Young Endeavour 'dream' voyage for 19yo Mogilla woman

“Trying to have a shower when the boat is sailing and rocking you from side to side is something you perfect,” Louise Stewart of Mogilla laughed. 

After successfully applying to join the ship, she also won a scholarship to pay for her costs then met it in Melbourne for an 11-day voyage to Sydney in January. 

Sailing runs in Ms Stewart’s blood.

Her grandfather was in the British Navy and her grandmother loved the sport, but sadly she passed away about two years ago.

“It was such a big part of her life when she sailed, so it was nice to be able to understand the stories she used to tell me from a different perspective,” the 19-year-old said.  

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“It was a little bit of an adventure.

“It was to understand a bit about my grandmother’s and grandfather’s lifestyle and it was a lot about learning leadership skills.

“I was so happy to meet people who were ambitious, excited and had gone the extra mile to go on the Endeavour.”  

After the 21 youths aged 16 to 25 boarded the ship, they ran into their first challenge on their second day. 

“If you’ve ever heard anything about the Bass Strait, you know it’s pretty rough ocean,” Ms Stewart laughed. 

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“Pretty much everyone got seasick on the first day of travelling.

“There were a few people lying on the deck looking not so great, but we all recovered by the third day.” 

Sleeping on bunk beds three-high in the middle of the boat below the deck was also a challenge, as it “sort of felt like you were in a hammock”, she said. 

“But we got a little bit used to it. I remember coming off the boat and going onto a bed and I kind of missed the rocking,” Ms Stewart said. 

During each voyage on the Young Endeavour participants learn the skills to sail a square-rigged tall ship, including how to navigate, keep watch, cook in the galley, take the helm and climb the 30metre mast to work aloft as well as setting and furling sails. 

Near the end of the voyage, the youth crew elect a command team who take full responsibility for the ship for 24 hours.  

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At the adventure’s end all the youths were given certificates, while Ms Stewart also won the Young Endeavour Youth Scheme Award for supporting the team and encouraging others’ goals. 

“It just showed they appreciated my input on the voyage and I potentially helped lift others towards their goals, which was nice,” she said.  

“It was an extra cherry on top of the experience.” 

Ms Stewart - who is living Wollongong and in her second year of a Bachelor of Pre-Medicine, Science and Health - said it was hard to leave the Young Endeavour. 

“It’s no longer a ship, it becomes your home, which is really strange,” she said. 

“When we were leaving there were some people crying because our home was about to disappear. 

“It was like we lived a dream for 11 days.”