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British Virgin Islands
American Sailing Association
PASSAGE OFFSHORE SAILING SCHOOL
Earn your ASA 104, Bareboat Cruising: Able to skipper a sloop-rigged, auxiliary powered keelboat of approximately 30 to 45 feet in length during a multi-day cruise upon inland or coastal waters in moderate to heavy winds (up to 30 knots) and sea conditions. Knowledge of provisioning, galley operations, boat systems, auxiliary engine operation, routine maintenance procedures, advanced sail trim, coastal navigation including basic chart plotting and GPS
CABIN UPDATES
Single Private Cabin: Full Price $4,988* per student | 3 available
Double-Occupancy Cabin: Full Price $4,788* per student | on hold
* room aboard a premier 2024 monohull, board with all onboard meals, 104 ASA material
Prerequisite
Basic Keelboat (ASA 101)
Basic Coastal Cruising (ASA 103)
USEFUL INFO:
Fly into Beef Island, Tortola [EIS] or St Thomas [STT] and take a 60-minute ferry from St Thomas to Tortola. DAY 1: Arrive in Tortola anytime on Friday, Day 1. Those who arrive early are encouraged to assist your instructor with provisioning and the check in process as part of the Bareboat course. DAY 8: Disembarkation takes place at 10:00 am. Please contact the SC if you require disembarking early to catch the ferry or departing flight.
Itinerary
The abundance of islands clustered with such close proximity allows for sailors to sail with the wind conditions in the spirit of the moment. Some skippers will take their crew through a circumnavigate of Tortola while others will zig zag jumping from island to island-Norman Island and then to Marina Cay, North Sound, Virgin Gorda and then sail south to Cooper Island. The ability to choose your own adventure is one of the pleasures of the BVI. Most of the prominent marinas are located on the south coast of Tortola, which is a common location to start your charter. Roadtown is the main harbor and the capital of Tortola home to most of the provisioning and supplies for sailors cruising the region.
Norman Island
One of the famed islands here is Norman Island-home to the infamous floating bar Willy T’s, which is situated in its largest cove called ‘The Bight’ until the permanently anchored ship sank in 2017 during the unprecedented devastation of Hurricane Irma. Now re-born on a new vessel, the bar is known for its abundance of sailors who can be seen arriving by dinghy and tying up alongside.
Salt Island
One of the lesser ventured activities is hiking around Salt Island, which remains completely uninhabited other than a few families of goats that roam freely around the lush green fields. This island once had a productive salt pond facility that shipped salt as an export until the mid 1970s. Even today during certain periods when the salt pond is dry, you can scrape up the island’s salt which is still harvested in small batches.
Anegada
The northernmost island in the archipelago requires more sailing time, usually on a pleasant beam reach, depending on which island you set out from. With the trade winds blowing normally leaving from Gorda Sound offers the nicest tack. Anegada is unlike the others. In a chain of mountainous volcanic islands, Anegada was formed by a coral reef and is just a few meters above sea level at its highest point.
Jost Van Dyke
Sailing southwest from Anegada roughly 25 nautical miles, and just a short hop from Tortola’s west end, is Jost Van Dyke, one of the most emblematic of all the islands in the region. Culture seems to flow from here to the other islands and you’ll see this island’s signature style emulated elsewhere in the form of signed t-shirts and flags hanging from driftwood rafters of the local establishments or signature cocktails but the authenticity of it all here is unmistakable.
A Day in the Life: Wake up on a mooring in a large bay at Norman Island, one of the many uninhabited islands with only one restaurant and dive shop ashore. The bay is calm because it’s protected from the prevailing east winds. Captain decides to move the boat to an anchorage just 10 minutes away on the outside of Norman Island in a place called The Caves where the chef will prepare breakfast followed by a morning snorkeling opportunity along The Caves. Mid-morning after snorkeling, we get underway sailing towards Guana Island. Along the way, we anchor at Salt Island to snorkeling at the Wreck of the Rhone, a 300’ british mail ship that sank in the early 1800s. After a remarkable lunch and a swim, we continue sailing for 1.5 to White Bay on Guana Island. Captain offers to take anyone who interested on a snorkel at Monkey Bay or an opportunity to walk along the white sand beach of White Bay while the sun sets. Dinner aboard followed by games and an early sleep.
The next morning, captain departs early for a 1.5 hour passage to the famous Baths on Virgin Gorda. Breakfast takes place once we arrive at the mooring field. Captain brings everyshore to spend 2 hours exploring the giant granite smooth boulders and the white sand beach. It’s one of the most famous places in the British Virgin Islands and the entire Caribbean. Once aboard, we have lunch followed by a 2 hour sail to North Sound, Virgin Gorda. We arrive late afternoon with enough time to relax aboard and explore. A dinner reservation has been made at the Bitter End Yacht Club with an outside table at the relaxed but lively restaurant.
Itinerary options:
Norman Island
Peter Island
Cooper Island
Virgin Gorda
Marina Cay
Anegada
Jost Van Dyke
An average of 3-6 hours of sail time per day split in two sessions. There are 3 dining opportunities during itinerary and crew will offer recommendations and reservations ahead of time.
Crew
Jon Bickford
Captain
A native to Maine and unabashed thalassophile, Jon has worked on the water for over 12 years and has sailed over 15,000 miles. On land he has walked the width and breadth of two nations and has lived in cities from New York to Honolulu to Bangkok. While solo journeys have incredible value, for him, it is the communal expeditions in outdoor settings that have defined Jon’s time in the wilderness as they provide the rare combination of camaraderie and growth that only can be known through group adventure. He holds a USCG masters license, and has participated in international competitions on traditional 18th century wooden Bantry Bay Gigs, canoed Alaska's Inside Passage rain forest, and operated a marine research vessel for Cornell University. When not on the move, he enjoys living in small island communities off the New England coast.
Introduction
Sailing Collective's Passage Offshore program is proud to be working with American Sailing Association to offer ASA certifications. This means that your experience gained has international recognition, and you are eligible for an IPC (international proficiency certificate), which is commonly accepted by charter companies as a qualification to captain your own cruising boat. Your next vacation could be with you at the helm!
Why learn the Sailing Collective way? We practice a style of sailing that has been honed over thousands of days at sea, an elixir of fun and adventure balanced by safe seamanship and relaxation. We teach the ways of passagemaking without losing sight of all of the wonderful reasons why we want to be out here in the first place.
The American Sailing Association (ASA) curriculum has structured levels of sailing pedigrees that are examined through progressive certification courses. Students who learn to sail through the PASSAGE OFFSHORE program receive an ASA Logbook that lists the certification qualifications and records sailing experience. When your certification is successfully completed, your ASA Logbook is notarized by your ASA instructor any charter or vessel rental operator can view your credentials and level of competency.
FAQ
Q. What is ASA?
The American Sailing Association is a coalition of sailors, professional sailing instructors, sailing schools and charter companies promoting safe recreation in the United States with an internationally recognized certification education system.
Q. What are the advantages of certifications?
Internationally recognized credentials, quality educational materials, professional instructors, and targeted goals for each level of the program.
Q. What certifications will I earn during this course?
Sailing Collective teaches Basic Keelboat [101] through Offshore Passagemaking [108]. Please check with the Sailing Collective Travel Coordinators to make sure you have the correct prerequisite and you are signing up to the correct course.
Q. What are the Prerequisites?
Unless you are taking Basic Keelboat [101], there are prerequisite. Please see the top of the page for the requirements for the particular course you are signing up for. If you Please contact us if you would like to request to the Qualifier Exam. Please contract us if you have additional questions.
Q. Should I study the ASA material prior to the start of the course?
YES! You are expected to read through the sailing text books and familier with the information prior to the start of the course. The more knowledge you have the better equipped you will be to implement the knowledge during the course.
Q. What is the deposit?
A 50% deposit is required. You can place your deposit by clicking on the BOOK NOW button at the top of the page.
Q. Will there be meals ashore?
Yes, there will be 3 to 4 meals enjoyed ashore.
Q. How much sailing will there be daily?
Depending on the coursework, there will be 5 to 7 hours of sailing each day. Certain days will cover less water to practice maneuvering and other activities such as anchoring, chart plotting, safety, and docking.
Q. Will there be downtime?
Yes, you bet! PASSAGE OFFSHORE is a course designed to explore the joys of sailing and a big part of that is rewarding yourself with the fruits of your labor. Whether it is a splendid beachside restaurant or rum shack, snorkeling, hiking, exploring a magnificent seaside village, or relaxing with a book aboard, there will be plenty of downtime from the educational curriculum.
Q. Who cooks?
Unlike other Sailing Collective adventures, PASSAGE OFFSHORE teaches you how to provision and cook for a voyage. Together, we will go to the local markets and seek out quality ingredients to be prepared aboard. Recipes will be based on the guidebook provided by the Sailing Collective culinary director. Please be prepared to bring two to three of your favorite recipes to prepare. The instructor will facilitate the provisioning.
Q. How many students?
There will be 3 to 5 students per session with 1 instructor. We keep the student count to a minimum to maximize your time learning and hands-on experience.
Q. Gratuity
Not only is your captain your educational instructor, but he is also providing high levels of hospitality. It is customary in the yachting industry to offer gratuity to your crew. 10% of your ticket price is a standard amount.
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