Page 64 - KRH Regimental Journal 2022

62 The Regimental Journal of The King’s Royal Hussars
Whilst the rest of the Regiment was conducting a concep- tual study week, a lucky few were preparing to explore the Danish coast as the Vikings of old did before. We were fortunate enoughtohavebeengiventheDanishlegontheTri-servicesailing expedition around the Baltic Sea. A last-minute skipper replace- ment calmed a few nerves and before they knew it, they landed in Hamburg and made their way to Kiel-Laboe harbour to board their vessel. Two days of training and familiarisation were deemed sufficient for the Hussars to venture out into the Kattegat sea. The plan was to reach Copenhagen within the week, in our naivety we believed this was going to be a walk in the park. Our first stop in Denmark was Sonderberg. We found a perfect parking spot, just outside a row of bars, first rounds were in before dinner, this was exactly what the lads had hoped for when they signed up. The next morning the wind was not in our favour, in fact it was nowhere to be found. We were going to have to make our way from Sonderberg up to Bogense using the engine, with the lads fast becoming sail- ing purists they were not happy. Trooper Comer decided to use the rather unexciting leg to catch up on some sleep he had missed the night before, a shame as he missed out on some beautiful scenery.
We grew to appreciate the lack of wind as overnight a storm was brewing. We awoke to white caps everywhere at sea, this was going to be exciting. It was safe to say our skipper from the Army sailing centre was a little concerned about the crew’s ability, how- ever we persevered and made it to Hundested to seek refuge from the wind. One day turned into two, and the decision was made to remain in place one more day sacrificing our leg to Copenhagen. Not to worry, the lads explored the local area and found them- selves in the middle of a local fairground, finishing in a pub lock- in with Bjorn the pub landlord sampling some of Hundesteds local delicacies. The sun rose in the morning and that was our queue to leave, whilst we couldn’t sail to Copenhagen, we made it our aim to explore the city regardless. Lucky for us it was change over day and the second crew was on its way from Gatwick to
The race home
Copenhagen. Unfortunately, our hangovers were more sever than initially planned so the visit to Copenhagen was rather unevent- ful, one for a future bucket list.
The adventure resumed as the weather cleared, a quick map and google recce allowed us to formulate a new plan. Samso, an island famous for its early harvest of new potatoes, as well as being labelled as the worlds first renewable energy island was on the hitlist. The best way to describe it is the St. Ives of the Kattegat Sea. Once again due to the scenery, as well as the fact there was a festival on this island too, we convinced the Skipper to aban- don plans and stay there for another night. No plan survives first contact, we explained to him, and he was more than willing to agree when we realised, we were berthed right next to ‘the place to be’ on the island. We enjoyed our time on the island, fishing and exploring the local area, but all good things must come to an end. The weather began to pick up once more, however the wind was in our favour for the return leg, and we were up against the
Ex BALTIC EXPRESS
LCpl Ellmer posing for his new profile picture
The sort of door-to-door service expected in the KRH