyllt (Wildfire) Explorer Scouts trooped up the 180-foot brigantine-rigged vessel's gangplank, scouting veteran Mac' Pearce, who is also a committee member of the Tall Ships Youth Trust, said: "Things don't get more adventurous than sailing in this.
"Handling something like the Prince William with a rough sea running is enough to challenge the most adventurous scout.
"When I was a scout, 60-odd years ago, we didn't have anything like this. The Sea Scouts had a whaling boat, but otherwise it was a weekend on Henllys Hill."
Explorer Scout leader Nigel White, said that since the former Venture Scouts were reorganised into Explorer Scouts in 2000 the accent was on adventure.
"Whether it's the traditional woodcraft activities that everyone associates with scouts, or outdoor activities on a much larger scale, the emphasis is on self-reliance and teamwork.
"There are still an awful lot of young men and women who understand that computer games are no substitute for real-life adventure."
The Explorer Scouts, Oliver , from Newport, Leo, from Llanmartin, Andrew, 17, from Caerleon, James , 17, from Caerleon, Nick , 17, from Glascoed, Jonathan, 17, from Caerleon and Alison, would be expected to pay about £70 a day for their berth aboard the Prince William or her sister ship the Stavros.
Nick said: "I've been in the Scout movement from a cub and taken part in all sorts of adventure activities.
"I'd love a voyage on a beautiful ship like this."
fellow-Explorer Jonathan was fascinated by the Prince William, but said he was a landlubber.
"I'm more of a hiking person. I'd like to go around Africa," he said.