How to join

The ship exists for young people to learn about sailing by doing it. If you are aged between 12 and 18, and you want to sail, then get in touch. See Contacts.

You can take part as an individual, or as part of a group, for example your school may run a trip (if not, then why not organise a trip for your school - we'll help). We go on trips with crews made up of individuals, with scout groups, special needs groups, groups arranged by St Mawes Sailing Club, and so on.

To make the most of what the "Hardiesse" offers involves sailing in summer and taking part in the care of the ship in winter, and so our activities are based in Falmouth throughout the year. The Falmouth Sail Training Ship is intended particularly to benefit those living locally in Cornwall or who have a connection with Cornwall which enables them to take part.

Summer

In the sailing season (for the Hardiesse this is roughly April - September) we meet on Tuesday evenings at Fishstrand Quay at 7pm. We use the dinghy to get the ship which is moored out in the middle of Falmouth Harbour. There's not really enough time to sail in the evenings, so we do maintenance jobs (painting etc) and return to Fishstrand Quay at 9pm. The Hardiesse sails on Sundays most of the summer, depending on bookings. For Regular Crew - those of you who attend frequently and who help with maintenance - we give priority and we will arrange sailing trips for you in particular.

Day Sails - These can be in Carrick Roads, or towards Helford, returning to the mooring late afternoon.

Weekend Trips - These might be for example to Fowey, mooring overnight there are returning the next day.

Week Cruises - These are usually to France, and to any one of several locations. The journey across the Channel depends on the weather, but typically takes 36 hours, involving night-time sailing, navigation, and much more practical sailing - for example during a whole week's cruise, we'll moor in one harbour, anchor in another bay, hoist out the ship's dinghies - generally do much more.

Unless the dinghy is coming back for a second load, once it's gone out to the ship, you've missed it. From the ship it's quite hard to see whether anyone's standing on the quay, and we don't want you to be disappointed, so it's better to get there earlier rather than be too late.
Where to meet See diagram for Fishstrand Quay. The car park next to the quay is Church Street car park. Fishstrand Quay is a public quay, so there's no advertising or signboard, you'll just see some people waiting by the steps on the quayside.

Winter

From about October to the following March, the ship doesn't sail, and she rests alongside Islington Wharf in Penryn. During the winter months we do maintenance on the ship. We can't offer you sailing in the winter, but we do want your help with the maintenance. We have to keep the ship in good condition to enable the sailing in summer. Helping with the maintenance is a good way to get to understand the ship.

All the rigging is taken off, all the stores from below decks, and parts of the ship are covered to reduce weathering. There is more on Maintenance.

On Sundays, and again on Tuesday evenings, we carry out the maintenance and make improvements to the ship's equipment.

Cost

There is no charge for visiting us on Tuesday evenings, especially if you can use sandpaper and a paintbrush, or if you can make tea. For Regular Crew there is no cost for day sails, and weekend trips or journeys to France are charged at food cost only.

Day sailing events for groups are arranged at a cost of £25 per head. For other participants, the cost of a weekend trip in 2007 was typically £40, and the cruises to France, typically £195. We reserve the right to amend prices as necessary.

Before returning ashore - a group from Falmouth School.