Why do a Cruising Catamaran Course?

Cruising Catamarans continue to grow in popularity, partially because of their ability to provide a very comfortable environment while offering a stable platform and plenty of room and privacy for everyone aboard. This makes them ideal vacation yachts for families, groups of friends and increasingly live aboard cruisers. They also seem to be available for charter almost anywhere you might want to sail.

While the basics of sailing both monohulls and catamarans are similar, there are big differences in the way multihulls handle, both under sail and power. Cruising catamarans have more volume and freeboard than monohulls, they are usually propelled by two engines and have several more systems to monitor. The sail control systems are typically much bigger than on monohulls.

This course provides you the knowledge and techniques to manage a 35 to 45 foot catamaran in various wind and sea conditions. Northern Breezes Sailing has been conducting multihull courses for 22 of our 26 years. The Lake Superior courses are the best because Northern Breezes controls the docking at our slips and has extensive experience in the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore waters.

Description 2-Day

Cruising Catamaran (ASA 114) is a two-day, liveaboard, advanced cruising course for sailors with cruising experience. Graduates are certified to act as skipper and crew of a 30-50 foot multihull sailboat by day in coastal waters. Students will learn all aspects of skippering a cruising catamaran and sleep aboard the boat at our marina and sail in the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore on Lake Superior.

Vacation courses are held aboard Calico, our Fountaine-Pajot Athena 38 cruising catamaran in the beautiful Apostle Islands near Bayfield, Wisconsin. Students pre-board the boat after 5 PM the night before the course starts.

Includes textbook: Cruising Catamarans Made Easy, published by American Sailing Association, class notes, exam and ASA certification.