I finished my Day Skipper back in May and I have been sailing as much as I can since then, mostly in the Bahía de Palma and down the south coast. I feel like I have learned more in these three months of actually being on the water than I did in the whole course, which I suppose is the point.
But I am starting to think about the next step. Coastal Skipper keeps coming up in conversations and a few of the threads here have made me realise there is a LOT I still do not know — night sailing, passage planning for longer trips, proper weather interpretation beyond just checking Windy. I looked at the MSA course page and it is a five-day practical which sounds intense.
My question for anyone who has done it: how much experience did you have between Day Skipper and Coastal Skipper? Did you feel ready or did you just go for it? I have probably done about 400 miles since May, mostly day sails with a couple of overnights on friends’ boats where I was not really in charge. Is that enough or should I get more miles under my belt first?
Also interested in whether autumn is a good time to do it here. I have heard the sailing conditions in September and October are actually better for learning than summer because there is more wind and fewer boats.
Sophie, the fact that you are already asking this question means you are thinking about it the right way. Too many people rush from one qualification to the next like they are collecting stamps in a passport.
I never did the formal RYA ladder myself — learned from my father and uncles here in Mallorca — but I have sailed with plenty of people on both sides of that gap. The ones who struggled with Coastal Skipper were almost always the ones who had not spent enough time making their own decisions. Sailing with a skipper aboard is very different from being the skipper.
My advice: get yourself some proper miles where YOU are making the calls. Not just pottering around the bay, but actual passages — Palma to Andratx, Andratx to Sóller, that sort of thing. Do a few in different conditions. Once you feel comfortable making a go/no-go decision based on the forecast without needing someone to confirm it, you are probably ready.
Reading this with great interest Sophie! I am only just starting my Competent Crew so Day Skipper feels like a distant mountain to me, let alone Coastal Skipper. But it is nice to know that even after passing you still feel like there is so much to learn — somehow that makes it less intimidating, if that makes sense?
Carlos your point about making your own decisions really resonates. Even on our training sessions I notice the difference between the moments when I am just following instructions and the moments when I actually have to think for myself. The second kind is terrifying but I learn so much more from it.
Thanks both — Carlos, your point about making decisions rather than following instructions really landed. I had a moment last weekend where the instructor would normally have said “reef now” but he just looked at me and waited. Took me a good thirty seconds of staring at the telltales and the clouds building over the Tramuntana before I said it myself. Felt like a small victory honestly.
Anna, you will absolutely get there. The fact that you are already thinking about how sailing decisions work during your Competent Crew says a lot. I remember being so focused on just not falling off the boat that I could not even think about the bigger picture yet!
I think I am going to aim for spring for the Coastal Skipper. Get a solid autumn and winter of sailing in first, maybe do a few longer passages once the summer crowds thin out. September is supposed to be gorgeous for sailing here.
Speaking as someone who teaches both courses — Carlos is absolutely right that there is no magic number of miles or months. What I look for in students who are ready for Coastal Skipper is not perfection, it is decision-making under mild pressure. Can you look at a forecast, a tidal window, and the state of your crew and come up with a plan that accounts for all three? Sophie, that reefing moment you described is exactly the kind of thing I mean.
The other piece I would add is night sailing. If you have not done any, try to get a couple of passages in before you start the course. It does not need to be anything dramatic — even a late return to Palma after a day at Cabrera, coming in past midnight with the city lights confusing your depth perception. The Coastal Skipper syllabus assumes some comfort in the dark and students who arrive without it spend the first two days catching up.
Anna, do not worry about it feeling like a distant mountain. I have had students go from Competent Crew to Day Skipper in a single season here because the sailing conditions are so good for learning. Just keep getting on the water.
Katrin, that bit about decision-making under mild pressure is really helpful. I think right now I am still very much in the “wait for someone to tell me what to do” phase, so it is good to know what I should be working towards even at the Competent Crew stage. Small steps!
Sophie, the reefing story gave me goosebumps — I hope I have a moment like that someday.
One thing I forgot to mention earlier — if anyone is thinking about Coastal Skipper timing, September through November is actually a brilliant window for it here. The weather is more varied which gives you real passage planning challenges, the bays are emptier so you can practise anchoring techniques properly, and the instructors are less stretched so you tend to get more one-on-one time.
Sophie, based on what you described about the reefing decision, I think you could be ready by spring. Keep doing exactly what you are doing — sailing as much as possible and making your own calls.
Katrin is spot on about the autumn window. I would add that October especially gives you something you almost never get in summer — proper weather decisions. In July you check the forecast, it says 10-15 knots from the southwest, and it is 10-15 knots from the southwest. In October you might set off in sunshine and have to decide whether to duck into Sóller because the clouds building over Sa Calobra look serious. That is where the real learning happens.
Katrin, just coming back to your point about September to November being a good window for Coastal Skipper — does that apply to Competent Crew as well? I am hoping to finish mine by end of October and wondering if the autumn conditions will make the last few sessions harder or actually better for learning.
Also selfishly hoping the answer is “better” because the cooler weather sounds much more pleasant than July was!
Coming back to this thread because Sophie’s reefing story earlier reminded me of something. One thing nobody has mentioned yet about Coastal Skipper readiness is comfort with night pilotage — not just staying awake, but genuinely being able to read a chart, identify lights, and make approach decisions when everything looks completely different.
I did my first proper night entry into Sóller about four years ago. Knew the harbour well in daylight, been in dozens of times. At night it was like a completely different place. The street lights on the hill behind blend with the navigation lights until you are close enough to sort them out, and if there is any swell running the entrance gets very interesting.
My advice to anyone thinking about Coastal Skipper timing — before you book the course, go out for a night sail with someone experienced. Even just a few hours after dark in the Bahía. If you find it exciting rather than terrifying, you are probably ready.