Sailing the North Sea and the English Channel

Date: 28.10.2026

As we left the mainland of Germany behind, entering the North Sea through the Elbe, we slowly began to realise, that life on board the Thor Heyerdahl would be very different from life at home. The wind, the waves and the constant movement of the ship quickly became part of our lives. During the first hours in the North Sea, we already got a pretty good taste of how life would be for the next six months. We set sails for the first time, fought through three-to-four-meter waves, experienced seasickness and learned a ton of new sailing vocabulary.

At the end of our first real day at sea, we berthed at the port of Helgoland, where we stayed for two nights to let a storm coming from our headed direction pass. After we had spent our first day ashore pretty early into our journey, we left the harbour of Helgoland again heading through the rest of the North Sea and the English Channel in one go.

One of the biggest challenges was getting used to the conditions at sea. The North Sea was rough, and the weather sometimes unpleasant. Standing on deck in the cold wind, especially during a night watch, can be exhausting. The up to five-meter waves not only made half of us students vomit but also the sailing crew fight against seasickness. But we quickly became one with the movements of the ship and learned how to act aboard to be able to move freely and not being thrown around. Nevertheless, there is something special about looking out across the dark sea with nothing but the horizon and the lights of other ships in the distance while having deep thoughts during the bow watches. These days, we also grew together into a family, especially doing tasks like cooking in the galley, cleaning the ship and of course during our watch duties.

Sailing through the English Channel was another unique experience. It is one of the busiest shipping routes in the world, with large container ships, ferries and other vessels crossing our path. Suddenly, navigation got a whole new role. We had our first lessons of Nautic theory and understood how important it is to keep track of our position, pay attention to other ships and work together as a team. At the end of the English Channel, we had best weather and saw the iconic rough coastline of northern France on our port side and the stunning English one on our starboard side. This already beautiful moment got even better, when suddenly a huge family of at least 15 dolphins appeared next to us jumping joyfully through the air.

But not everything was about work and responsibility. There were also many moments when we could simply enjoy being at sea. Whether it was watching the coastline disappear, relaxing on deck together, having our meals standing on deck with a chill atmosphere, feeling the wind fill the sails or laughing with the others during our free time, these were the moments that made the journey already very special.

Looking back, sailing the North Sea and the English Channel was an important first step into our adventure with many new impressions, learnings and moments worth remembering for life.