CatZero

The voyage to Norway lasted just under three days. We learnt to work as a team, developing many skills such as cooking, navigating, engineering, sailing and much more. We woke at different times, each day to the sound of a foghorn blasting into our ears, which was normally Eddie trying to get us up, and fell asleep to the sounds of the sea crashing into the sides of the yacht. When we got to the CatZero office in Hull Marina we all got our waterproofs and under-layers, to prepare for the cold and wet nights ahead on the water. After we had our kit, we set off to Albert Dock where we were met with the glorious sight of the CatZero yacht. Everything had just got very real, we were really going to sail to Norway with 16 other people we hardly knew in a cramped 72 foot challenger yacht.

were officially told our journey would start that very night so after a lovely bowl of spaghetti, our last proper meal for some of us, we set off to Grimsby Dock. I remember after getting out of the dock and practising our fender skills we all got to wave to our parents, watching them get smaller in the distance, our last time seeing them for 10 days. With an emotional but exciting feeling within us all, we sailed away into the night and some of us had our first go at the helm.

After we arrived we piled all our bags in the cockpit and claimed our bunks for the next 10 days. We had a chaotic but fun time finding our own bags in the mess we had made and sorting out the wet cupboard. After we were settled in our temporary home, we had an official introduction to our crew, including Danny, our skipper, Eddie, our second skipper and our two watch leaders, Steve-O and Debs. After speculating what our plans were going to be all afternoon we

Getting up bright and early the next morning, we left Grimsby to start the main part of our voyage to the North Sea. We set off all together putting the sail up, doing a man-over-board test and seeing our last view of land. After we were officially in the North Sea we started our watch shifts, the watch names being Solis and Lunae. Solis stayed up on deck with Megan, Kiki, Micheal, Atchuthan, Ed and Adam and Steve-O as the watch leader. Lunae went to rest with Mel, Luna, India-Rose, Ben, Reuben and Will and Debs as their watch leader. For most of us this day will always be thought of as ‘Buckets’ day (I’m sure you can imagine what that means!), setting off straight into some awful conditions of about 30 knots. To stay awake whilst the others slept, working with support from one another, we sang and danced to some childhood classics and the best British bangers, we played word games and mind games. This act of togetherness really kept us going. That along with ginger nuts and bananas, our diet for the next few days! As the sun rose in the morning and set at night, the sunrises and sunsets were absolutely beautiful, they covered the whole sky and were an array of the deepest oranges, yellows, purples and blues. One of India-Rose and Mel’s personal highlights of the trip was on the way to Norway, when suddenly we were surrounded by dolphins dancing around the yacht, leaping gracefully in and out of the water. They glided under the yacht and then jumped out at one side, then swam under the yacht and sprung out at the other, this continued for about 10 minutes as we watched these majestic creatures in awe. The final stretch to Norway was the hardest part of the trip for most of us, with the waves extremely high and repeatedly hitting the sides of the yacht. The night wind had picked up and the yacht was leaning over with the deck and crew being washed by the waves leaving everyone freezing and drenched. However, by the end of our six hour shift we could see land, an amazing feeling which Will described as the highlight of the trip. We all sat up on deck, with everyone to see Norway together for the first time, warming up with soup and taking pictures of breathtaking views was a particularly amazing memory. After an amazing but challenging journey, we docked at the island of Natvigs Minde and roamed around, calling family and taking pictures. We then took our little dingy boat to the main island of Stavanger in groups of four to six and chose to eat some familiar food from McDonald’s. As soon as we stepped foot on Norwegian ground, it was remarkable to think that we had managed to take a yacht to another country. We then walked through the beautiful streets of Norway where we had our McDonald’s. We all at first struggled to get used to being on land, it felt like we were going to fall as we had been on the water for 3 days straight and couldn’t get our ‘land legs’ back. After enjoying looking around we took the dinghy back to the yacht, to enjoy our first night without having to worry about shifts. We enjoyed this time playing cards and messing around, having fun all together. We then got some sleep so we could enjoy our Norwegian adventures the next day.

As we returned to the streets of Stavanger, we spent a bit of time playing on a mini trampoline and bouncing onto buoys which resulted in people landing head first and getting stuck in between them. After our familiar food the day before this time we chose to have breakfast at a little pastry shop called ‘Godt Brod’. We all had delicious Danish pastries which were some of the best ever. After that, we were allowed to explore

Stavanger, where we visited a gift shop where we got some souvenirs to remember the trip and some gifts for our families. We enjoyed spending time in this gorgeous little city, exploring and getting lost and Ben and Reuben remember this as one of their personal highlights. Especially watching Reuben speed past us all on the bike he had hired. After a well-deserved shower, we headed back to the yacht to set off to our next destination which was the very secluded island, Talgje where we had a mini BBQ. When we first arrived in our little dingy we all set off exploring the island and taking pictures. This place was absolutely amazing as we could experience the true nature of Norway’s beautiful landscape. After a wonderful night all together on this island we took the dingy back to the yacht as we couldn’t moor the yacht too close to the island because of the depth of the water. After that we took to our bunks to get a good night sleep before the adventure of climbing Pulpit Rock the next day.

The next day, we took the yacht to Tau where we drove through the island towards Preikestolen for our hiking adventure up Pulpit Rock. Before going up we visited the visitors centre and got some more souvenirs and some of us got an ice cream to enjoy in the lovely weather. After a two hour tiring hike that never seemed to end we saw a view that was definitely worth the wait. We took lots of pictures of a stunning view and ate lunch at the top. We then set off back down which took about three hours and realised how much our feet were hurting. After an extraordinary time up Pulpit Rock we got the once in a lifetime opportunity to jump off the yacht into the water underneath the rock we had just climbed. The water was absolutely freezing but getting the chance to jump in was an experience we couldn’t say no to. We got back in the yacht and travelled back down the Fjord in the sun, with the remarkable views passing us on either side of the yacht. Being in charge of the yacht, helming down the Fjord was one of Megan’s personal favourite memories. was calmer allowing us the chance to work better as a team and learn how to tie different knots. We got to enjoy the sun sets more and had the chance to see all the boats at night all around us. After an easier journey home, we arrived back early in the morning

That night, expecting to go back to the island of Natvigs Minde we were told we were going to be setting back home early to beat the strong winds. After a previous journey involving lots of buckets some of us were a little nervous to be going back on to the North Sea but we all prepared for the journey ahead. The journey back was more enjoyable than the way there as it at Hull Marina, disappointed for the trip to be almost over but excited to be back home in England. We cleaned, disinfected and organised the yacht and had the chance to get a nice warm shower. In the afternoon, we listened to some lectures including a flare, weather, navigation and flag lecture, we also took part in a safety boat and rope tests to complete our

Competent Crew Qualification. We did the safety boat test by the side of the yacht and some of us did better than others, with people going the wrong way or round in circles. Completing the qualification was fun and I am sure lots of us would love to complete a higher level qualification in the future. To end the day some of us climbed the mast, about 30 metres into the air and then we all sat down to enjoy some pizza, where we played cards and sang our hearts out to lots of songs, including Moana’s ‘Shining’ - the song of the trip - to cheer people up when it was getting difficult. Luna and Kiki remember this as one of the highlights of the trip as they felt we grew as a team and all had fun together one last time even though some of the other boats in the marina may not have agreed. Everyone really enjoyed our first time sailing and the skills we have learnt will stay with us for a long time to come. Although the trip definitely had its challenges we all managed with the help of the rest of our team and these memories are something that not everyone will get the chance to experience. We had the chance to grow as people and make new friends but we also learnt dedication, resilience and friendship. This trip definitely would not have been possible without the hard work of everyone at Catzero, Danny and Eddie, our skippers, as well as Steve-O and Debs, our watch leaders and to Mr Cadle for bringing this trip to the school and organising it every year. We would also like to give a big thanks to Dr Main, Dr Bobby Mainer, for coming with us and being supportive of us all. We couldn’t have done this without any of these people. Thank you.

Megan, Kiki and India-Rose, Year 10

It began with the youngest choir, Year 4, who enthralled everyone with their enthusiasm, particularly in their song Whisper

The Year 5 Choir had a tough act to follow but coped really well with their quite challenging repertoire, including Can You Hear Me?

The Year 6 Choir tried out one of their brand new pieces, Jabberwocky, as well as some songs learnt for their National Competition entry and sang with confidence. It was lovely to hear the groups from the Senior School which hopefully gave the younger children inspiration for the future. Everyone also enjoyed some stunning solo performances from the older students.

The evening ended with all of the choirs singing a lively rendition of The Rhythm of Life. Overall, this was a wonderful concert, set in an amazing venue. A huge well done to all performers and thank you to the Junior staff who helped out on the night.

Mrs T Redhead Head of Junior School Music