LHT- Youth Squad Sailing Trip

Published by Chenoa Parr for Symphony Housing Group in Housing and also in Communities

FISHING, STAR GAZING AND TEAMWORK ON YOUTH SQUAD SAILING TRIP

A group of Merseyside teenagers have had the trip of a lifetime sailing a 113-year-old tall ship around a Scottish island.

Eight members of Liverpool Housing Trust's Youth Squad travelled around the isle of Arran on sail training vessel Glaciere.

The former Baltic trading ship was sunk, wrecked and abandoned before it was restored to its former glory and is now moored at Liverpool's Albert Dock.

During their three day sailing adventure the group of teenagers took over from the skipper to sail the ship, took it in turns to keep watch and used GPS navigation to chart their course.

The trip included wildlife spotting, star gazing, fishing and cooking their catch in the ship's galley.

Thomas Lawless, 16, from Kirkdale, has been a Youth Squad member for four years and was one of the 12 to 18-year-olds to take part in the trip.

He said:! "It was a great trip and I was made up when I got the chance to go. I had never been on a boat before I went.

"I ended up sleeping on the table in my sleeping bag because I'm 6ft 1ins tall and I kept whacking my head in the bunk bed. It was great though because I could see all the stars at night when it was dead dark.

"We saw dolphins and went fishing and caught mackerel which we gutted, cooked and ate.

"We learned how to use the sails and we all worked as a team with everyone helping out to run the ship together and do the dishes.

"I think my favourite part of the trip was seeing the dolphins because we were so close to them."

Youth Squad members take part in environmental and community work such as litter picking and bulb planting.

Glaciere offers voyages of adventure, challenges and self discovery to young people aged 14 to 19.