The Liechtenstein Princely Navy conducted the third edition of its infamous boot camp on 21 February 2009 with eleven Sailors in attendance. The brain child of LTCMDR Streun, Boot Camp 2009 promised to be longer and harder than any previous Navy mission – thus only befitting the current B Cup Champions and A Cup Contenders.

Crews were called for duty on a cold, dark and damp Saturday morning at 0615hrs at Fenwick’s Pier in Wanchai, a very fitting location given that it is the landing point for visiting Sailors of the US Navy. Given the early hour, the Liechtenstein Princely Navy avoided any confrontation with its US counterparts, who were either still asleep or somewhere deep down in Wanchai.

Assembling on the pier was a clever deception, as crews were hoping for an easy boat ride to start off with. However, LTCMDR Streun pointed South instead, leading the platoon across Wanchai, through Lockhart and Luard Road (to encouragements of “Go, Navy, Go!” by some late stragglers) and steeply up Wanchai Gap Road towards Bowen Road. Thus, the Navy was in for a rude awakening. From Bowen Road we headed east, our run occasionally interspersed with other exercise. More steps were to follow as we slowly left civilization behind and by the time the sun was up we had already gained considerable altitude.

At 0730hrs LTCMDR Streun announced that Boot Camp 2009 would be more than a physical exercise, introducing a new mental challenge: Finishing a game of Sudoku in five minutes with each missing or wrong number costing one push-up! Not being very good at counting other than ten paddle strokes at a time, this mental challenge turned into more physical pain for most Sailors!

Moving on – more steps and further into the wild – we reached another obstacle: a labyrinth of narrow tunnels, presumably from World War II. It now became clear why the required gear list included a flashlight. One by one the Navy squeezed into this network of catacombs, infested by mean-sized creepy-crawlies that scared the living daylight out of a screaming Able Seaman Frauenfelder!

Back in the real daylight, we moved into the vastness of Tai Tam Country Park where crews had to run individually through the bush, following a trail of pink ribbons. Before long we had of course lost half a platoon of colorblind Sailors while the rest was ambushed by Sailorette Hiko disguised as a purple devil. Once we had reunited with the missing crew, each Sailor was challenged to thread a needle. Why such a skill would be required to power a heavy wooden boat down a straight race course remains a mystery.

More bushwalking, through mud and streams, with shoes finally soaked in water, followed before troops were forced to eat lemons, presumably to increase the Vitamin C intake. Further on – after having lost and recovered Sailor Martin – more push-ups were on the agenda, but with a twist. Ten push-ups were followed by a head-on dive into a box of flour to recover a piece of chocolate. One can only assume that this strange form of Chemical warfare exercise was designed for the remote possibility that the Navy should ever find itself in complete whiteout conditions in the search for nourishment.

It was 1015hrs and the Navy had been on its feet for four hours but was nowhere near the end of the mission. A run across the dry, muddy and surreal Martian landscape towards Tai Tam reservoir led us further into no-man’s land. By 1100hrs we reached a hidden waterfall. LTCMDR Streun wanted to climb the side of the waterfall, which would likely have resulted in a severe decimation of troops. The Admiral had to thus intervene for the good of the long-term survival of the Navy and decided on a refreshing bath instead.

Refreshed – and soaking wet – boot camp continued with more muscle- and mind-numbing running along the trails of Tai Tam Country Park, with relatively little contact with the outside world. Occasionally we did come across some Saturday morning hikers who were normally shocked and awed by the sight of our wet, muddy, sweating appearance out of nowhere.

By noon time – almost six hours into the mission – we reached another crossroads at the bottom of the stairs leading to the fearsome Twins peak. The target was clear and the determination undiminished as we plodded an endless amount of stairs to the top. New to the Navy and to the rigors of boot camp, Apprentice Sailor Ivan was cramping and suffering under the strain of the mission, but assisted by the rest of the crew soldiered on.

Reaching the summit of the first of the Twins we naturally assumed further progress towards the second peak. But that’s not what LTCMDR Streun had in mind. Instead he chose a “trail” straight down the side of the mountain. As he put it: “Boot Camp – no pain, no gain!” And painful it was, with thorny bushes scratching sore legs, arms and hands. Progress was slow and “f***ing stupid” according to some Sailors, who were slowly but surely starting to crack from the physical fatigue and mental toll the mission had taken on them.

More drudgery followed as we reached the river bed which would eventually lead us out of this jungle. Climbing down rocks and small gorges, over ponds and down slippery slopes for another hour finally led us back to civilization near The Manhattan in Stanley. Before we reached the shore, we found ourselves in an ambush by a group of camouflaged kids with pellet guns who took SOF James hostage. After almost eight hours of grueling training and over 20kms over, under and through some of the harshest terrain, this could not possibly be the end!

And it wasn’t. As we crawled out of the last sewage tunnel and finally reached the seashore, we spotted LT Charlie with a skeleton crew on a dragon boat offshore! Unable to land on this rocky beach, we had to swim out to board the ship and eventually found ourselves in familiar surroundings: On a dragon boat among a drenched, dirty and smelly crew. A final exercise of digging “LGT NAVY” into the sand at the next beach was followed by half an hour paddle training back to shore – and fuel! – at Stanley Main Beach.

Congratulations to all Sailors who have completed Boot Camp 2009, a.k.a. The Apocalypse. Special thanks to LTCMDR Streun for organizing a thoroughly mindless yet enjoyable mission and LT Charlie and crew for the pick-up by Dragon Boat which ensured the operation ended on a high! It all bodes well for a tough season of paddling ahead!