Shortly before the Gorch Fock sailed into its first foreign harbour after its long time in the shipyard, the commander of the sail training ship, Captain Nils Brandt, contacted the editor-in-chief of MarineForum with good news. He reports that this first training phase has been very successful.
A brief look back
After the stresses and strains of the constantly lengthening and rather unfavourably accompanied repair period, the crew mastered their first real sea voyage with great motivation, joy and enthusiasm. "We were able to cover a thousand miles under sail" and gain confidence and routine in handling the ship and rigging. The decisive basis for the good start was obviously the training and instruction sessions carried out on the training ship "Alexander von Humboldt II". In any case, "the first jibes and buoy manoeuvres under sail went smoothly and, in addition to the training, the crew looked after and maintained "their" ship with dedication," said the commander in his report.
It is running again
"The sailing characteristics are excellent, the boat is fast and the sea behaviour - and we experienced more than enough of that - is very pleasant. All in all, it was a successful start that finally brought us back to our normality when we set sail for the first time, exactly 6 years later to the day." A more convincing judgement, characterised by pride in the ship and crew, is hard to hear from a commander.
Run-in with "Sagres"
Today, on Friday 3 December, the Gorch Fock into the harbour of Lisbon. To this end, the Portuguese Navy has mobilised its sail training ship "Sagres", one of the sister ships of the first Gorch Fock and put into service before the Second World War as the "Albert Leo Schlageter", for escort. Both ships will then moor together at the pier in the harbour. "A great gesture by the Portuguese navy!" says a delighted Captain Nils Brandt.
Next projects
On the next cruise, which Gorch Fock towards Tenerife, the sailing training is to be further intensified so that three days before Christmas, on 21 December 2021, the commander can report "ready to train the cadets" to the commander of the Mürwik Naval School. This marks the start of the training phase for the officer cadets, who will be flown to the Canary Island, move into their quarters on board on deck and begin their pre-sailing training on the pier.
The MarineForum wishes the ship, the crew and her commander luck, success and a safe return to home waters for the transfer there, the Christmas holidays including the turn of the year and the subsequent training phase in the coming year.
English 
German
I have been following the voyage of our GORCH FOCK from the very beginning via vesselfinder.com and would not be surprised if her crew were to meet up in the near future with that of the Norwegian sail training ship CHRISTIAN RADICH, which is sailing a few miles off the north-west African coast after a stay in Cadiz. For me, that would be a memorable meeting that would also deserve to be honoured in the media.
We wish you all on the GORCH FOCK (as well as our mates on the CHRISTIAN RADICH) a good and successful voyage, always a hand's breadth of water under the keel and stay healthy!
I am a mountain infantryman (Senior)vorm. I have been a fan of the GF for a long time. I follow your training and wish you a safe return home.
Hello together
I deeply envy the crew and the officer candidates with respect for their sailing event and adventure.
May what is planned continue to succeed and may the commander continue to have a happy hand in carrying out his mission.
with Frisian maritime
Greetings