Our Westview Sailing RYA Day Skipper Shorebased course is a distance learning course.

It is unique, presenter led by Duncan Wells and you are not alone as we mentor you all the way.

The course is video led. And Duncan Wells is available every Tuesday at 7pm if you have any questions or simply want a chat. You can always contact us on email or phone at any time. And of course we see your progress as there are assignments throughout the course. With the Westview Sailing RYA Day Skipper shorebased course you are not alone. I am there in front of you, teaching you, encouraging you.

Meet Your Instructor

Duncan Wells

I’m Duncan Wells, RYA Instructor, Principal of Westview Sailing, author of the Stress-Free series of sailing books and creator of MOB Lifesavers. I’ll be your instructor.

Try before you buy!

Sample some of RYA Day Skipper course here to give you a sample of Duncan's teaching style and approach.

Free Access

Go at your own pace

We go through the course in the same order that we run the classroom courses. And here’s a point, the RYA state that the Day Skipper course should be taught over 40 hours. We have always run this in the classroom as a 7-week course, with homework. There’s a lot to go through. With our distance learning RYA Day Skipper course you can go at your own speed, of course, as quick as you like, or as long as you like. It is possible to do it in 7 days if you concentrate on it. But realistically I would allow 3 weeks, or better still take it steadily and do it over 7 weeks. You have access for 6 months. With a Zoom each week you will also get more interaction with me and the other students. All of which reminds you that you are not alone. We are on this path together.
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Assessment & Certification

Once you have been through the course you will be able to take the two assessment papers – one a general paper and one a chartwork paper – and on achieving the standard you will receive the ‘SHOREBASED COURSE RYA/MCA Day Skipper for Sail and Power Craft’, certificate.
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Next Step

Day Skipper Practical

You then need to do a practical Day Skipper course out on the water to get the complete Day Skipper ticket – RYA Day Skipper comes in two parts, a shorebased theory course and then a practical course. We do not run the practical course but we can recommend sailing schools who do.
  • Running under cruising chute and main
  • East Rock starboard hand marker (green) lined up with, Dog’s Nest Rock (yellow), Greve d’azette lighthouse (orange) and Mount Ube behind (white), all lit at night and all in transit on 082ºT, the leading line to approach St. Helier from the west.
  • The coastguard often practice dropping a diver onto a moving boat

Navigational Instruments

Finally the navigational instruments we include – the plotter and dividers. There are a couple of plotters around, one the Portland plotter, made from hard plastic, where I find the central compass dial is rather too stiff and the other the handy plotter, slightly smaller but flexible, ideal for bending over pages on a tidal stream atlas and with a compass dial that you can turn with one finger from the hand you are holding the plotter down with. I find it easier to work and because it is made of thin plastic it is the more accurate of the two - the more professional plotter I think. That’s the one we supply. And of course the Blundell Harling solid brass 7 inch, one handed dividers.
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Course Highlights

  • Presenter led on videos

  • Just like our classroom courses – only all the resources are there for you to access whenever you want and then we have a weekly Zoom meeting.

  • Take as long as you like (within your 6 months' access) or go as quickly as you want. Our Day Skipper course has always been run over 7 weeks, one three hour evening a week and then a weekend. But you can go much faster than this if you have the time. I estimate that you could do the course in 7 days.

  • A thorough grounding in all the traditional navigational disciplines

  • Plus integration with electronic navigation. Thanks to a tie up with Lightmaster/nauticalsoftware.com we are able to include real RADAR demos, integrated with MARPA and real VHF/DSC Mayday demos to give you a really good understanding of how they work and what they do. And we have a video on working with a chart plotter, waypoint plotting and passage planning to give you a good insight of what is available.

  • You are not alone. I will be with you all the way. In the videos, on email, on the phone and at our weekly Zoom meetings. It is the most comprehensive Day Skipper course there is. And presented by Duncan Wells, it is easy to understand. There are fun multi choice quizzes throughout. We present a subject in a video and then follow examples for you to have a go and then the answers to these and then a quiz. All designed to reinforce the learning. The idea is for the material to be absorbed osmotically without you having to learn anything by rote. And it works. And it’s fun.

Course Cost

Includes: Shipping of the Westview/RYA packs including the plotter and dividers to the UK (for the rest of the world please contact us) - 6 months' access - a weekly Zoom meeting - unlimted access to our team headed by Duncan Wells

Course Materials

You will be sent a pack of:

  • The RYA Day Skipper shorebased notes

  • 2 x RYA charts Nos 3 and 4

  • Day Skipper Exercises book

  • Electronic Navigation Resources Information

  • Training Almanac

  • Westview Notes - that supplement the Day Skipper shorebased notes

  • A set of RYA Handy Plotter and BH 7” one handed brass/stainless steel dividers

Course curriculum

  • 1

    Free preview!

  • 2

    Module 0 - Introduction to the Day Skipper course

    • Welcome to your Westview Sailing Day Skipper Shorebased Theory Course

    • Your Westview Sailing RYA packs

    • The RYA Cruising Scheme

    • The Structure of the Course, the Order and the Modules
  • 3

    Module 1 - Chartwork

  • 4

    Module 2 - Position

    • Introduction to Module 2

    • Position

      FREE PREVIEW

    • Distance - Measuring distance - Speed & Bearings Part 1

    • Distance, Speed and Bearings Part 2

    • Distance, Speed and Bearings Part 3

    • Position Quiz

      FREE PREVIEW

    • Plotting a Position

    • Plotting a Position Quiz

    • A Tip when Reading Bearings from a Chart or Placing them on a Chart - do a Rough Approximation first

    • Distance, Speed and Bearings Quiz

    • Using the dividers one handed

    • Finding the Latitude and Longitude of a charted mark question

    • Finding the Lat/Long of a charted mark answer...and plotting a position and finding out what's there question...

    • Plotting a position and finding out what's there answer

    • Chartwork Question 1 - Latitude and Longitude of Cape Balshaw Lighthouse?

    • Chartwork Question 1 Answer

    • Chartwork Question 2 - Latitude and longitdue of the Namley Bar Beacon?

    • Chartwork Question 2 - Answer

    • Checklist for Plotting a Position

    • Homework for Module 2
  • 5

    Module 3 - Aids to Navigation

    • Introduction

    • Aids to Navigation 1 - Safe Water Marks, Lateral Marks and Special Marks

    • Lateral Marks Quiz

    • Aids to Navigation 2 - Cardinal marks, Isolated danger marks and Emergency wreck marking buoys

    • Cardinals and Isolated Danger Marks Quiz

    • Aids to Navigation 3 - Lighthouses, Leading Lights, Sector Lights & Light Vessels

    • Lighthouses, Sector lights, Leading lights and Light vessels Quiz

    • The Morse code signals on Navigation Aids that you will come across

    • Homework for Module 3
  • 6

    Module 4 - Fixing a position and nautical terms

    • Introduction to Module 4

    • Fixing a position

    • Fixing a Position Quiz

    • Three Point Fix

    • Three Point Fix - the answer

    • An important note about 'Next to'

    • How to find places on the RYA charts - a handy tip!

    • Nautical Terminology

    • Parts of the Boat & Types of Boat

    • Points of Sail

    • Mooring

    • Module 4 Quiz 1

    • Module 4 Quiz 2

    • Homework for Module 4
  • 7

    Module 5 - The Compass, Magnetic Variation and Deviation

    • Introduction

    • The Compass

    • Points of the Compass

    • The Compass - Quiz

      FREE PREVIEW

    • Magnetic Variation

    • True to Magnetic and Back

    • Deviation

    • Deviation Quiz

    • AN IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT ASSIGNMENTS

    • Exercise 4 Chartwork Position Fixing Part A Question 6 assignment

    • Checklist for position fixing - homework and assignments

    • Homework for Module 5

    • A note about doing homework and assignments
  • 8

    Module 6 - Tides

    • Introduction

    • Tides

    • The Tidal Hour

    • Tidal Diamonds & The Tidal Stream Atlas

    • Tides Quiz

    • Tides Homework

    • If you are not sailing for a full hour, how much of the tidal rate do you allow? And what is the minimum amount of time that you would allow for a tidal set and rate?
  • 9

    Module 7 - Dead Reckoning , Estimated Position and Anchoring

    • Introduction

    • Dead Reckoning and Estimated Position

    • Dead Reckoning & Estimated Position Quiz

    • Leeway - and How to Apply It

    • Estimated Position Question 1

    • Estimated Position Question 1 answer

    • Estimated Position Question 2

    • Estimated Position Question 2 answer

    • Anchoring

    • Calibrating the Depth Sounder

    • Anchoring Quiz

    • Homework for Module 7

    • Checklist for Estimated Position - homework and assignments

    • Exercise 4 Chartwork Position Fixing - Part B Questions 3 and 4 assignment
  • 10

    Module 8 - Course to steer, Time Zones, Collision Regulations

    • Introduction

    • An introduction to Course To Steer - The Frog

    • Course To Steer

    • Scaling your chartwork for Course to Steer

    • A note about Deviation and Leeway for Day Skippers

    • Course to Steer Quiz

      FREE PREVIEW

    • Time Zones

    • Working across time zones to establish the tidal set and rate

    • Which hour of the tide are we sailing on - Question 1

    • Which hour of the tide are we sailing on Question 1 - Answer

    • Which hour of the tide are we sailing on - Question 2

    • Which hour of the tide are we sailing on Question 2 - Answer

    • The Collision Regulations - International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea (IRPCS)

    • Traffic Separation Schemes, Narrow Channels, Precautionary Areas and Moving Prohibited Zones

    • The Collision Regulations Quiz

    • Homework for Module 8

    • Checklist for Course To Steer - homework and assignments

    • Exercise 8 Course To Steer question 4 assignment
  • 11

    Module 9 - Weather 1 and Collision Regulations - Lights, Shapes & Sound Signals

    • Introduction

    • Weather 1

    • Weather 1 - Highs and Lows and the passage of a depression quiz

    • Collision Regulations - Part 1 - Lights on vessels

    • Collision Regulations - Lights on Vessels Quiz DS

      FREE PREVIEW

    • Collision Regulations - Part 2 - Day shapes

    • Collision Regulations - Day shapes quiz DS

    • Collision Regulations - Part 3 - Sound signals

    • Collision Regulations - Sound signals quiz DS

    • Colregs - What you need to know for Day Skipper

    • Apps to help you remember the Colregs, lights and shapes

    • The Phonetic Alphabet and the Flag Signals - What you should be aware of at Day Skipper - and what is worth knowing

    • Homework for Module 9
  • 12

    Module 10 - Weather 2 and Weather 3 - Navigating in restricted visibility

    • Introduction

    • Weather 2

    • Weather 2 quiz

    • Weather 3

    • Weather 3 quiz

    • Navigating in restricted visibility - Fog

    • Rope & Basic Seaman's Knots

    • How to tie an 'OXO' to a cleat onboard and on shore

    • Homework for Module 10
  • 13

    Module 11 - Tidal heights (Standard ports and Secondary ports) and Using the correct tide table

    • Introduction

    • Tidal Heights

      FREE PREVIEW

    • Tidal Curves for the Standard Ports - Victoria, Port Fraser, Namley, Dunbarton - downloadable

    • Tidal Heights quiz

      FREE PREVIEW

    • Establishing the Depth of Water to Anchor in to be Afloat at LW

    • Secondary Ports

    • Using the correct tide table

    • Which tide table to use bite -sized

    • Which tide table to use - full version

    • The tide table quiz

    • Homework for Module 11

    • Checklist for Tidal Heights - homework and assignments

    • Exercise 3 Tidal Heights and Tidal Streams question 10 assignment
  • 14

    Module 12 - Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)

    • Introduction

    • Electronic Aids To Navigation - Part 1

      FREE PREVIEW

    • Electronic Aids To Navigation 1 quiz

      FREE PREVIEW

    • Electronic Aids To Navigation - Part 2

    • Electronic Aids To Navigation 2 quiz

    • The Chart Plotter

    • Radar with integrated MARPA demonstration by Martin Quaintance of nauticalsoftware.com

    • Tracking targets on a standard radar with an Electronic Bearing Line (EBL)

    • Exiting a busy harbour and using radar with intergrated MARPA as a navigation aid

    • 3 point fix using radar ranges

    • Homework for Module 12

    • Exercise 5 Question 4 and an explanation of what it is asking

    • Exercise 5 GNSS Trace for Question 4a and 4c
  • 15

    Module 13 - Pilotage and Passage planning

    • Introduction

    • Pilotage

    • Pilotage - An example of using a head bearing and a clearing bearing

    • The Running Fix

    • An Introduction to Passage Planning and Passage Making

    • A real Passage Plan - Hamble, England to St. Helier, Jersey

    • Pilotage Homework for Module 13

    • Passage making Homework for Module 13

    • Exercise 12 Passage Making trace for Questions 5 and 6

    • How to read the Reeds Almanac - the port and secondary port information
  • 16

    Module 14 - Safety, Calling a Mayday and protecting the Environment

    • Introduction

    • Stability

    • Safety - Safety Equipment, Lifejackets, Jack-stays, Fire, Gas

    • Safety - Safety Equipment, Lifejackets, Jackstays, fire and Gas Quiz

    • Distress, Distress Signals and Rescue Beacons

    • Distress and Distress Signals - Quiz

    • GMDSS VHF DSC and the Distress call

    • GMDSS VHF DSC and the Distress call - Quiz

    • The Liferaft and the Helicopter Rescue - a Hi-line transfer

    • Man Over Board - return to the man and retrieval

    • Protecting the environment

    • Before we set sail...

    • Homework for Module 14
  • 17

    Module 15 Revision & Preparation for the 2 Assessment Papers

    • Introduction to revision and preparation for the 2 assessment papers - please also read the IMPORTANT NOTES below the video

    • Pre-assessment General Paper assignment

    • Pre-assessment Chartwork Paper assignment

    • Commercial Endorsements and Invigilated Assessments

Additional support

In addition to the digital content there are opportunities throughout the course to get the support you need

  • Weekly Zoom Calls

  • Email Support

  • Telephone Support