Life on the open wave in a modern-day Viking Ship

The Sea Stallion......

Imagine a curved, snaking prow, slicing through the waves. Imagine a wooden ship, painstakingly built by craftsmen, open to the elements and at the mercy of the seas. Imagine a huge striped sail, and a bank of oars manned by strong, fit Scandinavians. Denmark, 987 AD?

Nope, Portsmouth harbour actually. Here at GTC we were absolutely delighted to be able to visit the Sea Stallion, or Havhingsten, an amazing recreation of a longship that was built in Dublin the 1040's, before eventually being scuttled in Roskilde, Denmark. The ship originally sailed from Roskilde, via Norway and the Orkneys to Ireland, and now is on its return journey with a crew drawn from ten nations, both male and female.

It is just amazing to be able to watch, day by day, the progress of the ship and crew on one of the best websites we've seen in a long time, so we thought it might be interesting to compare the rigours of travel from a millenia ago with the experiences we tend to have these days!

Louise Kaempe Henriksen, a 28 year old crew member from Denmark, has been kind enough to answer a few questions for us.

Where does your interest in the Vikings and sailing come from?

I was hired as a student help at the Viking Ship Museum in 2003. I had been sailing a little around Denmark as crew on moderns boats - but being able to sail traditional Norwegian, Farao and Danish boats at the museum, made me fall in love with wooden boats and single square sails. I already had an interest in Viking Age culture through my studies at University of Copenhagen and my thesis was about the use of Viking Age symbols in 1800 Danish Nationalism.

How hard was it to become a member of the crew?

For me no - at the time where I joined the crew there was big changes happening. The skipper on board had been replaced at the new one was trying to put together a crew for the Dublin voyage. To begin with I was a volunteer crew member like everyone else, but when becoming a curator i was given more responsiblity - especially in the midship, which is my section. I am now a part of the core group making decissions on how to organize sailing, crew and life on board.

The question you probably get asked the most, and what most people want to know is how do you use the toilet!?? And is it hard being such close proximity to so many men without any privacy?

The toilet is a simple installation - a bucket with a toiletseat behind a canvas. When finished you empty the bucket over the side. The canvas is there to create an illusion of privacy - but is is not there. Everyone can see who's at the toilet and conversations continues. But it is no problem - you quickly get use to not having any privacy and no other alternative. Having all the men around is no problem at all - we do not really think in terms of men/women. We all have to go and it is something quite natural. Therefore there's no comments or stares.

What is your most useful item you have with you? And are you allowed much personal gear?

We are allowed to bring two drybags - approx 60 - 80 litres. In there is all you need; sleeping bag, sleeping mat, waterproof gear, sea boots, sandals, woollen underwear, socks and hat, books, suntan lotion, music, mobile phone, etc. It is all about bringing enough warm clothes and pack that so it doesn't take up to much space. My favorite thing which has also proved to be most useful is a special pair of trousers. They are what the travelling carpenters from Germany called 'naver' use. Black cotton so thick, it looks like leather. They keep me warm, they are water resistent and you simply can't ruin them. Another great thing to bring is wet napkins - we cannot shower every day, so they come in handy and are used in the face and under the arms.

What has been the lowest point of your trip?

I haven't really had a lowest point - I don't become seasick and are ok with travelling under these conditions. I quickly adjust and find ways of washing clothes, getting a shower and sleep. When needed I try to get some alone time - being with at crew of 60 all the time can be though mentally, so when on land I sometimes find a quit little corner to read a book.I think the hardest thing on board is to keep varm at night, at after a few days of sailing and being cold you are out of energy. Sleeping and relaxing when on land therefore becomes really important.

What is the food like, and how is it cooked?

We have galley which consist of two wooden boxes - one with gas rings - and there's two cooks on board. We get hot porridge every morning and a hot meal - stew or soup - at night. Luch is typical Danish Rye bread with smoked sausages, canned fish and pate.I like to cook and somtimes volunteer to take over the pots for one night - so far I have cook and Thai curry, a Marrocan lamb stew and a Indian Dhal. The food is rich and with a lot of meat - hardy some would say, but we need that when sailing and being cold, wet and tired.We have boxes of goodies in each of the four sections containing the, coffee, peanuts, chocolate and bisquits - these are so the crew can always get a hot drink and some sugar. Do many of the crew suffer from seasickness, and do you have any tips to avoid it?? A few do - but not that offen. It has to do with it being an open boat where you can see the horizon and follow what is causing the movement. But when sailing from Wicklow, Ireland to Torquay, England more than half the crew was down with seasickness due to an opposite wind and current direction. That created massive swells and a very undsteady sailing.

We have nurse on board who takes care of the seasick. They get little patches to stick behind their ear with medicine, pills - but we also use ginger in the and acupuncture. How do you keep your spirits up when you are cold and wet and tired? We are great at looking after each other and taking care of people who are down. We tell jokes, sings - the humour on board can be quite bad.is is always good to make cold and wet crew members work - bilging the boat for example, so to get varm again. Do you play any games onboard (and if so, can we have the instructions!) We play a board game called Nefatavl - a viking version of chess. I do not have the instructions with me, but can send them once being back at the museum in august.

What is the memory you'll treasure most from the trip??

I think that this is once in a lifetime and the experiences with the crew on board and the sailing will always be a fond memory. You learn something about yourself - your tolerance, stamina, social skills and courage. What the 60 of us have to together few understand and that kind way of being together is very rewarding. Some of us are friends for life now, because we have been together in the extreme situations.


Photos courtesy of the Sea Stallion and Werner Karrasch, with thanks to Lars Normann and the Viking Ship Museum.