Wow, what an adventure for our team of 10 ... Our 5 day trophy voyage was one full of opportunity, challenge, new friendships and camaraderie. Our voyage was alongside girls from Rangi Ruru, Orewa College and Whangarei Girls High School where we all worked together and learnt and experienced all things sailing.

Our early morning sea swims were a favourite for us all, as well as climbing the mast, steering the boat, night watch and all of the challenges that were presented to us. The raft race was a standout highlight and with some fabulous SMC teamwork in the raft, it saw the girls finish strong and convincingly claim first place, ahead of their rivals Rangi. Another was a successful egg zipline adventure. Lots of fun, laughter and creativity was had during this challenge and ‘Bob’ (our egg) safely ziplined from the top of the mast to the deck - no cracks!!! It was super impressive!!

Our crew onboard the Spirit were fabulous and taught us all so much during our voyage which we can apply in our day to day lives. So many practical and life skills that will benefit us in so many ways. The food was outstanding and the weather was amazing, however, we did experience some choppy sea conditions which was at first exciting but after a time much less exciting and tested many of us and our stomachs.

The magic of the Spirit of Adventure rubbed off on all of us, we packed in so much in such a short time on the boat, we made some lifelong friends and have many special memories to reflect back on and stories to share. It is absolutely a time we will not forget and an opportunity that we all took with both hands and gained so much from.

The girls were fabulous ambassadors for SMC on this super amazing experience and can be super proud of all that they achieved while at sea.

Ms Hardy ⚓🛥⚓

#gratefulfortheopportunity #empoweringgirlsonthesea

I loved the spirit of adventure!! It was such a cool opportunity and an awesome once in a lifetime experience! I enjoyed the challenge of rafting and competing against the other schools (especially Rangi) in all of the games and challenges we were given to complete throughout the 5 days. It was so cool to be able to meet and create friendships with people from other schools, even from the North Island. My highlight of the trip would have had to be swimming in the ocean on one hot afternoon!! This was really fun as we could finally use the rope swing and jump off the very front of the boat. The whole experience was really enjoyable for me and I would definitely recommend this to anyone else considering the opportunity!
Bree O’Malley

Spirit was a great experience, I loved all the challenges that being on a boat in the middle of the ocean brought. The clarity of mind throughout those five days with no outside influences was amazing and it was so easy to focus and enjoy the task at hand. Being clipped to the bowsprit in the rough seas was exhilarating and a highlight for me, although I felt a wee bit queasy at first. I loved it so much I’m booked for a 10 day voyage in April next year and encourage everyone to go as it’s so wildly different to everyday life.
Lucy Sawyer

Everyone says that the Spirit of Adventure is a once in a lifetime chance and it is true! I feel so extremely lucky to get to experience this amazing adventure. Everyone on the boat was so welcoming when you first got on and you felt right at home. There are so many amazing opportunities and experiences, climbing up the mast and seeing the beautiful country we live in would be one of my favourites or the rope swing. Of course, I was very sceptical about it at first but I was blown away at how much it was enjoyable. I feel so incredibly lucky to be chosen for such an awesome event and I will be forever grateful for all the memories I made.
Petra Lewis

I loved being on the Spirt of Adventure it was truly an awesome experience. My favourite part was definitely getting to jump off the boat in the morning and watch the sunrise and also the rafting. Everyone was super nice and welcoming and made you feel at home. You got so many opportunities on the boat from setting the sails to helping out with dinner. It was an awesome experience and I recommend everyone signs up to do it you will make so many memories and new friends.
Lucy Paterson