Our May 2016 Learning Adventure was a huge success with 14 people and two 44ft catamarans sailing for 8 days in the US and British Virgin Islands. Our Sailing Plan included routes and destinations that facilitated us completing the Skills sections of ASA104 (Basic Coastal Cruising), ASA114 (Catamaran Cruising), and ASA106 (Advanced Coastal Cruising). The big focus was on navigation and each day students used paper charts to plot the DR course to the next destination, steered by compass, and checked their positions using GPS and 2 bearing fixes along the way. They plotted danger bearings to avoid navigation hazards, estimated leeway and current to determine Course to Steer. At the end of the week they used chart plotters and computers to navigate from St Croix back to the Drake Channel and up to the Bitter End. Another important accomplishment was open ocean sailing on the passage down to St. Croix. This was the first time that most of the students had ever been on a sailboat out of the sight of  land.

The consensus was  “… I am so glad I did this trip…I really feel like I could skipper a boat on a trip like this ..”