A breeze rustles through the foliage of the summer lime trees, with the broad expanse of the Schlei sparkling in between. An old shrimp cutter and two ribs bob in the small harbour below.
The calm is over
The peace and quiet is over when two youngsters ride down the driveway on scooters, followed by other girls and boys who throw their school bags in front of the clubhouse and slip into their wetsuits at lightning speed to get several Optimists out of the shed just as quickly. After a brief helmsman's briefing, the pupils help each other to slip the mini dinghies into the water. One by one, the Optis go out.
The scene is set in Louisenlund, a boarding school on the Schlei, where sailing is an integral part of the curriculum. And has been for over 75 years. A successful model that has long since been introduced at other boarding schools.
Sailing instructor Jan-Hauke Erichsen
In one of the ribs, sailing instructor Jan-Hauke Erichsen and three other students follow the optis onto the Schlei, because: "Not everyone is keen to sit at the tiller for as long as possible. And we can swap around on the water afterwards," says Erichsen.
The teacher of sport and economic policy is a former competitive sailor and was in charge of the German kiters at the 2024 Olympic sailing competition.
The reasons for ending up at a boarding school can be very different. Whether it's a stroke of fate in the family, parents with work commitments or the desire for the best possible education in an elite environment.
Compulsory subject sailing
The idyllic location of Louisenlund on the Schlei also impresses many parents and pupils with its compulsory sailing programme. In addition to academic teaching, basic nautical training is intended to promote holistic personal development and has been an integral part of the programme since the private boarding school was founded in 1949.
Closer, closer! 50 metres further and then the tack!", calls Erichsen firmly and calmly at the same time. After each lap in regatta mode, he calls the young sailors to the rib one by one to give a direct critique of their manoeuvres.
After a few laps of the course and a drop in the wind, the optis find themselves moored up on a bathing island. The children jump happily into the water in full kit - how nice school can be.
The Schleitaufe
All new Louisenlund pupils receive their official "Schleitaufe" after just two weeks. During this festive ceremony, a bucket of Schlei water is poured over their heads - regardless of whether they are pupils or teachers.
Eight Ilcas, four 29ers and a J70 are available for regatta training. The boarding school has scored a real coup with the appointment of Olympian Franziska Goltz as a sailing instructor. The long-standing squad sailor and DSV coach can draw on her wealth of experience, especially for the newly created Plus Sailing talent programme.
In addition, a Hanseat 69 and four youth sailing cutters with two-masted lugger rigs are normally moored in the harbour.
Learning teamwork
"As a former competitive athlete, I wasn't very keen on cutter sailing at first. But now I'm a real fan of it because I've realised what the community on a boat like this does to the students. There's no better way to learn teamwork," says Erichsen.
The cutters are regularly sailed on cruises through the Danish South Sea, but also on the naval cutter regattas during Kiel Week.
They are currently on a two-day tour of the Schlei. In the early evening, the small flotilla reaches the harbour of WSG Grödersby near Arnis. On board the boats are sailing novices, some of whom are still clumsily handling the equipment, but also old hands, such as Yu Kin Song (24), who has already left school but is always happy to return to sailing.
The community takes centre stage
Born in Hong Kong, he spent four years in Louisenlund and absorbed the German language just as much as sailing. "On the small regatta boats, I was always able to switch off perfectly from my lessons and forget everything around me. On the cutters you are less involved, but the socialising is all the better. Everyone helps everyone and everyone is equal."
In keeping with the motto "A boat in the harbour is a sad boat", the alumni are allowed to borrow the boats and take part in internal regattas.
While the rest of the students lay tarpaulins over the large trees to set up their sleeping areas underneath, the kitchen crew gathers at the barbecue area.
A research vessel as a gift
Cigarettes and alcohol are just as taboo on the cruise as they are at the private boarding school. However, this does not seem to dampen the mood, even if there are sometimes ways of creatively circumventing the house rules. Andreas Schweizer, who is in charge of sailing together with his wife Anna, has a story to tell: "Last night, a group rowed a cutter into the neighbouring harbour to load the bilge with beer. The hiding place under the floorboards was almost perfect. But even though the ingenuity was remarkable, we naturally had to collect the bottles."
The former shrimp cutter "Kurt Hahn" is a gift from the grandfather of one of the pupils and serves as a research vessel. Equipped with modern technology such as plankton nets, bottom grabs and underwater drones, it is unique in the German school landscape.
Experiential education in Germany
Kurt Hahn is regarded as the founder of experiential education in Germany and founded the Schloss Salem country school not far from Lake Constance back in 1919.
In contrast to Louisenlund, sailing at Salem Castle is not a compulsory programme. It takes place in working groups that focus on learning self-responsibility through experiential education.
In winter, there are work assignments in the boat shed in order to provide hands-on experience and sustainable learning success, as harbour master and sailing manager Sebastian Mücke explains: "Sailing for us goes back to Kurt Hahn's concept of service to others. In addition to our social services, there are the emergency services in the fire brigade or technical relief organisation and the nautical service, which includes sailing as well as water rescue, harbour operations and boat maintenance."
Sailing in Salem Castle
The navigators undertake to complete their service once a week and to obtain the inland waterway sports boat licence and the Lake Constance skipper's licence. In addition to Optis, Ilcas and Randmeer dinghies, there are also Flying Cruisers available, which can be sailed by five people but without a licence due to their sail area of just 11.99 square metres.
Sailing also has a long tradition at the Landheim Ammersee boarding school in Bavaria. Pupils who regularly take part in training sessions, regattas and boat maintenance and repair work over a two-year period are awarded a certificate.
"This certificate could be presented for a reduction in the apprenticeship period or simply as a reference for the application portfolio. We also list coaching sessions we have organised for younger colleagues," says boarding school director Reinhard Milz. "Taking responsibility pays off!"
Highlights on the Ammersee include participation in the famous 24-hour regatta, as well as tours in Croatia and the annual cruise from Hamburg to Helgoland in co-operation with the Eichler yacht school.
The guilds on Spiekeroog
The Hermann Lietz School on Spiekeroog offers a unique experience of nature. In the middle of the Wadden Sea UNESCO World Heritage Site, the boarding school is located away from the village on the car-free North Sea island. It is therefore only natural that sailing and its tidal challenges play an important role.
In addition to open dinghies for basic training, the school boats also include typical sailing boats such as the eleven metre long flat-bottomed boat "Tuitje" and two old dinghy cruisers. One of these is the approximately 65-year-old "Albatros", whose steel hull was once donated to the school by a father.
Since then, it has been continuously expanded, improved and maintained by each generation of pupils in an ongoing craft project.
Practical learning
Similar to Louisenlund, the pupils are organised in so-called guilds. These are working groups that serve the common good of the school. These guilds were formed in the early years of the school out of pure necessity: For example, the dykes had to be maintained, the garden tilled and the animals looked after. Today, there are also guilds for areas such as marketing or bicycle repair. The aim is to master life and develop one's own personality through practical learning.
Former pupil Axel Hoppenhaus still remembers his time at the remote island boarding school, where he was part of the boatbuilding guild. This experience had such an impact on him that he decided to train in boatbuilding straight after leaving school. After his apprenticeship, he studied shipbuilding before finally switching to industrial design. He then worked as a technical illustrator for YACHT for 20 years before successfully setting up his own business developing innovative cleats and jibs. The designer is still involved with the school on a voluntary basis, for example to find sponsors for new projects and boats.
Innovations from former students
When the rudders of the newly acquired Beneteau First 18 regatta boats caused problems in the Wadden Sea, he quickly designed a swivelling rudder under spring load, which swings backwards when the boat touches the ground. "That closed the circle and I was able to give something back to the Hermann Lietz School, in this case even professionally," says Hoppenhaus and remembers:
"In my time, there was no harbour on Spiekeroog, so all the islanders' boats were constantly anchored in the mudflats. At every tide, the anchors broke out of the ground and then dug themselves back in again. That actually worked! Our boats were usually halfway out to sea so that we could sail away again. This meant a long walk, sometimes through knee-deep water. The teachers had so much confidence in us that we sailed all the way to Texel during the summer holidays without supervision. Two weeks travelling between the ages of 14 and 18. A huge adventure, without any mobile phones!"
Sound sailing training
That would be unthinkable today. There is a harbour and in-depth sailing training in PE lessons. In year eight, there is a sailing week in which sailing is organised daily to introduce the pupils to the sport. It is even possible to take a sailing baccalaureate.
What has remained, however, is the island's remoteness and the opportunity to sail at weekends - this is one of the main reasons why journeys home are less frequent than in schools with good transport connections.
In 1993, the Hermann Lietz School launched the High Seas High School, a unique project. Every autumn, students set off on a seven-month blue water cruise on a chartered traditional sailing ship.
Unique projects
After the start on the German North Sea coast and a stopover on the Canary Islands, the journey continues across the Atlantic to the Caribbean.
In Costa Rica, the young people go ashore for four weeks, learn Spanish and work on a finca harvesting coffee and sugar cane.
They finally sail back to Germany via Cuba and the Azores.
On board, the students have lessons according to the curriculum of the 11th year of the state of Lower Saxony. But they also learn a lot about the nautical craft during their voyage, such as all the sailing manoeuvres, how to steer the traditional ship, how to navigate independently and meteorology.
The downer of all sailing boarding schools is the price. Depending on the location, class and type of tuition, up to 4,900 euros per month are payable in the upper school.
Primary and day pupils get off cheaper - with a bit of luck there is also the possibility of a (partial) scholarship. And: at least dreaming is free.
Another special sailing boarding school is located in Kiel-Schilksee. Young sailors train there for the Olympics. We also had a look at this boarding school.
