Getting up at 6am on board of a seafaring ship and jumping into icy-cold ocean water isn’t everyone’s idea of fun, but for 16-year-old Nina Menegatti Zink, it was a thrill like no other.

Early in January the Fiordland College Year 13 student joined 40 other teenagers and 13 crew members aboard the Spirit of New Zealand for a voyage of their lifetime that took them from Picton to Christchurch’s port of Lyttleton over 10 days. 

Nina’s trip was sponsored by the Pinnacle Programme, a Hyundai NZ backed scholarship that offers guidance, mentoring and unforgettable adventures to 15-18 year olds who are identified as having the potential to be the country's next generation of leaders.

The Spirit of New Zealand is a 37.5m three-masted Barquentine ship. The ship can carry up to 40 passengers and 16 crew and spends up to 360 days at sea per year. Over 1000 young people are hosted annually.

Out of last year’s 145 applicants from around Aotearoa, just 12 were selected to participate in the prestigious 3-stage programme. 

The first stage starts with a 10-day voyage on the Spirit of New Zealand sailing boat.

This is followed by a 21-day Outward Bound course before concluding with a 4-day attendance at Kai Waho - a unique Māori, cultural and wilderness experience.

Nina describes her time on the Spirit of New Zealand as “absolutely incredible” adding in the same breath that she “would do it again in a heartbeat”.

The trainees are divided into duty groups of 10, for jobs such as cleaning, cooking, help with sailing the boat and keeping night watches. They sleep in 3-tier berths in two big cabins accommodating 21 persons each. During the trip they are not allowed to use their cellphones and are not able to contact anyone outside the ship. 

“We spent the first couple of days in Marlborough Sounds learning to sail. Every morning started with a swim, followed by breakfast and daily activities that included learning the knots, reading charts, putting up and taking down sails,” Nina remembers.

Although days were filled with work and learning, there was still plenty of time for playing games music, singing, dancing, and “a massive water fight”. 

Then there was the breathtaking scenery and the wildlife encounters. In Kaikoura they saw four whales and a large pod of dusky dolphins.

Nina’s favourite job on the boat was climbing up the masts to work the sails and getting bird’s eye view of the surroundings. It was dizzying, but she was safely harnessed.

“I was 25 metres up the rigging in 43 knot wind securing the ropes when I saw the dolphins. There were mothers with their cubs, hundreds of them. They were jumping up, out of the water. It was amazing,” Nina recalls.

From Kaikoura they went to Akaroa, a 121 nautical miles [224 km] trip in 9 hours of sailing.

“Day 9 was a Trainee Day. We took over running of the boat. After just 8 days at sea, we were able to tuck [manoeuvre] the boat without speaking to each other. That was incredible,” she said.

At the end of the trip Nina received the Amokura Award for her community spirit and consideration to others that contributed significantly to the success of the voyage. 

Asked about the challenges she experienced and how they affected her, she said that every day was a challenge.

“Being on a ship for 10 days with 53 other strangers and no connection to the wider world really disconnects you from everything but the Spirit. Learning to live together like that takes a lot of patience, compassion, teamwork, communication, honesty, and aroha. You essentially have to build a family from the ground up, getting to know each other, learning to open up about emotions and thoughts, learning to support each other through all those scary moments, and facing fears together.” 

“But after all that, I think the hardest part is coming home. Because 10 days changed me more than I could ever imagine. The Spirit gave me so much more confidence about myself, and resilience, but at the same time, I'm more in tune with people’s emotions, and I notice things differently. I feel like I have a much greater awareness of what's around me, and how people feel, it's like I'm more sensitive to it, but at the same time stronger and more resilient to face my own challenges,” Nina concluded.

Coming into Lyttelton Harbour on the last day of the journey and saying goodbye to everyone was an emotional experience.

Nina (centre) with her parents Christoph Zink and Alessandra Menegatti. Photo: Supplied

Many tears were shed. But this was followed by tears of joy when greeting their family members waiting at the Lyttleton Marina.

With this adventure behind her, Nina is now looking forward to her final year at school and two more challenging experiences under the Pinnacle Programme.