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It's Time for me to move aboard

5K views 31 replies 14 participants last post by  Melrna 
#1 ·
Time to make the big decision and finally put my dream together. I just got promote to 737 Capt at work and moving from NJ to Miami sometime next year. I am getting the house ready to sell and put on the market by Feb. I have to go Dallas for 5 weeks of training sometime next year ( I hope they have enough bananas to train this monkey). So after 3 years of heavy research, sailing various boats and attending seminars it is time to find my dream boat. My top choices are Valiant 42 CE, Cabo Rico 38, Caliber 40LRC and Passport 40/41(no teak deck). I have two brokers who I trust (as much as they can be trusted) start to thin out those that are on the market and those secret boats that never see yatchworld. Now If the planets and stars line-up this dream might come true and the nightmare of boat ownership/liveaboard might come true.
If anyone hears about a secrect boat that might come up for sale PM me.
Melissa
 
#3 ·
One of the posters on Sailinet has Passport 40 for sale. :D Congratulations and good luck.
 
#4 ·
Melissa,

I wish you the best of luck. HOWEVER:

Where are you going to Live aboard?? If SE Florida, you better start calling right now to get on the 2 year waiting list at $20/foot.

A little sarcastic... not much. There have been a lot of threads on this. Not many LA marinas left down there.

- CD

PS Oh yeah, and Caliber or Passport...
 
#5 ·
Best of luck on your new adventure. I almost bought a Cabo Rico 38 and although I love the boat, in my opinion it has a serious lack of storage for a live on board. I'm only familiar with the Passport 40 on your list and it would suit your purposes just fine, a good solid boat with lots of storage space.
 
#8 ·
Melrna,
You don't even know how to fly a 737. How are you going to sail a boat?
Sailhog, I fly like I sail. I close my eyes and use the "Force"!:D

Thanks for all the suggestions on the marina's. I have already started. The word I have is there is high turnover in the dock space and during the hurricane season docks are easy to come by and they are yours for the rest of year. There are a few marina's that are hurricane holes and that is what I want.
 
#7 ·
Dockage in Miami

If you are going to have an actual Miami address (within corporate limits) you can get on the primary list at Coconut Grove Marina (city owned). Call ASAP, second choice is Crandon Park Marina, Key Biscayne. Third Choice for liveaboard would be Rickenbacker Marina on Virginia Key (next to Key Biscayne). Sunset Harbor in Miami Beach may be the easiet to get into as a liveaboard. If you can handle living in Fort Lauderdale (better day sailing in Miami on Biscayne Bay) there is ample dockage for liveaboards starting at around $700 and working on up to ridiculous. You can get nice liveaboard dockage for around $8-$900 without a problem, depending upon what you need. If you need details PM me and I'll give you listings and sources for dockage. Good luck. Whatever choice you make, work on your dockage now. Fair Winds!
 
#11 ·
Another possibility for dockage is renting from a private owner, though ,that leaves you without things like a bathouse and laundry. Two places I would not recommend are Dinner Key and Miamarina becase of the low level of the ammenities (at least in my thinking).

I've been on soulsearcher's Caliber40LRC and thought it was a very nice boat for a liveaboard.

Best of luck in your search,
 
#25 ·
Melrna,
Have you looked at any of the Shannons listed? Pamlicotraveler on this forum has a S-43 that looks really nice. His pictures are in the online album... I really don't know what they'd be like for livingaboard, but I'm curious.
They would be on #1 on my short list but a little more money than I want spent. Love this boat. Maybe I find someone to share this dream with, win the lottery, or get struck by lightning (for which I would make me forget about this nightmare of chasing sunsets). All are possible.

Labatt, I remember you and your wonderful family along with John and the rest of the gang. We had a great time. Have to do another party this spring. :p There is Passport 41 for sale in Ft Pierce now I will go look at when I go down next month. It doesn't have teak decks.
Melissa Renee'
Hopeless dreamer
 
#18 ·
I seem to recall having a light yellow sports coat in the 70's .........
 
#28 ·
His very thick skull is denser than the rest of him, so he tends to float upside down. ;)
 
#24 ·
Melnra - Congrats on being so fortunate as to be able to pursue a dream! I recall speaking to you about it for a short bit at the One and Only First Annual Annapolis Boat Show Show Sailnet Get Together! (we were the ones with the Chinese food). Anyway, I just wanted to mention that I think you'll be hard pressed to find a Passport without teak decks, although you could always pull the decks off and glass them over, but then you might be opening up a pretty significant can of worms with other work. If you find a good source of "not on yachtworld" boats, please let me know! And yes, my boat is "sort of" for sale. In other words, since we're not buying the Hallberg-Rassy 53 that we thought we were going to get, "Pelican" is on the market but I'm not actively pushing to sell her.
 
#26 ·
If you don't mind a bit of a commute, Harbourtown Marina in Fort Pierce has decent facilities. Overnight hop to St Augustine or Miami, a day's run to Lake Worth.
 
#32 ·
I hear you. Why I said I am nervous about the location. I have the same concerns. When I had up insurance and marina fees it is still comes out cheaper than taxes and insurance on a house. Depending on the house the savings can be significant. With my work schedule, I will be gone at least 3-4 days a week. So the liveaboard rule I can get around. I also have family down there as well. I am more concern with hurricanes as such but like everything else there are ways to handle that situation.
 
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