Sailing to Hamilton Island | Above & Beyond Boating

Products

Boating Insights

Reviews

About

C ontact Us

CUSTOMER LOGIN

Sailing to Hamilton Island

Jon Linton from Sydney has dreamed for many years of skippering his own sailing yacht to Hamilton Island.

In recent years Jon has competed in the Hamilton Island Race Weeks and cruised the Whitsunday Islands on his boat, after it was sailed from Sydney by a delivery crew.

After taking ownership of 'Llama 2', a Dehler 46, Jon spent some time to become a more proficient skipper and to prepare for his next sailing adventures.

The Blended Learning Pathway

The pathway for Jon to skipper this trip used blended learning with a combination of online training courses and personalised lessons onboard Llama 2.

The combination of online and practical training gave fantastic efficiencies for the practical learning and allowed Jon to develop a very deep understanding of passage planning, navigation, weather, communication, vessel/crew management and seamanship.

Middle Percy

Llama II at Anchor off Lady Musgrove Island

Through our online learning platform, Jon completed the Essential Navigation and Seamanship Course, the Day Skipper Shorebased, the Online Skipper Course and the VHF Radio Course. The on-water training sessions were focused on preparation, contingency planning, and offshore seamanship on a large and powerful performance cruising yacht.

On long passages it is important to be prepared for a range of eventualities. Over the practical lessons Jon learned and refined techniques for preventing and managing a person overboard, including in swell and under power and sail. Jon also developed his skills for navigating at night in busy and unfamiliar locations, planning passages with paper charts, and using the electronic chart plotter for passage making and collision avoidance.

Sailing North in Heavy Weather along the QLD coast

The contingency planning training looked beyond persons overboard, and also included anchoring under sail, safely sailing and securing onto moorings, handling the boat under sail or power with a drogue in the event of rudder loss, handling the the boat with just auto-helm and emergency steering in the event of steering failure, and detailed training on how to use and induct crew on the various items of safety equipment onboard.

Llama II at Anchor

Throughout the training and the entire trip north to Hamilton Island, Jon was joined by a friend who was also keen to learn and take an active role in the lessons, which was fantastic for all involved.

We certainly recommend that you complete your training with someone who you will spend a lot of time offshore with, as it ensures there is someone capable of managing the boat while underway at all times.

Jon & Mike onboard Llama II

In the video below, Jon talks to us about his sailing adventure, and how he prepared himself for the journey north to to Hamilton Island. We also ask him about how he shares his boating experiences with his family to make owning a yacht more enjoyable.