Sailing Lessons on Wiley

Cruise and Learn to Sail on a Channel Islands Sailing Adventure

Captain Dan would be happy to teach you and your sailing partner how to sail Wiley. This is not an ASA course - no bookwork, no written tests; just sailing. Basic instruction starts onboard and we'll be underway in about an hour and a half on the first day.

In lesson one, you'll start driving almost immediately, learning how to guide this 36ft yacht out of the channel. You'll learn the Rules of the Road, channel markings, how to operate the diesel engine and how to make the boat ready to sail. Before we reach the Ventura buoy, we'll have the sails up and you will begin learning to sail efficiently on every point of sail. We'll tack, we'll jibe and in about 4 hours we'll return to port.

We'll debrief what we learned and setup lesson two - the cruise to Santa Cruz island. On this cruise lesson, we'll use conventional dead reckoning navigation, GPS as well as radar to find our way. We'll learn to use the chart and depth finder to stay in safe water. We'll anchor, probably practice that a couple of times. Finally, we'll secure the boat, flaking the mainsail and furling the jib before we set the watch.

We'll have dinner and talk about the day's work. This is when Captain Dan switches roles from instructor to coach. After we've spent the night in the safety of the bay, you'll command Wiley on a trip around Anacapa before we head home.

How much does all of this cost? Actually, there is no extra charge for the instruction. The standard fees apply. Day one is a half day cruise, $350. The two-day cruise is $900.

Can I just take the day-one course?

Indeed you can. Or we can work together to plan a two-day cruise syllabus tailored to your needs.

If you want to start studying ahead, I recommend "Sailing for Dummies" (Honestly, it's a terrible title but has great content.) Though it does cover the basics in a very basic way, it also deals with more advanced topics in a way novices can understand. Written with a light and self-effacing pen by championship sailors, it's the best single-volume text on basic sailing that I've found. I probably shouldn't admit it, but I learned a few things myself.

Call me at 805.750.7828 or email me at captdan@sailchannelislands.com to tailor your curriculum and your schedule. We can ASA certify you on a cruising-lesson package, if that is what you desire.