Good offshore boats for a cruising couple

[SummitSailor]

My wife and I are dreaming about living the cruising lifestyle. We're currently living in Colorado where the only sailing is on mountain lakes, but we both have had some coastal cruising experience, including some bareboat chartering. We're planning to move to the East coast in a couple of years, buy a boat and do a lot of coastal sailing in preparation for our big adventure. Our ultimate goal is to take 5 years or so and do a tradewind circumnavigation. I would like some advice about what would be an appropriate monohull for this kind of trip. Our desired characteristics:

1) Length 37-43 ft
2) Solid, bluewater capability (safety first)
3) Comfortable for a liveaboard couple, with occasional visitors
4) Cost: about $150K

Some of the boats I am looking at are the Caliber 38/40, Island Packet 38, Passport 40, Slocum 43. The Caliber appears to be a well built boat, although hard to find in our price range. There seems to be a lot of used Island Packet 38's for sale from 125-175K.

Anybody have opinions about Caliber versus Island Packet for doing a circumnav? Are these boats up to the task? Is it even reasonable to hope to find a solid bluewater boat for $150K? If we bought a 15 or 20 year old boat, how much should we expect to spend to get it fitted out for world cruising?

Any opinions would be appreciated.

[PBzeer]

A lot depends on what you expect for your money. If your budget is 150K, then realistically, you're looking at a boat you can buy for around 120K. You will need to do upgrades/refits on pretty much anything you buy.

I'll let others chime in with specific boats you could consider beyond those you list.

[kccollbran]

Like you I live in Colorado. I've always made sacrifices so others would be happy. I decided recently, to make me and my family happy. We bought a great boat, Rawson 30, in Mexico. She's an older lady, but extremely well built, and oufitted for a circumnav. I won't tell you what I paid for her, but it was a tremendous deal. We are going to have her interior refitted/upgraded. The surveyor told me that we bought the boat for about 20% of her value.

I personally like the Island Packet. When you get into their over 40's, you have the added benefit of the center cockpit and rear master. Nice if you want to have a visiting crew.

Have a great evening,
Kevin

kccollbran@yahoo.com

[FarCry]

You might consider a 1980's vintage Pacific SeaCraft Crealock 37'. Good reputation and available in your price range. An example can be seen here 1986 Pacific Seacraft Crealock 37 Cutter Rig Boat For Sale

I have never seen this particular boat or know anything about it, or for that matter have an interest in it. I did have the opportunity to sale on a similar PSC vessel and was impressed with the overall construction and sailing characteristics.

I lived in Colorado, like both of you, before moving to the VI.

Good Luck

[SummitSailor]

Did you get such a great deal because you bought in Mexico? I have heard that it's possible to find a good deal in Mexico, and was wondering if there's any truth to that. Did you have any worries about buying a boat outside the U.S.? did you bring it back to the U.S., or are you going to leave it in Mexico?

[southerncross31]

Check out a used Halberg Rassey 35 center cockpit. Maybe a little smaller than the others but they are excellent offshore boats. My uncle has an IP 38 and they are great too, but maybe a little slower and they don't point as high. They have tons of room in them though. Of course i must shamelessly plug the Southern Cross 39. Arghh they be salty old boats with tons of character You may also want too look at the tried and true Valiant 40. Any of these boats could sail around the world with work and experience.

[labatt]

I'm completely biased, but the Passport 40 is definitely a couple's bluewater cruiser. My wife and I constantly comment on that fact on ours. It's manageable for a family of 4, it's perfect for a couple with an occasional guest. You can singlehand her when necessary (when you lead the lines aft), she drives well in a heavy sea, and she's immensely comfortable below. She has a lot of beam for her size/age which makes for a nice cockpit and a roomy interior along with slightly lower heeling angles than similar boats. They were also built fairly well and most problem areas are well documented. I'd be more than happy to answer any questions you may have.

[camaraderie]

On Caliber vs. Island Packet for a circumnav...I vote Caliber. It is designed for that and sails better...though the Packets are also appealing. Other boats you should consider that are within or can be close to your budget:
Tayana 37 and 42
Older Valiant 40's
Brewer42
Petersen 44
Hylas 44
Pearson 424/422

[kwaltersmi]

Yes, you can definately get a good bluewater capable boat for $150k (or less in many instances).

Here are a few that would be on my list of bluewater boats that are 35+ feet in length and less than $150k:

Pacific Seacraft 37
Ta Shing Baba 40
Panda 38
Young Sun 35/43
Valiant 40
Cabo Rico 38
Hans Christian 38/43
Shanon 38

Many of the above also have smaller, more affordable sisterships available in the 30'-35' range.

[johnshasteen]

If you are going long-term cruising, you are going to run into some bad weather - given that, you need to be sure that you select a boat that you and your spouse can handle in a blow.
If you wonder what can happen out there, go to the Seamanship thread, and read the thread Storm Tactics with a Heavy Boat, starting on page 7, comment #65 - it's about the gale that we just went through with Paloma (a Bristol 29.9) on an otherwise ideallic 250 mile hop from Port Isabell to Freeport. Think about that and picture you and your wife in that situation and then think about how large a boat you should really be looking at.