Circumnavigating the Globe Aboard the Picton Castle: A Square-Rigged Sail Training Odyssey

A circumnavigation is the stuff of dreams—the ultimate test for sailors. Even rarer and more romantic is completing a world voyage aboard a square-rigged vessel. For decades the double-topsail barque Picton Castle, led by visionary skipper Captain Daniel Moreland, has made that dream real for hundreds of people. Professional officers and enthusiastic trainees now prepare to sail on the ship’s next yearlong circumnavigation, a bluewater journey that blends hard seamanship, cultural encounters and unforgettable natural beauty.

The voyage follows a trade-wind route from Nova Scotia to Bermuda, then down into the Gulf of Mexico and through the western Caribbean to the Panama Canal. From there the itinerary typically includes the Galápagos, Pitcairn Island, and a string of South Pacific isles such as Mangareva and Vanuatu, where coral reefs and traditional island life still endure. The voyage continues through the tropical Pacific to the Far East and Bali, across the Indian Ocean to Madagascar, then around the Cape of Good Hope to Cape Town. From South Africa the ship crosses the Atlantic via Saint Helena and returns through the eastern Caribbean to Nova Scotia. Most of the sailing is in warm, trade-wind latitudes—a journey of flying fish, steady breezes and welcoming ports.

Moreland brings enormous experience to the helm. He has completed seven circumnavigations under square rig—six as captain of the Picton Castle and one earlier in his career as mate on the brigantine Romance. He describes the voyage as a singular, richly rewarding experience: a once-in-a-lifetime passage that can’t be replicated because every world trip is shaped by its people, weather and places visited.

Those who return from voyages aboard “the Castle,” as the ship is affectionately known, often come back tanned, fit and transformed. Crewmembers boast spectacular photographs, lasting friendships and new skills: caulking, painting, rigging, small-boat handling and sailmaking. Under sail training, trainees help make the vessel’s 23 sails by hand and learn to maintain every part of the ship that keeps everyone safe. Alongside practical skills, crewmembers develop emotional resilience and learn to prioritize the good of the ship over individual preferences—lessons that endure long after the voyage ends.

Sail training draws a broad spectrum of adventurers. Few aim for professional maritime careers; instead they are people seeking a life-changing experience. The trade-offs are real—space is limited, routines are demanding, and life at sea involves discomforts—but the rewards are powerful. Trainees describe moments of pure exhilaration: scrambling aloft to stow the main royal nearly 100 feet above deck, steady on the footrope with belly on the yard, the horizon curving in every direction beneath a sunset. Those moments accumulate into a deep, lifelong sense of accomplishment.

The “training” component means experienced crew instruct newcomers in practical shipboard tasks: coiling and stowing lines, striking sails, bracing sharp, helmsmanship in heavy following seas and routine maintenance. The “sail” component keeps sailors close to wind, weather and the rhythms of the ocean—tasks and rewards that are literal and immediate. A well-handled ship under sail offers satisfactions that are earned through teamwork and skill.

Moreland credits much of his seamanship to the last generation of Age of Sail commercial masters. Early in his career he sailed on the West Indian windjammer Maverick and spent four years on the brigantine Romance under Capt. Arthur Kimberly, a consummate old-school seaman who inspired young sailors with his skill and reverence for the sea. Later Moreland served as boatswain on the Danish full-rigged ship Danmark, which he calls “the Rolls-Royce of deepwater sail training” for its rigorous standards. Over decades he read the classics of sailing and gathered the experience that has made him a respected mentor. After decades at sea and accolades for his contributions to sail training, Moreland announced that the 2018–19 circumnavigation would be his final world voyage as captain.

My own relationship with Picton Castle spans more than two decades. I joined an early expedition when the ship was purchased in Norway—then a working trawler called Dolmar—and helped bring her to Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, for a comprehensive refit. What arrived as a rust-streaked tramp steamer left as a beautifully proportioned double-topsail barque. Since that transformation the ship has logged more than a quarter-million miles and earned fierce loyalty from her crews. Sailing her again, even for shorter passages, evokes a feeling of being transported through time: the work aloft and the smell of pine tar feel both elemental and timeless.

Veterans of world voyages often say the trip has four essential elements. First is the ship itself: careful maintenance and respect for the vessel ensure it will carry the crew safely. Second is the crew: the social compact of long voyages requires mutual respect, shared responsibility and an ability to give one another space in tight quarters. Third is passagemaking: long bluewater days develop a satisfying rhythm of watches, sail handling, lookout and simple routines that contrast sharply with the hurry of modern life. Fourth are the port calls—intense, enriching encounters ashore that make the voyage complete: passing through the Panama Canal, visiting remote communities on Pitcairn, dancing with islanders in Polynesia, hiking volcanic ridges, delivering supplies to isolated villages, or exploring Bali’s carved temples and Cape Town’s vibrant nightlife.

Moreland likes to recall that early on he was told more people had walked on the moon than had sailed around the world in a square-rigger like his. He and his crews have helped revive a fading tradition, preserving practical skills and a culture of seamanship that demand dedication. The ship attracts a remarkably diverse cross-section of humanity—young and old, experienced and inexperienced, people from North America, the Caribbean, Scandinavia, Tonga and beyond. What unites them is a hunger for adventure and the vision of themselves working with a knife on their hip and pine tar on their hands, steering for a distant horizon.

For those drawn to tall-ship sail training, Picton Castle offers more than travel: it delivers deep personal change, practical skills and memories that last a lifetime. The ship’s circumnavigations remain a rare chance to join a genuine square-rigged world voyage, to learn old-style seamanship in modern times, and to return home irrevocably altered by the sea.

This article originally appeared in the April 2018 issue.

To inquire about voyages, specific legs of the circumnavigation, or sail training opportunities, contact: picton-castle.com or email [email protected]. Postal inquiries: Barque Picton Castle, Box 1076, 135 Bluenose Drive, Lunenburg, NS, Canada B0J 2C0.