As the Training Ship Golden Bear set out from Vallejo on May 8, over 300 Cal Poly Maritime Academy students lined its hull. For cadets, the departure marked the start of a 65-day training voyage across the Pacific. For the TS Golden Bear, it marked the beginning of its final voyage.
At the end of 2026, the TS Golden Bear will be replaced by the Training Ship Golden State, a new vessel being built for the primary purpose of training.
Every summer for the past 30 years, Cal Poly Maritime Academy has sent its first and third-year cadets on a global voyage aboard the TS Golden Bear. The 500-foot-long ship serves as a floating classroom and laboratory where students put everything they’ve learned in the classroom into practice.
“Golden Bear is more than steel and machinery. It’s part of our identity, our tradition, and our training,” Captain Samar Bannister said. “I was a freshman on the second cruise of Golden Bear, and it was magical. For many of us, it’s where the journey truly began.”
This year’s journey marks the first Summer Sea Term since Cal Poly Maritime Academy’s integration with Cal Poly. The voyage is set to last two months, with scheduled port calls in San Diego; Papeete, Tahiti; Suva, Fiji; and Honolulu.
“Summer Sea Term aboard the training ship is incredibly exciting, but it’s also very rigorous,” Bannister said. The cadets work seven days a week without any days off. Their work consists of a rotation through four central areas that prepare students for careers as engine and deck officers.
Engineering cadets stand watch in the engine room, monitoring all types of machinery, while the deck cadets stand watch on the bridge, conducting navigation communication, collision avoidance and helm duties.
Another rotation takes place within the six classrooms aboard, where the students continue their academic curriculum. They also complete U.S. Coast Guard assessments required for worldwide service while helping with maintenance, inspections and repairs.
Marine transportation senior Katin Chomchavalit is one of the 300 cadets on board. His mother, Melanie Chomchavalit, couldn’t be more proud.
“There’s a real sense of pride knowing he’s achieved something so demanding and respected,” she said. “At the same time, it’s bittersweet. You realize he’s stepping into a new phase of life, one that may take him far from home and out to sea.”
Bannister remembers her voyage as a freshman fondly. “Some people fall in love with the sea and the work, while others realize they may need to change direction. Both outcomes are valuable. Personally, I fell in love with it.”
TS Golden Bear is set to return to California in July.
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