Cruise & Learn
Holiday Adventures.....
Our cruises take you to the special places where you can
learn, relax and enjoy the simple pleasures of sailing
and living aboard a beautiful yacht in British
Columbia.
North and South Gulf Islands,
British Columbia
As
a destination, there are few places in the world that match
the beauty of BC’s majestic mountains meeting the
sea, quiet coves, quaint ports, pristine marine park anchorages
and the abundance of wildlife.
- Vancouver Sailing Club offers
five American Sailing Association
(ASA) Sail with Confidence
courses and two VSC Advanced Sailing
Endorsements on our Cruise & Learns
- Already have your sailing
certifications ? We offer a refresher and advanced
topics based on your needs
- Courses can be taken
in sequence up to four at a time in 5, 7 and 14 day C&L
formats or separately in 3 day
sessions.
- Book a group of 4-6 and get a
10% Friends and Family discount.
Expect our Instructors and
Skippers to be
knowledgeable, patient, resourceful and happy to engage in your
interests.
ASA101 Basic
Keelboat Sailing Standard is the first
learn-to-sail certification and provides the foundation
of sailing information and boat handling skills required
to be able to sail alone locally on a 24-30 ft sailboat
in moderate wind and sea conditions. Usually completed
on the Saturday and Sunday preceding the Cruise& Learn
ASA103 Coastal Cruising
Standard certifies the student with skills for cruising safely in
local and regional waters as both skipper and crew on an
auxiliary sailboat of up to 36 feet in length, in
moderate winds and sea conditions. We introduce Coastal
navigation, advanced sail
trimming, MOB and anchoring techniques are developed.
ASA104
Bareboat Chartering Standard
(also called Intermediate
Cruising) certifies the students basic navigation
skills, heavy weather boat handling, docking, seamanship, knowledge of sailboat systems and maintenance procedures
on sailboats 30-50 feet long sailing by day in coastal
waters. Most reputable sailboat chartering agents insist
on the skipper having these qualifications and experience logged before bareboat charter reservations
can be confirmed.
ASA105 Coastal Navigation
certifies that you are able to demonstrate the navigational theory
and practices
required to safely navigate a sailing vessel in coastal
or inland waters. Taking our Sail Plan for each day of
our C&L, we will chart our course, estimate set and
drift chart danger bearings and develop a list of aids
to navigation. On the day of the sail we will use dead
reckoning techniques and advanced electronic chart
plotting to verify our progress and location.
ASA106 Advanced Coastal Cruising-
certifies that you have successfully shown
competence as skipper and crew of a sailing
vessel about 30 to 50 feet in length in coastal and
inland waters, at day and night in all conditions. We
explain and/or demonstrate more detail heavy weather
strategies including reefing, heave- to, laying- a-
hull, running off and using drogues and sea
anchors as the wind builds and storms. ASA105 is
required as pre-requisite or can be taken concurrently.
VSC501
Spinnaker Sailing Endorsement - able to
demonstrate crew work of rigging boat, raising ,
trimming and dousing ( take-down) the spinnaker in
moderate conditions, Pre-requisite is ASA101 (or
concurrently)
VSC502
Introduction to KeelBoat Racing Endorsement-
a fun option to extend your Cruise & Learn
adventure with a weekend race- student is able to
identify the elements of a race course,
demonstrate understanding of fundamental Racing Rules,
duties of crew positions and demonstrates advanced sail
trimming- participation as a contributing member of a
racing crew on a weekend race. Prerequisites are
ASA101 and VSC501 (or concurrently). Great way to share
speed, beauty, excitement of sailing with family and
friends.
Itineraries:
North Gulf Islands
Sunday - Vancouver - False Creek
yacht orientation and DVD
Monday - passage around Bowen
Island to Plumper Cove Marine Park anchorage
Tuesday - Passage along Sunshine
Coast to Secret Cove Marine Park anchorage
Wednesday - Passage to Pender
Harbor and Garden Bay Marine Park
Thursday - Passage Thormanby
Island, Half Moon Bay to Gibsons
Friday - Passage Island, Point Atkinson,
West Vancouver and docking before 4 pm in False
Creek, Vancouver
|
South Gulf Islands
Sunday - Vancouver- False Creek
yacht orientation and DVD
Monday - passage English Bay,
Straits of Georgia, Gabriola Passage,
Pirates Cove,
Tuesday - Telegraph Harbor, Thetis
Island; Montegue Marine Park, Trincomali Channel
Wednesday - Prevost Island
circumnavigation, Captains Passage, Ganges and Long Harbor,
Saltspring Island
Thursday - Satellite Channel, Sansun Narrows,
Vesuvius, Saltspring Island and
Mill Bay
Friday - Porlier Pass, Point
Grey, English Bay, Kitsilano Beach, and False Creek docking at
4pm
|
On
the first evening of your Cruise & Learn we welcome
you aboard, introduce you to your fellow students,
assign cabins, stow
your personal gear and conduct an orientation of “ALLONS-Y
“ our Beneteau First 36.7.
As a crew we review objectives and create a Sailing Plan
based on current weather forecasts, currents and tides.
These help to identify the anchorage we will be sailing
to each day. To ensure a safe and comfortable passage
we consult with the Weather forecast each day and make
changes as required.
The course knowledge and skills of the day are posted
at 9pm each evening for the next day. ASA examinations are done
aboard the afternoon on the last day of courses.

Activities
In addition to a busy sailing schedule of 5+ hours per
day you are encouraged to take our RIB dinghy and outboard
to shore for seaside hiking, snorkelling and scuba diving
(proof of PADI certification required). We also have a
2 man kayak for your use.
Meals
Our meals are designed to be healthy, delicious and light.
Safe cooking aboard is taught in our galley complete with
oven & refrigeration and deck mounted propane barbeque:
-
Breakfast is continental with fresh fruit juices,
cereals, fresh muffins, tea and coffee
-
Lunch includes soups and sandwiches with variety
of soft drinks or milk
-
For dinners, students are asked to
assist in preparing barbequed fresh turkey, salmon,
chicken, lamb or beef served with baby vegetables, pasta
and salads. Desert is a sweet surprise.
-
We provide vegetarian or restricted diet meals. Please
make your request 14 days prior to your Cruise &
Learn departure
Sleeping
and Living Aboard
Three private cabins are hatch ventilated and have forced
air heat. Two salon couches can also be used as
berths. We provide fresh laundered color- coded sleeping
bags, towels and face cloths for each student. We also
provide non-allergenic soaps and body lotions.
Our yacht has hot & cold pressurized water for sinks,
toilet and shower to keep the crew comfortable.
Personal Sailing Gear
Fundamental to comfort on- deck and below are foul weather
jackets and pants, layered breathable clothing, sailing
gloves, sailing knife, jeans, quick drying shorts, T-shirts
swimsuit, white soled structured shoes, sandals, long
sleeve shirts, billed or bucket cap, sunglasses and 12
oz. of 20+ sunscreen.
It is requested that your personal gear weigh 30 lbs
or less and is stowed in one duffle or soft walled bag.
We will be stopping at full service marinas equipped with
washing machines on the third day of each passage. We
recommend that you bring your own personal care products
in an easily stored kit
Short of time? Not familiar with these items?
Our SHIPs STOREs
can supply quality brand name products at discounted prices.
Let us know how we can assist you.
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