Hi,
I am thinking of heading out to the Whitsunday islands in mid October
this year, and would like to do some AYF courses. I am interested in
the Competent Crew, Inshore skipper and possibly the Yachtmaster
Offshore Course.

Can anyone offer me any advice on this at all as far as what are the
better schools, and anything else I should consider before doing this?

I have a fair amount of dingy sailing and windsurfing experience in
the UK, but next-to-no time on yachts.

Sunsail (for example) do the courses very cheaply compared to some of
the other schools, but they seem to just be day courses, and other
companies do more expensive 'sea passages' where you get to spend 4-5
days and nights aboard. I will be on a budget, but if I am going to
need to spend extra money paying to log extra hours outside the course
in order to become qualified these longer sea passages seem a good
idea.

Thank you for any advice you may be able to offer me...

Tom

email :
web : www.skunk.co.uk

Tom,

Probably one of Australias best intructors is in Brisbane, Queensland. Mike
Job at Southern Cross Yachting is the only person in Australia I believe who
can offer both AYF and RYA certification and has a great school with good
boats. Whitsundays is pretty hyped up but is so full of charterers that it
can be disappointing to sail around. Have a look at
http://www.southerncrossyachting.com.au

for more info. I have done some courses with Mike and it is great value for
money.

regards,

Andrew

I don't know quite how to say this without sounding like a
chauvinistic American, but let me suggest you look at a local chart
(maybe Aus370) before making more plans.

The Whitsundays cover a very small area -- it took us only five hours
to pass them in 1997. Even the whole of the Cumberland Islands and
Northumberland Isles are only a couple of days. There are no offshore
possibilities because you're inside the Reef. I doubt that there are
any real "sea passages" done by charter companies, although certainly
you can do night sailing inside the Reef -- we did Gladstone to the
Torres Strait with only three stops.

For places outside the EU with good teaching, think about Maine, the
Chesapeake, the Caribbean, Sydney, Auckland (the area from Auckland to
Opua is far more interesting than the Whitsundays), the Drake Passage.

Or, think about getting more yacht hours as crew locally, then getting
your Inshore Skipper in the UK -- that opens up many possibilities
that would be chaeper than starting from scratch at the other end of
the earth.

Regards,

Jim Woodward
www.mvfintry.com



(skunk.co.uk) wrote in message . com...
Hi,
I am thinking of heading out to the Whitsunday islands in mid October
this year, and would like to do some AYF courses. I am interested in
the Competent Crew, Inshore skipper and possibly the Yachtmaster
Offshore Course.

Can anyone offer me any advice on this at all as far as what are the
better schools, and anything else I should consider before doing this?

I have a fair amount of dingy sailing and windsurfing experience in
the UK, but next-to-no time on yachts.

Sunsail (for example) do the courses very cheaply compared to some of
the other schools, but they seem to just be day courses, and other
companies do more expensive 'sea passages' where you get to spend 4-5
days and nights aboard. I will be on a budget, but if I am going to
need to spend extra money paying to log extra hours outside the course
in order to become qualified these longer sea passages seem a good
idea.

Thank you for any advice you may be able to offer me...

Tom

email :
web : www.skunk.co.uk

Thanks for the comprehensive replies...
I looked into getting the inshore skipper and competent crew
qualifications in the UK with a number of companies around the Solent,
and found that they were all going to cost about 400 UK pounds or more
for only 3 days and nights in March, when it wouldn't have been overly
pleasant! This is about the cost in the Whitsundays for 6 days and
nights at sea.

I found this company in the Whitsundays -
http://www.whitsundaysailtraining.com/learncoastal.html and they seem
to do 'coastal passages' but I don't know if they are what you are
referring to?








(Jim Woodward) wrote in message . com...
I don't know quite how to say this without sounding like a
chauvinistic American, but let me suggest you look at a local chart
(maybe Aus370) before making more plans.

The Whitsundays cover a very small area -- it took us only five hours
to pass them in 1997. Even the whole of the Cumberland Islands and
Northumberland Isles are only a couple of days. There are no offshore
possibilities because you're inside the Reef. I doubt that there are
any real "sea passages" done by charter companies, although certainly
you can do night sailing inside the Reef -- we did Gladstone to the
Torres Strait with only three stops.

For places outside the EU with good teaching, think about Maine, the
Chesapeake, the Caribbean, Sydney, Auckland (the area from Auckland to
Opua is far more interesting than the Whitsundays), the Drake Passage.

Or, think about getting more yacht hours as crew locally, then getting
your Inshore Skipper in the UK -- that opens up many possibilities
that would be chaeper than starting from scratch at the other end of
the earth.

Regards,

Jim Woodward
www.mvfintry.com



(skunk.co.uk) wrote in message . com...
Hi,
I am thinking of heading out to the Whitsunday islands in mid October
this year, and would like to do some AYF courses. I am interested in
the Competent Crew, Inshore skipper and possibly the Yachtmaster
Offshore Course.

Can anyone offer me any advice on this at all as far as what are the
better schools, and anything else I should consider before doing this?

I have a fair amount of dingy sailing and windsurfing experience in
the UK, but next-to-no time on yachts.

Sunsail (for example) do the courses very cheaply compared to some of
the other schools, but they seem to just be day courses, and other
companies do more expensive 'sea passages' where you get to spend 4-5
days and nights aboard. I will be on a budget, but if I am going to
need to spend extra money paying to log extra hours outside the course
in order to become qualified these longer sea passages seem a good
idea.

Thank you for any advice you may be able to offer me...

Tom

email :
web : www.skunk.co.uk

Hi,

The Whitsundays is a group of islands located well inside the Great Barrier
Reef and is classified as partially smooth waters. Bareboat yacht rentals
in the area require you to be moored between the hours of 4pm and 7am so
there is no overnight passages possible unless you are in a skippered
vessel. They hire the yachts and catamarans to unqualified people and give
you a rudimentary lesson in sailing before letting you loose. There are
plenty of yachts around and radio contact each morning and evening with your
plans are mandatory. You'd have a great time and with your small boat
background should have no trouble. The Islands are within sight of one
another and you will find a map and a book "100 Magic Miles" which lists all
the anchorages, wind protection and what to do in the Whitsundays. Try and
look at this book before you come. Most yachts are hired from Shute Harbour
or Airlie Beach Marina.

You'll have a great time,

Ray

"skunk.co.uk" wrote in message
om...
Hi,
I am thinking of heading out to the Whitsunday islands in mid October
this year, and would like to do some AYF courses. I am interested in
the Competent Crew, Inshore skipper and possibly the Yachtmaster
Offshore Course.

Can anyone offer me any advice on this at all as far as what are the
better schools, and anything else I should consider before doing this?

I have a fair amount of dingy sailing and windsurfing experience in
the UK, but next-to-no time on yachts.

Sunsail (for example) do the courses very cheaply compared to some of
the other schools, but they seem to just be day courses, and other
companies do more expensive 'sea passages' where you get to spend 4-5
days and nights aboard. I will be on a budget, but if I am going to
need to spend extra money paying to log extra hours outside the course
in order to become qualified these longer sea passages seem a good
idea.

Thank you for any advice you may be able to offer me...

Tom

email :
web : www.skunk.co.uk