Marine / Swan adventure and The Tall Ships Races are on the cards for 2020
Adventures are open to 15 to 25 year olds
SAIL Training Shetland is offering an 11-night journey onboard the Fifie Swan as part of Shetland Boat Week 2020.
Adventure Sail North starts in Ullapool on 22 July and finishes at Lerwick on Sunday 2 August and includes celebrations to kick off Shetland Boat Week 2020: Exploring Coasts and Waters.
The new adventure forms part of a year long programme of events and activities celebrating Scotland’s Year of Coasts and Waters and will help get young people out onto the sea to “enjoy these elements of our landscape and community”.
The placements onboard Swan are open to anyone aged 15 – 25 years and no prior sailing experience is necessary.
Sail trainees will cruise up through Scotland’s North West Coast on the way to Shetland, with stopovers at Orkney and/or Fair Isle, weather permitting.
To add challenge and interest to the trip, Swan will berth or anchor at locations around Shetland for onshore adventure activities, such as canoeing, coasteering, dinghy sailing and a special crew mixer social event for all participants.
Also on offer this year is the chance to experience the internationally acclaimed Tall Ships Races on a 14-night voyage from A Coruńa, Spain to Dunkirk, France.
Two placements are available for Race 3 which starts 24 July 2020, onboard the Dutch registered three masted schooner Gulden Leeuw which forms part of an Erasmus + European exchange programme.
This gives trainees international crew exchange opportunities while also providing all the excitement of host port celebrations including the famous crew parade, a crew party, many concerts, games and impressive fireworks.
Sail Training Shetland chairman Peter Campbell said: “We hope the experiences on offer will inspire young people to get out on the water and enjoy the adventure that a personal challenge such as sail training offers.
“Not only are we offering a unique sailing experience around Scotland’s coastline but also the chance to participate in an international festival too. It is a highlight for us to be collaborating with Shetland Boat Week and we look forward to the launch of this event when our trainees arrive back in Lerwick on 2 August.”
According to the organisers, sail training is an adventure activity which includes instruction in all aspects of sailing, but its purpose goes far beyond this.
It uses the experience of being at sea principally as a means to help young people learn about themselves and to discover hidden strengths and talents.
Sail trainees reap the benefits of their experiences through increased self-confidence, independence, team working, communication skills and testing their personal and physical boundaries, with some going on to pursue careers at sea.
Application forms are now available for download from www.sailtrainingshetland.com/apply-now and the closing date is Friday 27 March 2020.
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