Public Boating Courses
Your source for world-class boating education For Boaters, By Boaters®. A variety of public boating courses are offered by the Cape Fear Sail & Power Squadron.
Next Classes: America’s Boating Course®, April 18-19, 2026
America’s Boating Course®, August 15-16, 2026
Classes held at Eastwood Community Church, 702 Eastwood Road, Wilmington, NC
On-The-Water held at Wilmington Water Tours, 212 Water Street, Wilmington, NC
America’s Boating Course® is the most comprehensive in-person boating course available locally to give you the skills you need to enjoy your time on the water and boat with confidence. What makes our course unique is the textbook you get and the Sunday on-the-water teaching cruise in partnership with Wilmington Water Tours traveling on the Cape Fear River. Most students say the boat ride ties together what they learned in class the day before. The Saturday classroom instruction is fast paced and fun. Topics covered address basic navigation, rules of the road, docking, trailering, anchoring, radio communications, safety gear and more. Then, on Sunday, students can take the optional cruise down the Cape Fear River and back where dolphins and container ships are often spotted. The cruise enhances topics covered in class and adds discussions on chart reading, tides, currents, and weather.
Certified instructors with years of boating experience and local knowledge teach the course. In addition, the class satisfies the North Carolina boating education requirements for those born after January 1, 1988. For more information and to enroll, visit http://weteachboating.org.
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