CREW TRAINING CLASSES

Classes are Free!

Signup is not required but is encouraged. No last day of registration.

Disclaimer : Those who don't signup can not be contacted if class needs to be cancelled or rescheduled.

Join our 4 week Summer Camp!

Each week can be taken individually or jump right in and take all 4 weeks! All of the weeks build on each other in a logical progression. Each week we will explore a different aspect of maritime life. We will use both the Barkentine Gazela and the Tugboat Jupiter to introduce kids to the Maritime world, including the history and what it looks like now. See the detailed description below. Everything will be done at the dock.

July 8th - August 2nd

Weekdays from 8 AM - 4 PM

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Visit us
down at Penn's Landing Marina

The Barkentine Gazela is located at Penn’s Landing – Columbus Blvd. and Market St. – South of the RiverRink (101 S Christopher Columbus Blvd.)

The Tugboat Jupiter is located just south of Gazela.

Requirements: Must be at least 16 years of age, or 14 with a parent’s participation. Closed toed shoes are required and COVID vaccinations are highly recommended. Be sure to wear something that is not movement restrictive, too loose (as to catch on machinery), or something that you don’t want to get dirty! Many of our ship restoration and preservation activities will leave you covered in dirt, paint, sweat and sawdust.

Summer Classes Overview

Week 1 - Deckhand

Standing a Watch, Boat Checks, Steering the ship (compass points), Parts of the ship, Sail to Steam to Diesel to Future, line handling, and navigation.

**Possible field trips : Rowing at ISM or BG, sail on Summerwind (extra $) NJ tour, ISM, or Rev war museum**

Standards to build on : Deck Department, skills towards an AB

Week 2 - Engineer

Engine types, basics of how they work, simple machines, checking/changing oil, outboards, and Sail to Steam to Diesel to Future

**Possible field trips : Olympia, Bacuna, or New Jersey**

Standards to build on : Engineer Department - welding, diesel mechanics

Week 3 - Bosun

Carpentry, Rigging, hand tools, basic power tool/machine tool, knots, fancy knot, sail repair, build a sea chest and/or ditty bag

**Field trip : ISM**

Week 4 - Living on the River

History of Philly working waterfront, water quality, micro plastics, trash, water cycle

**Field trips : Bartram's, Waterworks, River clean up, ISM, Penn Treaty Park and Museum, and Navy Yard**

Upcoming Classes

Checkout upcoming classes below or explore our Events Calendar here

Fall 1 Program - Bosun

Week 1: Familiarize with Gazela (safety)
Week 2: Rig (terminology, sail mechanics, tensioning, friction, maintenance)
Week 3: Mechanical advantage (moving heavy objects)
Week 4: Marlinspike seamanship (knots, splicing)
Week 5: Sail repair (begin ditty bag, “What would you put in a ditty bag?”)
Week 6: Related careers with guest speaker (finish ditty bag)
Week 7: Intro to woodworking (begin tool box)
Week 8: Related careers with guest speaker (finish tool box)

Fall 2 Program - Living on the River

Week 1: Familiarize with Gazela and the Delaware Watershed (impact of water on community life)
Week 2: History of Lenape, the Industrial Waterfront (Field Trip: Penn Treaty Museum)
Week 3: Biodiversity and fishing (Cod fisheries, recreation, fritter cooking)
Week 4: Modern Industry (Field Trip: Philly Shipyard)
Week 5: Pollution (General and point source, water quality testing)
Week 6: Community Response to Pollution (river cleanup or mussel hatchery)
Week 7: Review, Impact of the rivers on community life (recreation, environmental equity, employment)
Week 8: Rowing at Museum or Bartram’s Gardens

Spring 1 Program - Engineer (tools, welding, how diesel engines work, what does a ship engineer do, Olympia and Becuna

Week 1: Familiarize with Gazela and Jupiter (safety)
Week 2: Muscle, Sail (Buoyancy, hydro- and aero- dynamics of boats)
Week 3: Steam, Diesel, Future (Olympia and Becuna)
Week 4: How diesel engines work (start Becuna’s engine at the dock)
Week 5: Tool use (Wrenches, screwdrivers, metal saws, etc)
Week 6: Electrical (Wire a lightbulb)
Week 7: Welding (Bent nail tack welded initial)
Week 8: Careers in Engineering (sail on a tugboat)

Spring 2 Program - Deck Department

Week 1: Familiarize with Gazela (safety, ship vocabulary, etc)
Week 2: Emergency Response (MOB, firefighting)
Week 3: Life Aboard (social skills, steward department)
Week 3: Line handling, simple machines, heavy objects
Week 4: Watch Standing (boat check, basic rules of the road, ID lights)
Week 5: Navigation
Week 7: Plan their sail (course, weather considerations, create watches, etc.)
Week 8: Sail aboard Meerwald (possibly weekend)

Future Plans

Next year, we’ll grow our programming so that this year's students can build on what they learned, with a more rigorous curriculum based on industry standards of proficiency.

And then the next year, we will include a senior project solving a real world problem.

Our school year program will expand on each maritime category, diving deeper into the subjects and building on previous lessons.

With weekly, semester-long programming, students will learn skills that build over time, then apply those skills to the real-world problem of preserving the ships and their history.