How difficult is it to learn to sail a 26' sailboat on your own?

Question

How difficult is it to learn to sail a 26' sailboat on your own?

Answer 1

Short answer, it's not difficult at all.  In large part it depends upon you.  It's worth reading a book or two on the basics before you start.

One of the delights of sailing is that you can keep learning how to sail as long as you like - you can always improve, and there's always more to know.

As another poster noted, there are different sorts of sailing, but they do all build on the same foundations, and on each other.

You certainly can take courses, but if you are the type (or think you might be the type) who savors unaided accomplishments - the go for it!

Answer 2

The size of the boat is unimportant.  The fundamentals are the same.  Smaller lite boats respond more quickly than larger heaver boats and are more fun.  And, the bigger the boat, the more costly the mistakes can be.

I have owned boats ranging in size from 8' to 37'.

Answer 3

Where and what sort of sailing are you planning?  Learning to sail in local waters for an afternoon is far less difficult than learning coastal cruising, which is in turn, easier than learning to sail an ocean passage.  

In the US, I'd recommend going to an ASA (American Sailing Association) or US SAILING certified sailing school.  They both have basic keel boat courses that are well suited for a 26 foot sailboat.  

A "typical" student is ready to sail a boat on his/her own after 6-8 lessons with no prior experience, although every student is unique.

Good Sailing!

Answer 4

I bought a 22 footer ($500 plus motor). It was my second boat, my first being a 17 foot kayak. I took it out a couple times on motor. Then my wife and I went to a boating event at Baltimore's inner harbor and got a ride in a sailboat. The next day we were out on our own.

I took the coast guard safety course and studied a few books and web pages on sailing previously. Now we are planning to take the ASA courses and find a boat to live on when we retire in a few years.