Skippering a yacht on coastal and offshore passages demands strong navigation, seamanship and leadership skills. The RYA Coastal Skipper Practical course prepares those with previous skippering experience to undertake longer voyages.
(Seafarer Training)
During the RYA Coastal Skipper course your instructor will guide you through navigation, both offshore and in limited visibility, weather forecasting and passage planning, watch keeping and preparation for sea. You will put this all into practice as each student plans and executes passages taking complete command of the yacht. Coastal skippers must be good boat handlers and you will receive plenty of practice mooring the yacht and longer coastal passages with plenty of night sailing.
At the successful completion of the RYA Coastal Skipper course you will be awarded the RYA Coastal Skipper Course Completion Certificate and will be able to skipper on coastal passages safely and confidently by day or night.
Our coastal skipper course gives the chance to complete longer passages from our base to places like Corfu and Zante, even Italy if the winds are favourable.
Course Syllabus:
- Passage planning - Can plan a coastal passage including a consideration of the capability of the yacht, navigation, victualling, weather, ports of refuge, tidal heights and tidal streams, publications required and strategy
- Knows Customs procedures.
- Preparation for sea - Is aware of safety equipment required for offshore passages - Can prepare a yacht for sea including stowage, safety briefing, watch keeping, delegating responsibilities and equipment and engine checks
- Pilotage - Can prepare a pilotage plan, with consideration of soundings, transits, clearing bearings, buoyage, port or harbour regulations and tidal considerations - Can pilot a yacht by day and night
- Passage making and ability as skipper - Can take charge of a yacht and direct the crew - Can organise the navigation, deckwork and domestic duties of a yacht on passage - Is aware of the significance of meteorological trends - Is aware of crew welfare on passage - Can use electronic navigational equipment for planning and undertaking a passage, including the use of waypoints and routes
- Yacht handling under power - Can control the yacht effectively in a confined space under
power - All berthing and unberthing situations in various conditions of wind and tide.
- Yacht handling under sail - Can use the sails to control the yacht in a confined space
- Anchoring and mooring in various conditions of wind and tide - Can sail efficiently on all points of sail.
- Adverse weather conditions - Preparation for heavy weather and yacht handling in strong
winds - Navigation and general conduct in restricted visibility.
- Emergency situations - Recovery of man overboard under power and sail - Understands action to be taken when abandoning to the life raft and during helicopter and lifeboat rescue.
The RYA Course Syllabus and Log Book will be available for purchase from your instructor upon your arrival on the course. The completion certificate is included in the cost of your course.
