Diary of a Deckhand

Turning the key in the wheelhouse silenced the engine, a noise that has been a pivotal part of my life for the past few months. As everything comes to a halt, I cannot help but feel sad that somehow one chapter of my life has just come to an end. But by no means is this the end of the story. It simply means another chapter needs to be written.

I never realised the affinity you seem to gain for your boat. The Valkyrie seemed such a huge and ungainly thing when we first took her out of Fraserburgh, but soon enough i learned to love her size, her lines and her sea keeping. Soon she had personality all of her own, no longer a collection of wood and steel, she seemed to blossom into her own character.

The beauty of the Orkney islands is never lost on me, some days the islands seem to shine with a light of their own. As the sun sets over the hills of Hoy, the light reflecting on the calm waters of Scapa Flow, i somehow know i can never be happy anywhere else.

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