Derwent Sailing Squadron

The Derwent Sailing Squadron (DSS) sits at 23 Marieville Esplanade, Sandy Bay, right next door to the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania on the western shore of the River Derwent. It is a big, busy racing club — more than 150 racing events a year — with a calendar that covers twilights, the SB20 Summer Pennant, the Combined Clubs Saturday Series, midweek racing, an offshore series and a winter pennant.

Off the water, DSS runs a marina with casual berth bookings, a slipyard (open weekdays, emergencies only on weekends), a fuel facility, and The Moorings Restaurant & Bar, plus function and conference spaces. Its Sailtrain program covers the MAST motor boat licence, marine radio (VHF), Safety and Sea Survival and Start Crewing courses. Membership options include a SailPass for people who want to get out on the water without owning a boat. Find other clubs nearby on our Sandy Bay sailing clubs page.

Sailtrain is the Squadron's training arm, and it is built around the skills that actually get people onto boats. Courses include the MAST Motor Boat Licence, the Marine Radio Short Range (VHF) certificate, Safety and Sea Survival — needed by many crews taking part in offshore races — and Start Crewing, a practical introduction for adults who want to join a race crew. Private tuition is available too, and the course calendar is published online so you can book a place ahead of time.

For people who would rather learn on the job, the Squadron's racing calendar is the best classroom in Hobart. Midweek racing, the twilight series and the Combined Clubs Saturday Series all need crew, and the SailPass membership is designed for exactly that: a way to sail regularly without the cost of owning a yacht. Radio-controlled sailors have their own home too, through the Squadron Radio Sailing Group, and the club supports Sailability Tasmania, which offers sailing for people of all abilities.

The clubhouse sits on the Sandy Bay foreshore at 23 Marieville Esplanade, a short walk from Hobart's city centre, with the Royal Yacht Club of Tasmania next door and Sandy Bay Sailing Club further along the shore at Long Point. The two neighbouring clubs share the river closely — the season opens each October with a combined sail-past of both fleets on Opening Day.

Racing happens on the River Derwent, a broad, deep estuary that offers everything from tight inshore courses off Sandy Bay to longer passage races heading south towards Storm Bay. Offshore events such as the Two Capes Race and the Launceston to Hobart take crews well beyond the river, while the String of Pearls cruising program links up anchorages for more relaxed weekends, with a mooring booking system for members.

The marina is the Squadron's pride. The Graham Blackwood Marina opened in 1985, and the Roy Barkas Marina Extension added 138 floating berths in 2015, taking total capacity to 277 vessels — the largest of any club in Tasmania. There is a slipyard for maintenance, fuel on site, and The Moorings Restaurant & Bar for lunch or a drink after racing. For more on sailing around the capital, see our Hobart destination guide.

The Squadron was founded in February 1906 as the Domain Sailing Squadron, and its first meetings were held aboard the Derwent Hunter, an old whaling ship moored at the Domain slipyard. When the Derwent Hunter was destroyed by fire in 1907, the club carried on without a home of its own for almost fifty years, meeting in taverns and later the RSL building in central Hobart.

The turning point came in 1953, when the Squadron leased Cheverton's Jetty on the Sandy Bay foreshore from the Cheverton family. Members bought the jetty outright in 1963 for £11,750, and in 1965 the permanent clubhouse — built for around $25,000 — was officially opened by Lady Gairdner, wife of the Governor of Tasmania.

The marina came next. The Graham Blackwood Marina opened in 1985 with 104 berths and was later expanded to 130, and in 2015 the Roy Barkas Marina Extension added a further 138 floating berths. Today the Squadron that once had nowhere to meet runs Tasmania's largest club marina and one of the busiest racing programs in the country.