The Crew

Scotty

Whale watching from the rigging.

First mate Lance, bartender Stevie, and Scotty the deckhand.

Captain Lindsay (no shirt) and his crew.

All gathered for a smoke at the stern and the helm. Timmy the cook is on the right.

Scotty braids a Turks Head around you know who.

The whole crew dons their uniforms for the docking. The volunteer is on the right.

The crew of the Solway Lass were a group of excellent young men. The oldest was the captain, Lindsay, who is in his early 30's. He has taken a number of of sailing courses that allow him to sail a wide variety of ships both in Australia and internationally. He is well traveled and has led a very interesting life as kind of an international vagabond. The first mate was Lance, who was a very personable man in his late twenties. He is well tattooed, as a sailor should be and has recently qualified with captains papers and is hoping for his own ship. The deck hand was Scotty, sort of a jack of all trades. Alex was in his early twenties and served as the bartender and helper and then there was the cook, Timmy who was 21 and from France. They also had a female volunteer who helped where needed but mainly in the galley helping the cook and washing up.

They worked very well together and obviously enjoyed their jobs. They were very personable and helpful. They enjoyed talking and interacting with all the passengers. All of them took turns shuttling us off the ship to the beaches. Lindsay gave us an hour long lecture on the history of the ship and Lance gave us another one about the Whitsunday Islands and what we could expect on the ship for the next few days. Lance and Scotty make the Turks Head braid for people's ankles or wrists. The money they make goes towards providing a little extra slush fund for the crew.

I admired them and their lifestyle. They reminded me very much of the guys from the African safari trip.