The Galapagos of Ecuador, Pitcairn and Tahiti--for many students on the Hill, these far away islands conjure up images of the exotic and the unknown. However, they represent only a mere fraction of the locations where Brad Woodworth '08 is stopping when he sets sail for a voyage around the world on May 8.

What inspired this economics and mathematics double major to spend his next year on the high seas? Woodworth attributes his decision to a bad job market and a love of sailing. "We are victims of an ever-changing reality," he says. "The corporate world was terrible....Don't ever graduate."
Woodworth, who has been working on ships since he was 15, was excited to hear about the opportunity to sail around the world. He joins a group of approximately 48 crewmembers--36 trainees and 12 professional sailors--aboard the sail training ship, the Barque Picton Castle.
The Picton Castle, which was originally constructed in 1928 as a motorized fishing trawler, has been traversing the globe for decades. Woodworth's trip marks the ship's fifth voyage around the world.
"Up to 36 people from all walks of life will be accepted to join this tall ship for this challenging once in a lifetime opportunity--truly the ultimate voyage," Daniel D. Moreland, the captain of the Picton Castle, wrote on the ship's website. "These crew will dedicate themselves to seafaring under square-sail and to learning all they can from the ship, the ocean, newfound friends on far flung islands, each other and themselves. This voyage will take the ship and her crew over 30,000 blue-water, deep-sea miles circling the globe in fair winds and foul, pleasant trade-winds, calms and squalls."
Woodworth already has significant knowledge of sailing. In between his studies at the College, he spent much of his free time, and especially his summers, working on a ship. Prior to the Picton Castle, he spent most of his time aboard the Shenandoah, which is based in Vineyard Haven, Mass. Though he started there as a dishwasher, he eventually trained to become a first mate.
Despite his previous experience, journeying aboard the Picton Castle is Woodworth's first long voyage. Thus, he is joining the crew as one of their trainees. "I've never done anything even comparable to this," he acknowledged in a press release.
The Picton Castle is currently at dock in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, which Woodworth calls, "one of the best ports for traditional sailing." The crew has spent the past week getting to know each other and preparing the vessel.
In addition to making sure that the ship is in top shape, the crew members are gathering their own necessary supplies.
"I'm getting a year's supply of everything--toothpaste, sunblock, rechargeable batteries and six or seven months worth of books," Woodworth said in a press release. "If you had to wear this pair or that pair of pants for a whole year, which would you pick? That's what I'm asking anyone who's with me when I'm packing."
Indeed, the extensive traveling is likely to take a toll on the crew both mentally and physically. "The new crew members' work clothes are far too clean," Maggie Ostler, the voyage coordinator, wrote on the ship's website. "But that will change quickly as we get into the routine of daily life aboard."
The Picton Castle's tentative itinerary divides the voyage into four segments. The first leg of the trip includes docking in Panama, the Galapagos Islands, Pitcairn Island and Tahiti. Woodworth points out that the first stop is not until Panama. This prevents members of the crew from abandoning ship before they even leave the United States. He emphasizes that traveling through the Atlantic is often where people are the most tired, cold and seasick, but once they enter a more tropical climate they become more enthusiastic.
The second leg of the voyage includes stops in Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu and Indonesia. Continuing through the Indian Ocean, Reunion and Cape Town, South Africa are both anticipated destinations as part of leg three. The yearlong expedition culminates in a return to Lunenburg with potential stops in Namibia, St. Helena and Bermuda along the way.
Of course there are a number of factors, especially weather and strong winds, which could result in changes to the itinerary. But for now, this is their estimated course of travel.
Though the opportunity to see all parts of the world is appealing to Woodworth, he emphasizes that, for him, "this is not a travel experience" and "at least two-thirds of the time is spent at sea."
Moreover, Woodworth hopes to gain new skills as a sailor, a navigator and a member of a crew. In fact, the overall purpose of the voyage is to "learn the skills of a seafarer, develop a stronger sense of [one's] self and forge relationships with [one's] shipmates that will last a lifetime," according to the ship's website.
In addition to being a training ship, the Picton Castle is also carrying supplies to countries along the way. Pitcairn Island, the famous site of the mutiny on the Bounty with a population of approximately 48 permanent residents, is receiving cement and lawnmowers among other goods. For some of the more impoverished places they visit, the ship is loaded with donations as well.
"Because we go to all these places in third world countries, we try and deliver school books and school supplies to the places we visit," Woodworth said in a press release.
Woodworth also hopes to buy tradeable commodities along the way that he will exchange in return for other goods throughout the voyage.
Follow Woodworth's journey at picton-castle.com, which has up-to-date information on the location of the Picton Castle as well as log entries from the crew!