Sailing Together Can Change Everything For These Aberdeen Teenagers
Young people return from the Tall Ships Races with fresh skills and new friendships.
One of the most meaningful things to come out of Aberdeen’s Tall Ships experience so far has been the stories from the city’s young people. Dozens of them, aged 15 to 25, have now sailed from ports across Europe as part of the international crew exchanges at the heart of the Tall Ships Races. For many, it’s their first time leaving home, first time sailing, and first real taste of life at sea. These are shared with new friends, unfamiliar routines, and some unforgettable views.
What’s striking isn’t just how much they’ve learned, but how naturally they’ve taken to it. Whether it’s climbing the rigging in strong wind or navigating night shifts on deck, Aberdeen’s sail trainees have thrown themselves into the challenge. In the process, they’ve found confidence, resilience and a real sense of connection. You can hear it in how they speak about their crews. The spectacle may draw the crowds, but it’s the personal moments that leave the biggest mark.
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Join Open Road for a raft of Festival of the Sea events, including The Sea Salt Shore, an evening of sea songs, shanties and storytelling from Joss Camerin, steeped in coastal tradition.
There’s also plenty for families, including a rockpooling morning at Aberdeen beach with the Countryside Ranger and magical maritime tales from storyteller Andy Cannon.
Young sailors reflect on life offshore
For 17-year-old Rebecca Hodgkins, life on the Wylde Swan meant late-night movies on deck, high winds and climbing the rigging just to watch the sails fill. Back home in Peterculter, she said: “It went past so quick. I’m so sad it’s over, so treasure every minute you have.”
Rebecca signed up last autumn, met the other trainees in April, and by July was out on the North Sea. “There are so many high highs – some lows, but not very many,” she said. “One of the moments I really enjoyed was climbing the rigging. It was so cool to climb to the very top then you get to see the ship sail along. It was brilliant.”
Isla Kennedy, 15, from the city centre, recalled sitting out in the bow netting with no land in sight. “It was amazing and unlike anything I had ever done before, as I had never sailed before. It felt very special to be part of something which is in our home town,” she said.
Lessons beyond sailing
“I really liked watching a movie on the sail at night, there was a nice sunset, the water was completely still so we weren’t moving,” Isla added. “It was just so peaceful. You couldn’t see land, just the sea.”
“This has taught me that you have to be reliable. People are relying on you, so you have to get up, you have to be there. It has made me take responsibility for myself.”
Harris Carnie, 15, from Inverurie, said: “Be sociable and make lots of friends because everyone on the boat has been so good. Make the best of it. One of my highlights was just being with everyone on the ship. Last night we just all singing and dancing.”
Before the sails go up
As one group returned home, another prepared to depart. Seventeen-year-old Archie Sweetnam from Stonehaven said: “My Dad died this time two years ago and I know he would really have encouraged me to do this. I’m sort of doing it in his memory, but also for me! I’m looking forward to getting to know my crewmates, I’m a bit worried about waking up in time for the watches, but I know it’s all going to be an incredible experience. I’m excited to get sailing!”
He’ll be sailing on the Eendracht alongside Hazera Hamid, 15, also from Stonehaven. “String group at school was cancelled the day Hollie came to talk about the Tall Ships Races, so I went along with Archie. We turned to each other when she finished and said, ‘Let’s do it!’”
Hazera added: “I’m looking forward to making new friends and singing karaoke in the middle of the North Sea – I’m bringing my mini machine on board! I’ve also brought henna with me and I’ll be giving my crewmates henna tattoos. I’m a bit worried about throwing up – one of the other trainees told me if someone gets seasick, everyone gets sick!”
New faces and shared stories
Maddie Sharpe, 15, from Huntly, will be on the Alba Explorer. “I’m feeling nervous, happy and excited for all new experiences I’m about to have. I found out about the opportunity when Hollie came to talk to our youth club. I’ve never sailed before but the trainee meet-ups have built my confidence, it’s been great to meet the people that I’m sailing with. I’m looking forward to staying up late, seeing sealife and swimming – I love to swim! Most of all I can’t wait to get to Norway and see the stars in the night sky.”
A community at sea
The heart of the Tall Ships Races isn’t the vessels or even the ports they visit. It’s the young people who crew them. The experience is designed to support personal development and international friendships through the practice of sailing.
Hollie Weatherhead, who has worked with Aberdeen’s trainees since January, said: “The Tall Ships Races only exist for the purpose of teaching young people how to sail, to promote international friendship and it is all about building life skills for people aged between 15 and 25 years old.
“I have known these trainees from Aberdeen since January and the growth I have seen has been miraculous. There has been fabulous feedback and some of them want to go again.
“There are spaces on one of the ships going to Kristiansand, so a few young people have signed up for that leg, so we have people coming off one boat and on to another.”
What stays with them
It’s not the sailing alone they’ll remember, but the mix of challenge and joy that came with it. A film playing on the sails at sunset. Singing on deck. Sitting in the rigging with the sea stretched in every direction. Whatever they expected, this was something else.
There’s something powerful about seeing Aberdeen’s young people thrive in an unfamiliar environment, forming connections that cross language and geography. The Tall Ships Races give space to grow, to reflect, and to come home changed. It’s not just about learning how to sail, but learning who you are when the distractions fall away.
Plenty of Aberdonians still talk about their experiences during the 1991 and 1997 Tall Ships visits. Some made lifelong friends; others discovered a new sense of direction. What we’re seeing now is that same spirit returning. These trainees are part of that same story, and it matters that it’s continuing.
