Experiencing 24 hour sailing on watch, taking the helm as skipper and watch leader, will build your skill and confidence during these 12 days of adventure training. All crew will depart and return to Pittwater, Newport, on the offshore trips.
The Superyacht Crew Academy will be taking eight crew on a fantastic sailing adventure to either the wilds of Port Stephens & Broughton Island (70nm North of Pittwater) or the tranquility of Jervis Bay (90nm South of Pittwater), dependent on weather conditions and forecasts at the time of departure.
Whether it is the thrill of an adventure you seek, or more refined sailing and navigation skills, this trip can offer it all. This is your adventure, and as a group you can plan your days of discovery as you wish before we depart, with the help of our Offshore Yachtmaster Instructor.
You can look forward to the continued practice of sailing skills towards your next sailing qualification, whatever level that may be, and add the required miles to your log book.
The Passages can be done in 2 x 6 day legs
6 day offshore milebuilder
2 – 7 March 2010
12 day offshore milebuilder
2 – 13 March 2010
Cost
6 day leg $1540
12 day leg $3080
To
sign on, click here.
Check out extracts from the yacht’s log of our last milebuilding adventure on the NSW east coast
“We saw many dolphins by day and night, lit by the phosphorescence on their bodies like torpedoes, playing in our bow wave and leaping out of wave crests displaying their glory. A rooster tail of wake flowed behind us as we hit 12 knots regularly without really trying and the boat hummed and everyone smiled with exhilaration and a little trepidation!”
“As I sit here tonight on the 'Sunrise Watch' at 0410hrs I look up to a clear sky peppered with the huge array of our galaxy's contents. The Milky Way is so clear, it resembles a fixed cloud in the sky, the Southern Cross and Orion too, the constellations as numerous as the mind may allow.”
“A light Easterly breeze drifts across the oily sea providing us little drive through the draft of our sails. But it feels good all the same, to be back on the ocean, to be sailing silently through the islands and passages by night.
Some of our destination ports
Sydney Harbour (10 miles South of Pittwater)
The world famous Sydney Harbour is actually known officially as Port Jackson. It will surprise few who have experienced it to learn that, upon stumbling across the inlet, first Governor Phillip declared that the crew of the Endeavour had ".. found the finest Harbour in the world". It provided for security and the local Dharak Aboriginal people had used the area for many years, knowing it to be rich in food resources.
There can be few harbours in the world where you can take in world renowned sites like the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House with just one casual glance. Nature has been kind to the Harbour, and there are a number of attractive headlands scattered along its 20km length.
Jervis Bay (90 miles South of Pittwater)
http://www.jervisbaytourism.com.au/
The
jewel of the beautiful South Coast invites you to share
its secrets:
- Magnificent
National Parks & Marine Park
- Beautiful
and charming small towns, hidden creeks and inlets
- Natural,
unspoilt and secluded bays, clear blue waters and incredible
white sand beaches
- A
hinterland with rugged scenery, mountains, waterfalls,
creeks and great bushwalking
Jervis
Bay is truly one of the most natural oases along the
New South Wales coast. Protected by towering sandstone
cliffs and fed by oceanic currents, its close proximity
to the Continental Shelf ensures nutrient rich water.
White sandy beaches lead to thick unspoilt bush with
the occasional small rainforest less than 200 metres
from the shore.
Kangaroos
can be seen on some of the beaches in the mornings, and
dolphins are regular friends. Humpback Whales visit from
May through to November on their migration north and
south.
A
colony of some 200 Australian Fur Seals inhabit a rocky
ledge during the winter months. These playful animals
always seem happy to have friendly human contact and
are a must when weather conditions allow.
Two
small rivers feed Jervis Bay - Moona Creek and Currambene
Creek. These are shrouded by mangroves and seagrass,
which again filter the water. Large Black Stingrays up
to 2 metres across can be seen gliding along these waterways.
Bowen
Island at the southern side is home to a large colony
of Fairy Penguins as well as home to White Bellied Sea
Eagles and several other seabirds.
Broughton Island (70 miles North of Pittwater)
http://www.portstephens.org.au/NaturalBeauty/i6.htm
Broughton
Island is a faraway place. It is always an adventure
to visit. It is an island of sandy beaches, volcanic
peaks and stunted, wind-swept vegetation. The sea journey
is a kaleidoscope of sea cliffs, swells, terns, flying
fish, dolphins and salt spray.
Broughton
is packed with life. In the warm months of the year thousands
of shearwaters (or muttonbirds) enter their underground
burrows at night, firstly to hatch and then to care for
their single chick. Growing up, the young birds are left
alone for long periods while their parents feed. Chicks
in the nest make a lot of noise at night, like babies
crying. Muttonbird parents arrive on silent wings after
dark. Swooping low, they alight on the springy vegetation
and run straight down the burrow. Each year they will
fly up to twenty thousand kilometres around the Pacific,
but, for this colony, Broughton is special. Here they
were born, as were their parents and their parents and
so on, for thousands of years. This island and the food
supply around it, are a vital link in the life cycle
of the muttonbird.
Broughton
Island is part of the Myall Lakes National Park. It is
essential that it stays free of predators such as dogs,
cats and foxes. A torch and the willingness to walk about
the island at night are all you need to observe yet another
bird that breeds and sleeps underground. This island
is close to the northern limit of the range of the little
penguin. As soon as it is completely dark these diminutive
black-and-white birds pop out of the surf and walk up
the beach to their underground homes. By early summer
their chicks are big and confident enough to wait outside
the burrow or at the edge of the beach for the homecoming
and welcome food. Adult penguins are sleek and glossy
from a day's fishing, in contrast to the chicks, which
resemble soft, downy footballs with a beak and flippers.
Coffs Harbour ( 160 Miles North of Pittwater)
Originally discovered by Captain John Korff (of the Bellingen Cedar carrier Brothers) as he sought safety from a storm which prevented him entering the river at Urunga. He named the place Korff's Harbour. This later was gazetted, through an unintentional misspelling, to Coffs Harbour and the name has remained ever since.
Today, Coffs Harbour is still considered one of the safest harbours between Newcastle and Brisbane. An assessment by the CSIRO has shown that the area has the best climate in Australia with the maximum temperatures rarely falling below 19oC, summer or winter, making it a great place to be for your holidys.
Banana plantations now line the backdrop to Coffs Harbour and the Jetty that once loaded tonnes of red cedar and built late last century, is now being restored as a heritage structure. Many interesting day trips into the region are availabel which will supply the visitor with a wealth of variety of vegetation, landforms and activities to experience.
The city today has a population of well over 60,000 and is world famous for its beaches, forest hinterlands, pastoral settings and the Solitary Islands Marine Reserve.
The area stretches from Sawtell in the south to Arrawarra and Mullaway in the north, covering some of the best surfing beaches in Australia. These coastal areas provide a range of beaches and fishing spots, whilst to the west, a great variety of agriculture based places can be visited and seen.
Testimonial – from D. Wilson, Sydney
“I would like to thank you for your skill, knowledge and guidance during the trip and the opportunity of gaining more experience with sailing by feeling the wind on my face and the will of the boat under my hand at the helm………”I can’t thank you enough for allowing me the chance to sail with the Superyacht Crew Academy and to learn from the brilliant Yachtmaster Offshore instructors, and the rest of the crew who were part of this offshore milebuilding adventure.”
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