Sail-World.com : Sailing a Viking Ship:Young Hands Tell their Tales
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Sailing a Viking Ship:Young Hands Tell their Tales |
The Sea Stallion Project comprises a unique reproduction of a actual Viking Ship - a long boat - combined with a reproduction of the actual voyages of the original Viking Ship called the Sea Stallion. She is manned by some 120 volunteers together with staff of the owning museum, the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo. She left Dublin on 29th June, and is expected to arrive Roskilde on the 9th August
Here Lars Normann speaks to two young hands who are currently sailing on the Sea Stallion as she makes her historic way from Dublin to Roskilde, and find that they agree at least about one thing: that spending six weeks on board the Sea Stallion is meaningful:
Their backgrounds for sailing with the Sea Stallion are very different. Sidsel Romme Nygaard is 21 years old and starts studying political science after the voyage. She has sailed in Viking ships all her life because her parents have been involved in the guild for one of the Viking Ship Museum's reconstructions, Roar Ege.
 | The voyage goes south of England, through the Canal to Thyborøn. Through Limfjorden, Kattegat and Roskilde Fjord - .. . |
Morten Bandelow Winther, a 28-year-old constructional engineering student and journeyman carpenter, almost fell into a summer voyage in a Viking ship last year by accident, and there met some hands involved with the Sea Stallion.
Sidsel has sailed with the Sea Stallion since it was launched and she was on half of the voyage last year. Morten's experience comes from sailing the three weeks and the 635 nautical miles from Dublin to Lowestoft. They both talk about the comradeship, values and experiences that have made the greatest impression and which they hope will form part of the ballast they will take home when the whole adventure ends on 9 August in Roskilde. Let it be said: the Sea Stallion is apparently very addictive – as their enthusiasm about being on the voyage seems to know no bounds.
The voyage is a two-year experimental journey from Roskilde to Dublin and back and is the culmination of the largest experimental archaeological project so far in marine archaeology. It has cost DKK 26 million, including the reconstruction of the Sea Stallion. Danish foundations have therefore been of great importance for carrying out the project. Every time Sidsel and Morten are on the sea and look out over the gunwale they can see their life assurance in the form of the supply vessel Cable One, which, like a private detective, follows the Sea Stallion as a shadow in case the worst should happen. The Nordea Danmark-fonden donated DKK 3 million in December for chartering Cable One and setting up a press secretariat on board. More about that later.
Sidsel: 'I have followed the construction and testing of the Sea Stallion right from the start, as I have sailed with Roar, which is a reconstruction of Skuldelev 3. I have sailed with that all my life, because my parents were involved in building it. My father has worked at the Viking Ship Museum. When they launched the Sea Stallion I knew I had to sail on it. I had my debut on the last three weeks of the voyage to Dublin. This year I've been on the whole trip. Being on the voyage last year whet my appetite.'
Morten: 'I had the opportunity to be on a summer voyage last year in a small Viking ship called Skinfaxe. Being on a sailing ship grabbed me immediately. And I thought it was strange that I had lived in a country like Denmark. There's water all around us and I had actually never thought about the sailing opportunities inherent in that. On the Skinfaxe there were several people who had sailed with the Sea Stallion and they spoke about it. That was inspiring and one could apply to join the crew. I applied and suddenly I'm here!'
 | setting sail - .. . |
'I was happy and I told everyone,' he adds. 'I was sure that they would almost be envious. But most of them reacted by saying: 'Why the hell are you doing that?' That surprised me greatly and it still does. I'm not doing this to test my limits; you can do that in so many other ways if you want. I just want to sail on a sailing ship because I'm wild about that.'
On the Sea Stallion you live extremely close to other people. How do you get along with that?
Sidsel: 'I was actually concerned about that before the start. How I should tackle it. But it was actually not a problem for me.'
Morten: 'I learnt something new about groups. Previously I have travelled a lot on my own. My impression then was that the smaller the group the greater the experience. But the downside of that was that you can't share your experiences with anyone afterwards, especially when you travel all alone. Here I'm suddenly part of a giant group. And I feel that is really great and I have a lot of people I can share my experiences with. That's something new and wonderful.'
'I have had such great experiences on the trip that I have been quite touched in my heart,' he says. 'It's been overwhelming and I have thought how wild it is that I've been a part of it. There have been different experiences. Just coming on board the ship for the first time almost swept me off my feet. It was much greater than I had expected. And then there was the long stint towards Land's End, when we crossed the Irish Sea.'
'At that time I was knocked out, but I was still in my right mind,' Morten adds. 'My senses opened up and I was really present here. I stood there and tried to keep my balance in the high seas. I listened, I sweated at the pumps, I froze in the wind. The sounds were violent, the ship vibrated, the wood gave and groaned. I stood there and said to myself: 'This is too much.' It's hard and wonderful at the same time. There's no doubt that I'll remember these moments for years to some.'
Are any good friendships made among the crew?
Sidsel: 'There are undoubtedly. For example, I am now living with a girl I met on the Sea Stallion. So I have made a real friend. But there is a wonderful difference between life at home and here. Here, the experiences are so intense, relatively fleeting and quite detached from the rest of your life.'
Do you live very intensely on the Sea Stallion?
Morten: 'Quite definitely. That is underlined by the fact that we live a very limited life here. I used to read the news when I travelled alone before. I went to an Internet café here in Lowestoft today to find out what has happened at home. I've already forgotten what I read. It's as if the world about us suddenly doesn't interest me any more. I've never experienced that before. I have enough in this ship and these people.'
Sidsel: 'I agree fully that this experience is so engrossing that the interest for the world about falls sharply.'
 | off watch - .. . |
You are challenged in many areas, both psychologically and physically. What does that mean?
Morten: 'The physical challenges have not been as hard as I had imagined.'
Sidsel: 'Yes, that's all right for you. Try to ask the foreship hands how they've experienced things.'
Morten: 'Yes, OK, that's something different.'
Sidsel: 'Well, fundamentally, you're right. The physical challenges are nothing I think much about. There were only a few times in the course of the six weeks we were away that you were really challenged physically.'
Morten: 'Agreed, the physical extremes are just a little part of the whole thing.'
Sidsel: 'Actually, most of the time sailing is so quiet that we try to find ways to pass the time while we speed ahead for hours on end. We have to talk together a lot. And we do talk together very much, often about the closest of things such as the food, the cold and the wind.'
Morten (with a foxy smile): 'May I just say that I didn't find it difficult getting the time to pass as I brought a very thick book with me!'
Sidsel: 'You don't get much of that read?'
Morten: 'No, I certainly don't. It's completely mad. People said to me there'll be many long hours of waiting, and I thought that I'd better take some reading material with me. But actually I haven't read a single line of that book.'
Why not?
Morten: 'Because it isn't that difficult to get the time to pass. We talk the hind leg off a donkey and want to be with each other all the time.'
Sidsel: 'All the time there are new people you can be with, if you want to do that. And I want to be in contact with everyone. If I'm sitting beside someone who's laughing, then I'm there immediately, wanting to be a part of it. And they laugh often and much on board this ship.'
Does the situation help create openness towards others?
Morten: 'You learn to accept all people. You can't weed some out, as things won't work then.'
Sidsel: 'I have at least learnt that all people have some good sides. It's not like that at home, where you end up rejecting some people because the first impressions aren't particularly positive.'
Do appearances fall when you live together in this way?
Morten: 'You can simply not keep up an appearance 24 hours a day, seven days week for six weeks. You can do it home in your job or your course, but not here. I tried to prepare myself for this before I came. Others must judge whether I succeeded.'
Sidsel: 'I don't see anyone any more who goes around with a mental attitude. Nor can we hide behind our appearances. For example we don't have many clothes. Look at my trousers. They haven't been washed yet on the whole trip. And I probably don't smell very good. But nobody says anything because we're all in the same boat. And when we go to the pub, we all go in the same clothes and we are completely indifferent to what other people think, because it's OK with us all that we look like we do and smell as we smell.'
External appearances don't matter?
Sidsel: 'That's more or less true, but just look at Morten. He shaves quite often. But I bet he can't keep that style up for another three weeks. But you're right, external appearances become less meaningful.'
Morten: 'Let's see how it goes with that beard. It could perhaps be more interesting to round this off with our toilet. There are incredibly many who ask if doing it behind a thin tarpaulin very close to other people isn't a problem. But people were very quickly completely familiar with that privy.'
Sidsel: 'Yes, and now people stand and talk to you while you're sitting on the john. And they can hear everything that goes on in there.'
Morten: 'Yes and they can smell it.'
 | Working on the Sea Stallion - .. . |
Sidsel: 'Yes, and now we don't care, but our guests are of course quite occupied by it. But personally I get more questions about how it is being a woman on board such a ship. I have experienced absolutely no form of chauvinism on board. So the problem is really not of interest and when people interest themselves in it, it is because they think that women have a little less strength than men. But that isn't a problem as long as you ensure you're in good form. The Sea Stallion doesn't demand an enormous physique.'
'The maddest thing I've heard to date was an Irishman who asked me: 'What's a lady like you doing on a ship like that?'!'
As mentioned all these experiences for two young people on their way in the world would have been nothing without the supply vessel paid for by the DKK 3 million donation from a foundation, the Nordea Danmark-fonden, in December.
The press secretariat asked the fund's director, Torben Klein, whether he believes, from the fund's point of view, that donating the money was a sensible decision when he reads the young people's report about the project and the importance it has had in their lives:
'Sidsel and Morten's report about their experiences on board the Sea Stallion show that it has been a fantastic experience being on this voyage. That they have learned something about themselves and the world about them, which you have to get away from the humdrum of everyday life to experience. If just most of the participants on the voyage have benefited like that, then it was worth all the money.'
'To that should be added the fact that the voyage also is a research and information project,' Torben adds. 'In itself it is fantastic that, with the Sea Stallion, it has been possible to test archaeological theories and generate a better factual basis for understanding the Viking ship finds and some of the most important aspects of the Viking Age, their ability to sail about large parts of the northern hemisphere.'
'All of us who haven't been on board, but must 'make do' with standing on the quay when the Sea Stallion arrives back, can look forward to learning more at the Viking Ship Museum in the coming years, as the experiences are processed and communicated,' says Torben Klein.
 | no winches here - .. . |
Facts:
Nordea Danmark-fonden supports activities that promote a good life – i.e. activities that are 'sound for the soul and/or the body'.
The foundation focuses its donations on activities within the following themes:
• Health and nourishment – promoting health, prevention, nourishment, gastronomy
• Nature and the environment – experiences in nature, conserving nature, water and climate
• Culture – cultural history, art, future-oriented cultural activities
• Sport and exercise – exercise, broad-interest sports and outdoor life
• Education, research and innovation – in particular within the four above-mentioned themes
The voyage goes south of England, through the Canal to Thyborøn. Through Limfjorden, Kattegat and Roskilde Fjord.
More about the Project:
1200 years ago the Vikings invaded Ireland. The Scandinavians came sailing in
their infamous warships, bringing death, destruction, murder, rape. They pillaged monasteries and burnt houses to the ground.
Timid eyes would look out over the sea when favourable winds encouraged a surprise attack from the sea. A mild spring breeze could put bloodthirsty warriors ashore intending to go berserk.
But the Vikings were also brave farmers, merchants and town planners. The Irish capital Dublin was founded by Scandinavian settlers. Therefore today's Irish and Scandinavians have a common past.
The Vikings set the stage for both Denmark and Ireland to consider themselves seafaring nations down the centuries - and still do today.
The Sea Stallion from Glendalough is a reconstruction of the 30-meter-long warship exhibited in the Viking Ship Museum. Representing the pinnacle of Viking technology, she is one of the ocean-going longships whose praise is sung in sagas and skaldic verse. The original vessel was built by Vikings in Dublin and ended her days in the late 11th century when she was scuttled to block Roskilde Fjord.
The overall objective of the project is cultural historical, and expedition findings will be published scientifically and communicated to the general public via exhibitions, filmed documentaries, books, etc
Today's Sea Stallion is manned in turn by some 120 volunteers and the Viking Ship Museum staff. The project will also cast new light on the organisation necessary for the crew to function satisfactorily, both aboard the vessel and on land. In addition, the expedition will be an interesting social experiment – how will 70 present-day individuals react to being confined to an open-decked ship, with little room for private life or home comforts, on the open seas, where anything can happen. The voyage will thus provide new insights into the hearts, minds and spirits of the Vikings – while teaching us a thing or two about ourselves.
by Lars Normann
12:02 AM Sun 27 Jul 2008 GMT
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