Volunteering on a Sailing boat in North Queensland

Amanda "Gizmo" Lanham Student Liason Officer

Date

September 12, 2016

Sailing in Townsville

Every Wednesday night those who study at James Cook University have the opportunity to head down to the Marina for Wednesday night social sail.  It's run by locals and draws a crowd so it's best to go early to have the best option to get on a sail boat and volunteer with the crew.

The owner and skippers of the boats generally will take 1 or 2 volunteers each week and teach you the "ropes." But here's our first lesson: on a sail boat they aren't called ropes, they are lines and sheets! The crew were super welcoming and as the wind had decided not to play, instead we had a scenic tour of the strand and took the boat down to Jezzine barracks and back.  It was amazing to see the sunset from the water and then the lights of Townsville shine across the water as it got dark. You get a very different perspective of the land from the water looking back at night time.  The ladies even got to steer the sail boat! It was a really amazing experience and I'm sure the students will be back again to learn more, I know I'll be back too!