A couple weeks ago, I sat on a yacht club lawn in a white Adirondack chair and watched as my boys and the rest of the summer sailing campers in their weeklong class put away boats. Porter, our oldest at 11, helped fold the sails from a Club 420 that he’d sailed on. His younger brother at 9, Magnus, was called to assist in dragging a Sunfish up into the storage area.
I’d intentionally arrived early for pickup to get a glimpse into the controlled chaos that is summer sailing camp. Twenty-four kids of various ages were being wrangled by capable and patient coaches, doing their best to get all the loose ends finished for the day and ready for the next. The job they were doing was quite admirable.
When class was dismissed, the boys ran to me and excitedly gushed about their day on the water and what they were learning. Sailing together, they’d finished with three firsts and a fourth place in the afternoon races, and they couldn’t wait to come back the next day. It was a proud dad moment, indeed.
While I was waiting for them, though, I couldn’t help but think about how much I enjoy the summer sailing season because it provides so much on the water learning and fun. Of course kids’ sailing camps are a huge part of that educational experience in the summer, but it’s also the time when adult learning opportunities are thriving as well. That learning is often facilitated in the formal setting of a classroom and then out on the water with a certified instructor, yet, it doesn’t necessarily have to be.
Oftentimes, if you already have some sailing experience, learning can be done in an informal setting by getting on a boat that provides a stark contrast from the one you normally sail. On page 32, you’ll read a great case study in this by Tacoma liveaboard Samantha McLenachen. With fewer opportunities to get their home off the dock this summer, she and her husband purchased and renovated a C-Lark 14 and have had a blast learning how the new-to-them boat sails and how it differs from their larger 43-footer. Shifting from cruising to day sailing has been, in her words, “The adventure I didn’t know I needed.”
Along with a variety of boats, putting yourself in different situations on the water can be an education in and of itself, too. It’s said that no two days on the water are the same and, when it comes to cruising adventures, that sentiment can certainly be applied to annual summer cruises. Each one is different.
48° North Managing Editor, Joe Cline, learned this lesson again on this year’s 48° North/Ullman Sails Cruising Rally. Starting on page 36, Joe regales us with the tale of this year’s misfortunes as the rally kicked off, and then how the fleet pushed on and made the best of their remaining time together. Part of the point of the yearly rally is to facilitate learning in a group setting, and they certainly got their share of that while cruising the San Juan and Gulf islands this year!
As a sailing instructor and coach for over 20 years, I’ve come to truly love the many ways that this lifestyle and sport can be taught. Whether it’s starting in small boats at a young age and working your way up, taking keelboat classes as an adult, or simply finding your way onto a friend or acquaintance’s boat for an afternoon that suddenly sparks a fire to find out more, there’s a lifetime of learning to be had on sailboats. No matter which way your sailing education takes you, getting out on the water with family and friends, and having fun under sail, is what it’s all about.
Note: Feature image courtesy of the Seattle Yacht Club.
Andy Cross
Andy Cross is the editor of 48° North. After years cruising the Pacific Northwest and Alaska with his family aboard their Grand Soleil 39, Yahtzee, they sailed south and are currently in the Caribbean Sea. You can follow their adventures at SailingYahtzee.com.
