Providing practical experience and personal, professional instruction aboard a modern ocean sailing yacht.

Lending experience and guidance to those who aspire to venture offshore one day on their own boat.

After experiencing an ocean passage aboard Voyager, you will have the knowledge and experience needed to sail the oceans, cruise, or charter anywhere.



You'll sail as a full, contributing crewmember and receive instruction in all phases of ocean passage making, including:
  • Voyage planning
  • Boat and crew preparation
  • Meal planning and provisioning
  • Navigation:  GPS and plotting
  • Weather and routing
  • Heavy weather preparations
  • Shipboard monitoring and maintenance
  • Anchoring
  • Helmsmanship
  • Sail trim
  • Watchkeeping
  • Logkeeping
  • Shipkeeping
  • Emergency procedures
  • Seamanship procedures
  • COB techniques
  • Any and all questions will be answered.
Feel your confidence grow as you live a dream adventure, passagemaking to an exotic destination.

You receive our pledge that we'll do everything possible to make your voyage comfortable, fun, and most all, an unforgettable experience. We promise to impart as much knowledge as possible, so bring all your voyaging questions.


An instructional passage aboard Voyager allows you to:
  • Build confidence and abilities that will allow you to make your own voyages.
  • Experience the ocean and learn what skills and knowledge is required to cross them.
  • Gain practical, hands-on experience on a passage before spending the time and money to outfit your own boat. Be certain the dream is yours before investing in it.
  • Experience exotic ports of call at both ends of the passage. Most crewmembers arrive a few days early to overcome jet lag and vacation as the sailing day approaches. Have family members join in the fun on land, then take part in an ocean adventure when the vacation ends!

Check out our   2008 Schedule.

Sail aboard Voyager!

She is built as a Category A vessel: Designed for extended voyages where conditions may exceed wind Force 8 (Beaufort scale) with significant wave heights of 4 meters and above, and vessels that are self sufficient.
The Beneteau Category A boats are built for rough conditions, and handle them in stride. Yet, despite their inherent strength, they are nimble and fast through the water. Voyager was designed by Pinot for Beneteau, and she lives up to that heritage.
Voyager's 39 foot waterline, which increases as she heels, provides her with a calculated hull speed of over 8.3 knots (1.34 X square root of LWL). Her Yanmar diesel provides ample power to assure steady headway in light air conditions.

Accommodations

With two full cabins fore and two aft, Voyager is designed with room for 10, and is fully outfitted to make voyaging safe, fast, and fun. We sail with a maximum of six to allow more individual and small group instruction, experiences, and privacy. Voyager has two heads, a full galley and comfortable salon big enough for everyone. Each crewmember is provided with a bunk and private storage room.
Voyager's equipment includes a dodger/bimini, self steering system, 8-person Offshore Life raft, EPIRBs, Life sling, Alert-2 MOB Alarms, Propane 3-burner stove/oven, GPS, Ratheon Radar, storm jib and storm trysail, spinnaker, satellite radiotelephone and VHFs, sea anchor, sextant and all celestial navigational publications and tools, Avon dinghy with motor, and more.

Meals

Meals are not usually fancy, but they are designed to be nutritional and good tasting. Meal planning and provisioning are discussed so everyone can learn what's involved when it's time to stock your own ocean boat. Everyone will be given the chance to assist in meal preparation and clean-up, which are integral parts of ocean sailing.
You are invited to bring your favorite boat recipes along!

What's Provided on our passages?

While learning the practices and methods used to conduct an ocean passage, we will provide:
  • A live, ocean classroom full of fun and adventure
  • Daily instruction in specific subjects, with plenty of practical, hands-on experience.
  • The opportunity to become fully acquainted with and use all equipment on board.
  • The opportunity to have all of your voyaging mysteries solved and all questions answered to provide the most comprehensive passage making learning experience possible.
  • Your voyage fee includes all food while at sea, professional, expert instruction, Voyager Ocean Passage Book, customs and port fees at our destinations.
  • A Voyager Ocean Passages custom T-shirt.
Who's The Skipper/Instructor?

As a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, and owner of ELM Animal Hospital, Ed Mapes had veterinary articles published in Modern Veterinary Practice magazine, was a Member of Who's Who in Veterinary Medicine, and wrote a weekly newspaper column for 15 years.
In his roles as a licensed U.S. Coast Guard Master, offshore delivery captain and certified sailing instructor for the American Sailing Association, Ed is the author of Ready to Sail, which details the inspection process and repairs for offshore sailing vessels, along with the preparations of both boat and crews. He also authored the Voyager Ocean Passage Seminars Book, and the Voyager Ocean Passages Voyaging Book
His experience in sailing is "broad reaching", and includes racing, cruising and offshore yacht delivery. 15 years of racing included 8 Port Huron Mackinaws, with two first places, two seconds, and a third, North American Championships in Hobie 33, along with Great Lakes and North American Championships in the Etchells class. He was helmsman on the Farr 50 "Experience".
Tens of thousands of miles on a wide variety of hulls in yacht delivery, offshore teaching, and cruising have proven to be a great teacher of practical knowledge in seamanship and ocean voyaging. Ed's passion for imparting this information in the art and techniques of seamanship truly make each Voyager Offshore Passage a Learning Adventure.



Join us for a Passage Adventure

Your interest in ocean sailing and cruising is the first important step in the process toward fulfilling those dreams. A passage aboard Voyager is a logical second step. There are preparations you must make first, though, to ensure that your offshore passage is as rewarding as it should be.

Check out our 2008 Schedule.

Offshore crews must be comprised of sailors who are ready, able, and willing to form a team unit where each person contributes and takes part in the sailing and learning processes.
These sailors should have experience in the basics of sailing and boat handling. They should be familiar with the atmosphere both above and below decks, with some understanding of life aboard while in a seaway.
Ocean crews should be comprised of persons without health problems that would jeopardize them or their crewmates. They should be basically healthy and physically fit, and capable of taking part in the strenuous activities and demands of passage making.
Before each voyage, persons accepted aboard will be sent literature with clothing and gear recommendations, a list of crew responsibilities and skills that will be learned, and the Voyager Ocean Passages Book that accompanies each passage.
Crewmembers are advised to learn and practice the skills list, outfit themselves with the recommended clothing and gear, and study the book so that learning from the instructions will be maximized to its fullest.
We will ask that each applicant fill out the Crewmember Application Form, which will allow for selection of great crews ready and eager to partake in a great passage.

 The crew for our 2007 Annapolis to Bermuda fall passage.  From left Tom Lange, A.J. Suarez, Larry Weld, and George Elliot. 

Voyager Ocean Passages

4903 Carolina Circle

McKinney, TX 75071

Phone: (877) 36-OCEAN

Email: captainmapes@offshorevoyager.com

     The crew for our 2007 Annapolis to Bermuda fall passage.  From left Tom Lange, A.J. Suarez, Larry Weld, and George Elliot.