Capetonians with an eye for odd details may have noticed a sailing ship snugged up against A-Berth in the Duncan Dock these past few weeks.
That ship is the three-masted barque Picton Castle, which has recently tied-up in Cape Town to revictual before heading into the South Atlantic on the last major ocean crossing of her epic round-the-world voyage.
In 2015 - the last time the Picton Castle called at Cape Town - I signed on as a member of her crew for a voyage up the coast to Luderitz. It was an eye-opener.
Here are five reasons why running away to sea on a working tall ship may be the best thing you'll ever do.
1. IT'S THE ULTIMATE WORKING HOLIDAY
This is not a pleasure cruise. Life on a sailing ship means hard work at all hours of the day or night. Sure, there are many quiet moments when the vessel is borne along by the magic of the wind and you are lulled by the sound of the water burbling along the hull.
At other times - often in the middle of the night - you'll hear the call "All Hands!" which means shaking off your slumber to help your shipmates take in sail in a squall, or bring the yards around after a shift in the wind.
4. YOU WILL JOIN A NOBLE BAND
People have been putting to sea ever since they discovered wood and papyrus could float. The Phoenicians were sailing around Africa centuries before Vasco de Gama was a gleam in his father's eye. Even in the 21st century, a sailing ship holds fast to methods and traditions learnt the hard way by seafarers over thousands of years. You are now part of that tradition. Epic, isn't it?
2. YOU'LL LEARN THE TRUE MEANING OF CAMARADERIE
The sea is a harsh mistress and a ship is only as safe as her master and the crew who sail in her. You and your shipmates rely utterly on each other to keep you, them and your ship safe. This is the kind of teamwork of which expensive corporate team-building programmes can only dream.
3. YOU'LL FIND OUT WHO YOU REALLY ARE
If you have trouble with authority - or at least taking instructions from people more salty and seawise than yourself - perhaps stay ashore. Ships are not democracies, nor are they places to work out your anger issues. I am not used to being ordered about by millennials. I had to go to sea to unscrew my head and learn a bit of humility.
5. YOU WILL UNDERSTAND THE MEANING OF SMALLNESS
Standing lookout in the middle of the night, or even gazing across the Atlantic on a sunny day, you will grasp how big the oceans are, how small your ship is and what a tiny place you occupy in the universe. This is a good thing, for you will realise how beautiful and yet fragile our planet is and you'll be gripped with the urgency to protect it.
HOW TO SIGN UP TO CREW THE PICTON CASTLE
The Picton Castle is is due back in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia - her home port - in May, after which she will sail to the Great Lakes to take part in the Tall Ships Challenge. The ship will call at 10 different port towns and cities in the US and Canada on the coasts of Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, Lake Huron, Lake Michigan and the St Lawrence River.
The crew are mostly paying volunteers led by a small complement of professionals.
Volunteer crew must be 18 or older and willing to muck in with their shipmates - standing watch, working aloft, scrubbing decks, taking turns at the helm and otherwise getting involved in the countless tasks of taking a ship safely to sea. See picton-castle.com for details.
• For a unique look into the daily life aboard the ship, listen to Paul Ash's free podcast 'A voyage of self-discovery' here.
MORE WAYS TO RUN AWAY TO SEA
THE BARK EUROPA
The Europa - a three-master dating from 1911 - sails to places like Antarctica and the islands of the South Atlantic. She has 14 professional crew and up to 48 "voyage crew" - fare-paying passengers who sleep in two-, four- and six-berth, en-suite cabins.
Voyages this year range from 69 days from Cape Town to Rouen, France (from €4,890 or about R77,000 per person), to eight days from Scheveningen, Netherlands, to Aalborg, Denmark (from €815/R12,800).
See barkeuropa.com
THE OOSTERSCHELDE
The last of a fleet of gorgeous Dutch topsail schooners, the 50m-long Oosterschelde mostly sails in Europe but is currently exploring the Cape Verde archipelago. She carries seven professional crew and 24 guests, who can help run the vessel. Sleep is in two- and four-berth cabins.
This year's voyages include 28 days from Sal, Cape Verde, to Rotterdam, Netherlands (from €1,950pp), and five days from Bergen, Norway, to Hamburg, Germany (€550pp).
See oosterschelde.nl
CLASSIC YACHTS, CUTTERS AND SAILING TRAWLERS
For hands-on sailing experiences on smaller classic vessels, look no further than Classic Sailing, which offers trips all over the world.
Cruise up the Devon coast in a former sailing trawler or spend Easter on a restored pilot cutter off Cornwall. Day trips on a Brixham trawler start at £100 (R1,800), while a nine-night voyage from Brittany to the Scilly Isles starts at £740pp (R13,500).
See classic-sailing.co.uk...