A seafaring student has returned from a dramatic voyage across the Atlantic — and landed himself two scholarships.

Donald Smith, who graduated from CedarBridge Academy yesterday, has won a grant worth tens of thousands of dollars from the Ministry of Works and Engineering and the National Training Board for his college studies.

And the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Bermuda charity is also giving him $3,000 for further education after he took part in its programme as a child.

The scholarships come hot on the heels of Donald, 17, completing a stint on the Russian boat Kruzenshtern as part of the Tall Ships Atlantic Challenge.

On the first night of his trip to Charleston, the mast on the vessel broke 68 miles off the Island, meaning the ship had to motor the rest of the way.

Donald, who was sponsored by Bermuda International Shipping Limited and Meyer Group of Companies, said: "It broke at 4 o'clock in the morning. I kind of slept through it. The ship's so big that the crew were able to handle it.

"I kind of just looked about the door and a few guys were just saying: 'stay there'. I could see out the window. It was just crazy. The next day we actually realised what happened."

Donald said his experience aboard the Kruzenshtern gave him an insight into Russian culture, especially the food.

"On the boat everything was different. The first meal we had was like liver and pasta. The food took awhile to get used to. They had a lot of rice dishes."

He added: "It was a huge language barrier on board. We learnt a lot of things about the Russians."

The former Francis Patton Primary School and Clearwater Middle School student, who was sailing with six other local teenagers, as well as 120 Russian crew members, did a couple of night watches and was allowed to steer the ship with help from the captain.

"One of the things I liked was climbing the mast, 105 feet about the deck of the boat," he said. "It was scary up there."

The young Bailey's Bay cricketer flew off the Island on Wednesday to attend Cambrian College in Canada. His engineering studies there for the next three-and-a-half years will be funded by the Government scholarship.

"I was interested in something math or science related," Donald Smith. "It was just a good scholarship."

The teenager will study power engineering and hopes to work somewhere like the Tynes Bay Facility to produce energy once he finishes college.

He said: "I think most young people need to take advantage of what they might have and stop caring what other people think. There's a lot of opportunities and most people just waste it."