Jason Bode knows a thing or two about sailing. After all, heB次元官网网址檚 been doing it almost non-stop for the past 168 days.
Bode, a petty officer first class with the Royal Canadian Navy and a volunteer firefighter with Langford Fire Rescue, recently returned from a five-and-a-half month sailing trip on the tall ship HMCS Oriole, as part of CanadaB次元官网网址檚 150th birthday.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檝e sailed on all the war ships and all the Canadian patrol frigates. Life is sort of normal on those, where you have an office and bunk space, Oriole is such a smaller platform,B次元官网网址� Bode said.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 very close quarters, if thereB次元官网网址檚 a problem, thereB次元官网网址檚 a core crew that come together to fix it B次元官网网址� ItB次元官网网址檚 a totally different experience when youB次元官网网址檙e on a sailboat five feet off the water.B次元官网网址�
On March 16, HMCS Oriole, which is a commissioned sail training vessel and the only one of its kind in the navy, departed from CFB Esquimalt. The ship sailed down the West Coast, through the Panama Canal then met with Rendez-vous 2017, a tall ships regatta that took place throughout Quebec and Atlantic Canada, before continuing on to east coast ports in Halifax, Nova Scotia and others.
There were 20 sailors, eight of whom did the full sail, while others were swapped out at various ports.
For Bode, as well as many of the other sailors, the trip was their first time sailing a tall ship B次元官网网址� an experience that came with a huge learning curve. The first few weeks at sea were the most challenging as Bode learned about the different sails and how much wind they could take, often sailing in 40 to 55 knot winds. But within two weeks, they had no problems sailing the 102-foot-long vessel.
Crews worked in 12-hour watches B次元官网网址� five hours during the day and seven at night. When he wasnB次元官网网址檛 sailing, Bode slept or communicated with his family via email on the shipB次元官网网址檚 one computer.
Life quickly became routine on the vessel, but the enjoyment and uniqueness of sailing, never faded. One stretch to the port in Panama was particularly breathtaking, as Bode woke to a beautiful sunrise and porpoises swimming alongside the boat.
B次元官网网址淚t was picturesque, postcard-type stuff some days,B次元官网网址� Bode said. B次元官网网址淭he ports were awesome and sailing for CanadaB次元官网网址檚 150th and the route that we did was the chance of a lifetime.B次元官网网址�
HMCS Oriole is now set to undergo a maintenance refit in Halifax, and will return to Esquimalt in spring 2018.
