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Need Advice for First Time Cruising

6K views 32 replies 18 participants last post by  baileyrace 
#1 ·
I am very new to sailing. It has been a long time dream to learn and I got my chance this summer in San Diego.

Now, my wife and I are wanting to plan an extended sailing trip this next summer with our 3 children. We want to spend at least a month out, maybe 3 months.

We need advice on a good location for newbies. We would like to buy a boat and start cruising from the same place.

Plan on starting in May or June.
 
#3 ·
Hi Brady,
We are learning to sail out in Matagorda Bay. Very little traffic with worlds of close places to sail to as we learn. We keep out Starwind in a slip in Port Lavaca and live in Port O'Connor.
 
#4 ·
If I were just starting out, I think I'd give someone like "Sun Sail" a call and maybe charter a boat for the time out.. being you're just starting out, buying a boat and getting it ready to cruise is a big undertaking, not that it cant be done, just very time consuming.......
It took us almost 6 years to find the boat we wanted and another 4 to get it ready to go......... after 10 years, we're ready to cut the lines...
 
#5 ·
Panama city florida. Andrews bay is a great place to start. You can sail protected waters from Mobile Alabama to Port Saint Joe Florida. If you get bored you can sail the Chandeleur islands off of Louisiana or even cross the gulf to explore the keys. But for a month or three a newby should have a lot of fun between Port saint joe and Mobile. Turner marine in Mobile is a fairly large broker and their are others in the area also.
 
#6 ·
Go back to San Diego. San Diego has some great locations within reasonable distances, and boats sell cheaper there. First of all, San Diego harbor itself, but within 10 hours is Catalina Island, and another 10 hours north of that, the Channel Islands National Park consisting of 4 islands in the Santa Barbara Channel.

May and June could be a bit iffy re weather. In May expect heavy N to NW winds, although there are some good days. June is generally overcast. The best month(s) is from August to sometimes through November. I've spent Christmas at the islands in shorts and sunscreen.

If you're new to sailing, hire an instructor to check you out on the boat and your skills. I'm not much for sailing schools, which are too pricey and usually try to charge exhorbitant prices for boats in their charters. An instructor will be half the cost and a lot more informative on a one-on-one basis. Yeah, yeah, won't get certified, who cares? I've chartered all around the world and never been asked for a certification.
 
#7 ·
Thanks

Thank you everyone for the advice... Florida sounds nice, we have never been there. San Diego is an awesome place and we would love to go back there but the weather during the time we want to go may be the issue keeping us from there.

I live in Texas and didn't even know about those places. lol

Texas is a huge place...
 
#8 ·
Give serious thought to buying any boat and then heading out immediately. Even a new boat will likely have some issues to be ironed out.

I support the idea of striking a long term deal with a charter company. They can supply a skipper for the first week to teach you that boat and the local cruising grounds. Not owning the boat relieves you of many long term chores and also opens up many more places to cruise like the Virgin Islands. The VI's would be off season so rates will be low. I'd expect a one month rental to cost what a one week rental in high season would cost. If a hurrican threatens, not your boat mon! Just turn it back in and let them do the prep work.
You could even divide your time to several different places. June in the VI and then July in the Cheasapeake and August in Maine!!!
 
#9 ·
You didn't really say what you were looking for in terms of a sailing area, but since your proposed window will fall right into Hurricane season, I'm guessing maybe not the Carribean unless maybe you consider xort's plan (which actually sounds pretty cool to me).

Anyway, if you are set on buying your own boat to do this, how about the Chesapeake Bay? There are tons of boats available for sail and you could easily spend a couple of months just poking around the bay. If you get tired of the bay, you could head south down the ICW and end up closer to home. Also there are many, many places on the bay capable of addressing any unexpected issues that might come up with the boat.
 
#10 ·
These are great ideas. Exactly what I was hoping to get. Your input is helping me create a list of places and options we are considering. We want to have our location nailed down sometime in February.

I am considering the suggestions about chartering but we are really wanting our own boat. This will be the first of many adventures for us and it would be nice to have our own.

Already looking at some boats. I can't imagine taking 6 years to find a boat. We have some basic ideas of what we want and a budget. I think when the time comes we will make a descision fairly quickly.

Does it really take 4 years to get a boat ready to cruise? That is a long time.
 
#14 ·
I am considering the suggestions about chartering but we are really wanting our own boat. This will be the first of many adventures for us and it would be nice to have our own.

Does it really take 4 years to get a boat ready to cruise? That is a long time.
I would not be too rash about jumping into a boat that you are planning to put your family in for long periods of time. The chartering suggestion is more than intelligent. Call Footloose (since older boats should not be an issue to you). Take the whole family and go down to the BVI and sail a reasonable size mono and a cat for at least a week. (You can get both boats into one week if you have to). They can provide a captain who can teach you the basics for each boat type, or you can call Rob Swain in Nanny Cay.
Make a determination of what you need for size and boat type. This simple and relatively cheap trip (you have no idea how exact these words are!) will probably be the difference between an adventure and a GREAT adventure.

As to the question about getting a boat ready, all you need to do is read this site. If you can find a "well cared for boat" you can cut the time significantly. If you are "handy" and can get the work done well yourself, you can save both time and money. The equipment you will want to add are determined by where you plan to sail and the nature of the boat you are buying. Most boats are NOT setup for cruising. They need things like: watermakers, radar, SSB, solar charging, navigation software and a computer, special sails (spinnaker?), and the list goes on.
Fairwinds
 
#11 ·
No, I bought, planned, and retrofitted in 3 years. I am heading south this oct.(six month's of cruising), from the annapolis area on the Chesapeake, and can hardly wait. It depends on the condition of the boat, and how many systems you want to know inside and out. If you are doing the work on the boat yourself, it takes lots and lots of reading to do a job, and most importantly do it right. I have learned so many valuable lessons on this site. (saving time, money, and headaches), so you are in good company. Good luck
 
#13 ·
I have been thinking about the Florida panhandle lately. There have been some posts about Florida but does anyone else have good starting locations in this area of Florida?

My idea of a good starting location would be a place with reasonable prices on things like slips and supplies.

I think my kids will do great but my kids have not been out for long periods of time. So I may need to ease into it the first month. That said a location that is kid friendly will be needed as well.

We are also looking to meet other families with children on this trip so we need a family friendly location. We have two girls and a boy. 11, 8, and 9
 
#15 ·
Assuming an older stock boat in good condition, a decent marina/boatyard and the ability to pay to get stuff and have it installed for you. It takes about 90 days to prep a boat fully for family cruising in my experience. Moving yourselves aboard and prepping for the cruising lifestyle and skills required can take considerably longer. Part of that skill is figuring out how the marina whould spend its' 90 days! :D
 
#16 ·
Newbe

Your enthusiasm is great, but I think it will get you in the long run. I have known and helped too many "I'm just learning to sail" families that show up at the marina with their new to them boat. In every case within the first season they have decided they bought their first boat in haste and it is not right for them. They have enjoyed their time on the water and then in the off season go through the expense of getting rid of the wrong boat and finding the right one. Unless you have deep pockets and can afford to throw tens of thousands of dollars away I would try chartering a few different types of boats and spend some time with a broker looking at different boats. Then make a list of what you need to have, what would be nice to have, and things you don't want. Once you have that done you can probably find the boat that is right for you. My search took about a year to narrow down the list and an other year to find the right boat. I'm still happy with it almost 10 years after the purchase so it was worth the time and effort. Boat shopping can almost be as much fun as sailing if you approach it correctly.
 
#18 ·
Cptken has some good advice for you... in the meantime if you're near an active lake try to hook up with someone needing crew (casual weekend racing, for example) - you'll learn a lot at little or no expense, and perhaps get some exposure to a variety of boats so you an refine your own goals.

Re chartering, without doing any reasearch, I'd guess your looking at between $2K and $4k/week depending on area and boat, perhaps more in some cases. It should be easy to google up some rates.
 
#24 · (Edited)
I was looking into the Tampa FL area as a launching area for our trip. Can someone shed some light on Tampa being a good area to base from for a 1st time cruiser?

My thoughts are to spend the first month getting to know the area and the boat. So we would not leave Tampa Bay during this time. Second month we would venture out further.

Are there lots of things to see and do in this bay?
 
#27 ·
Lots of options

If you are seeking a place to start sailing that will be "easy" I might suggest The Chesapeake Bay, it is the largest estuary in the US and has over 4000 miles of shoreline for cruising. It sports 30+ rivers and countless creeks for anchorages. It has many nice family destinations. In the summer the temps can be a bit hot and late summer you will find more than enough jellyfish to discourage swimming.

As for a boat, that is a personal question. It will depend on how friendly your family is and the ages. On my first boat I did a 2 week cruise on a 22' boat (no standing headroom) with my wife and my young daughter and my in-laws! It was more than crowded and it it wasn't for the fact we didn't know how crowded we were we would have not enjoyed ourselves as much as we did. I now sail a 27' boat and subscribe to the theory: 6 for drinks, 4 for dinner and 2 for sailing is about right. Of course I have had 5 people out for an afternoon but that is different.
 
#28 ·
Thanks xort! I appreciate the info about Tampa. Just the kind of info I am looking for.

Chesapeake sounds tempting Joe. What is the best time of year up there? I have three kids so a good time for swimming would be important. Nice sailing blog by the way...
 
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