Blog #2 Getting our Boating Licencees

The biggest component of our first week is getting our boating licensees to prepare for our sailing trip. Amelia and I spent a lot of time learning the material over the past week to pass our final test. We have learned about the types and parts of boats, navigation signs and lights, and anchoring. We also have learned so much about safety and regulations while on the water, including alcohol and drug regulations, personal flotation devices, environmental safety and care, and how to prevent and deal with emergency situations. I was most interested in learning how to protect separate bodies of water from invasive species. You don’t always think about how a small piece of algae in your propeller can be the cause of a massive overpopulation of those same algae in another body of water that you introduced it to. When speaking with our mentor about our trip, I remember him mentioning how we will have to avoid eating a few invasive species, as they are not safe. Although most of the information on the boating course focused on more motorized and personal vehicles, a lot of it still can pertain to sailing. Before this course, I knew little to nothing about sailing, navigation, and the laws behind it all. Now, I feel much more confident in the basics of boating and I can see how this will directly help my experience when I first learn to sail.  After working on our license for a number of hours, both Amelia and I passed our tests with flying colors and can now safely and legally operate a boat. Now we have our biggest pre-sailing trip obstacle out of the way and we can get to the more fun stuff like packing!