The Wawenock Sail & Power Squadron is offering exciting nautical courses this fall. These classes are open to non-members as well as members.

Listed below are the classes in the Brunswick and Damariscotta area:

America's Boating Course, Merrymeeting Adult Ed: Topsham/Brunswick (starts Sept. 9) and Central Lincoln County Adult Ed, Damariscotta (starts Sept. 9)

Learn the basics of boating: rules of the road, navigational lights and buoys, use of compass for bearings, marine charts and introduction to piloting. This course meets the requirements of most states for a recreational boating license. Book and piloting tools are included. Seven weeks.

Seamanship: Merrymeeting Adult Ed, Topsham/Brunswick (starts Oct. 8) The Seamanship course is the next step after completing America’s Boating Course. Seamanship adds foundational information for continuing boater education. Emphasis within the course has been placed on higher level boating skills, rules of the road, and marlinspike. The course presents material applicable to both power and sail, covering such topics as the construction and functioning of a boat, anchoring, the skipper’s responsibilities, preparing the boat for use, and the handling and maneuvering of a vessel under various conditions in close quarters and on the open water. This is a great jump start for a "six-pak" U.S. Coast Guard license. Taught by experienced U.S. Power Squadron instructors. Eight weeks.

Advanced Piloting: Merrymeeting Adult Ed, Topsham/Brunswick (starts Sept. 8) This course continues to build on the base developed in Piloting, and includes practical use of additional electronic navigation systems and other advanced techniques for finding position. Among topics covered are finding position using bearings and angles; collision avoidance using GPS and radar; what to do when electronics fail; tides, currents and wind and their effect on piloting; and electronic navigation. Taught by experienced U.S. Power Squadron instructors. Prerequisite Basic Coastal Navigation (Piloting); 10 weeks.

How to register: Online registrations accepted at www.merrymeeting.org or by phone 207-729-7323 for Brunswick courses. For the Damariscotta class, call 207-563-2811; http://clc.maineadulted.org