ASA 104: A 50+ nautical mile ocean sailing adventure!
Myrtle Beach to Bald Head Island
Course Materials
ASA 104 Course Manual
Bareboat Cruising Made Easy — the official ASA 104 textbook used during the course.
Bring your manual on day one. Material instructions in your booking confirmation may vary by school.
Order from American Sailing →About This Trip
The "Monohull Pot-of-Gold" for most of our students, our ASA104 course is taught on our Beneteau Oceanis 390 or Elan Impression 444. One night at anchor at Bird Island along with a 25 to 30 mile ocean sail to Bald Head Island, NC for an overnight stay is included to prepare you for life aboard. You and your shipmates will be meal planning and budgeting for the course. (A gift card is made available to you for provisioning.) ASA 104 teaches the intermediate sailor the required skills to cruise safely as both skipper and crew on an auxiliary powered sailboat during a multi-day cruise upon inland/coastal waters in moderate/heavy winds and sea conditions. Learn about provisioning, boat systems, auxiliary engines, advanced sail trim, coastal navigation, anchoring / mooring, docking, emergency operations, weather, and more. We also offer ASA104 Certifications on our Ocean Sailing/Passage Training sailing adventures.
Additional Notes
3 to 3.5 Day/3 Night Live-aboard (Thursday–Sunday) 3 student maximum aboard FAQ: Why is your 104 course more expensive than other sailing schools in your region? Our version of ASA 104 is a 3 to 3.5-day live-aboard adventure designed to prepare you for life aboard—not a classroom weekend at the dock. You will anchor one night at serene Bird Island, an uninhabited barrier island, and complete a 50-nautical-mile round-trip ocean passage to picturesque Bald Head Island. FAQ: Why is your 104 course 3 to 3.5 days long? Most students complete instruction and testing within three full days on the water. When needed, we reserve up to a half day on the final morning for course review and the written exam, so no one is rushed if testing is not finished at the end of day three. Pre-Requisites: ASA 103