Cruising adventure camp for kids

[ramron67]

I am trying to come up with a fun way for my daughter (aged 14) to learn more about sailing as well as to get her excited about cruising.

Can anyone recommend an overnight sailing program for kids in the Northeastern USA?

I would be particularly interested in something that had a cruising element to the program, for example a multi-day cruising trip.

Many thanks.

[PaulCrawhorn]

Wow you'd have to be sooo brave to offer that in America

[ramron67]

Originally Posted by PaulCrawhorn

Wow you'd have to be sooo brave to offer that in America

LOL!
I assume that you are referring to the liability risk with this type of camp in the USA.

I did find this camp, but perhaps the cost and the location of this camp reflects the risk of litigation in the USA.

[JPA Cate]

@ramron67:

You have a boat. You and your good lady wife (if available) take the girl on a weekend cruise with her best girlfriend for company. Give them the forepeak, you and your partner get the settees. Let the teenagers set a couple of parameters for the weekend so as to be sure they have a good time. If your dinghy is a sailing dinghy maybe they can make side trips in it.

Your daughter could be part of a family class on one of the square riggers, perhaps. You can find out the age restrictions.

However, if she doesn't enjoy sailing with you, she's probably not going to be interested. By that age, my kids wanted to go to music camps, which abound. Maybe you can find a summer camp with sailing on a lake?

Good luck with the project: there must be a way....

Ann

[psk125]

Outward Bound? Might be less cushy than desirable.
https://www.outwardbound.org/course/...s-sailing/769/

[ramron67]

Originally Posted by psk125

Outward Bound? Might be less cushy than desirable.
https://www.outwardbound.org/course/...s-sailing/769/

That course looks very cool, unfortunately they are full this year.

I will rely on Ann's suggestion above, namely I will take her and a friend out of an overnight and hope that the bug bites her too.

[Gadagirl]

https://asa.com/news/2021/05/21/teen...irgin-islands/

"When the COVID-19 crisis is behind us will your teenagers need an outlet?

Will you?

For young sailors as well as those wanting to learn more about marine science, sailing and SCUBA diving, SeaTrek BVI offers teen summer programs in the Caribbean. ASA school, SeaTrek BVI, offers teen voyages that revolve around hands-on sailing, learning to scuba dive and instruction in marine science.

Each Summer, teenagers take to the ocean and get a taste of the sailing lifestyle aboard 48-foot catamarans. Part of the adventure involves becoming part of a crew engaged in every aspect of operating the vessel. They learn to sail, they cook their meals, they SCUBA dive, and immerse themselves in the world of Marine Biology."

[Gadagirl]

Also years ago as a teen I went on a 1 week sailing trip in USVI through a local dive shop. The group chartered sailboats and we sailed and dove throughout USVI and BVI. Also some yacht clubs might form such trips. Worth looking into.

[Fore and Aft]

Ramron 67 I would have thought by 14 your daughter would already know what she is into. When you have your daughter onboard the best thing is to get her involved with everything. My 10 year old Pippi can do everything from switching the engine on to lowering the anchor. I don't think there is a job she has not had a go at. You should also show your daughter how to use the plotter. We have Navionics on the iPad and neither of our kids ask how long until to we are there as they both know how to calculate the distance left to travel. The idea is to keep them occupied and not get bored. We have even been known to play a few hands of Uno while underway. A blue tooth waterproof portable speaker so the kids can control the music while we are onboard is a good idea as well. Not to mention a cupboard full of DVDs for movie and popcorn night.
Good luck introducing your daughter to sailing, make it a 100% fun and you should be right.
I also find that since sailing is a family activity the wife is happy to live by the military code of "Don't Ask Don't Tell" when it comes to boat bills!
Cheers

[Mithril Bham]

Check with US Sailing. They have many programs geared to young people.
They might have to start with basic sailing but they also have a JBBS program. Junior Big Boat Sailing.

[mholtzberg]

Sea Scouts… if you let me know where you are I can hook you up with a Ship. A Ship is a name of a Sea Scout unit.

Marc Holtzberg
Council Commodore
Greater Tampa Bay Area Council

[ramron67]

Originally Posted by mholtzberg

Sea Scouts… if you let me know where you are I can hook you up with a Ship. A Ship is a name of a Sea Scout unit.

Marc Holtzberg
Council Commodore
Greater Tampa Bay Area Council

Marc,
Many thanks. We are in the greater Boston, MA area.
I would welcome any information that you could share.

Ram Miller

[Macblaze]

Want to come to West Coast Canada?

https://www.salts.ca/. Granted its a tall ship, but I've always regretted being too old since I discovered the program

[Paul Howard]

Another Canadian option, Toronto Brigantine, brigs.ca.
Our children went through this program as teenagers and loved it.

[ramron67]

Originally Posted by Paul Howard

Another Canadian option, Toronto Brigantine, brigs.ca.
Our children went through this program as teenagers and loved it.

Brigs looks like a cool option. Thanks. Ontario is a lot closer to where we live than BC, also I grew up in Ottawa and I still have a lot of friends in the area.