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Young couple seeking advice, buying first time cruiser
Hello! We're a couple in our early twenties, VERY NEW to sailing, but we have the opportunity to purchase a boat and are anxious to grab hold of the cruising dream! We want to buy a liveaboard cruiser to sail the Puget Sound, from WA to Mexico, and maybe in a few years WA to Hawaii. We're looking for a boat within the $10,000 price range and have our eyes on two local boats. We're hoping for some advice from more experienced sailors on which would be the best to purchase and anything we should keep our eyes during the surveyor/purchasing process.
The first is a 1977 30' San Juan, displacement:7200, ballast:3500
The second is a 1971 30' Islander, displacement approx:6800, ballast approx:2800
I don't want to contradict any of the excellent advice that has been offered so far in this thread, but I did want to offer a little more encouragement regarding what you can do with your budget. You're blessed to be living in the Pacific Northwest. You're in the middle of some of the best cruising grounds in the country and the perfect place to learn about yourselves and sailing. No need to head down the coast or to Hawaii just yet. That's the big dream for a lot of people, but this isn't really an endeavour where jumping right in makes a lot of sense.
I think what has been said about planning to buy two boats makes the most sense--one for the next few years, to kick the tires and learn on, and another a few years down the road once you have enough experience to decide for yourself what to look for. You'll probably never find the best boat for you based on advice from others; you'll get great advice here, don't get me wrong, but everyone has an opinion in sailing, and as you will learn, at lot of them differ!
But while you should be cautious investing your 10 grand, and make sure you get the best boat you can, I think your budget is absolutely reasonable to do some great and exciting sailing. The numbers that other people have cited here aren't wrong, but they aren't necessarily reflective of what you really need if you modify your immediate goals somewhat and make some compromises. Lose the watermaker, the liferaft, a lot of the electronics, make do with some of the existing systems. There's no question that boats are expensive and that you'll end up spending way more on repairs than you ever imagined. That said, I have found that many people will tell you that you need to do a lot of things you really don't. I wouldn't suggest you compromise your safety (although just leaving dry land does that to some extent; you have to decide what you risk tolerance is) but people have been sailing for hundreds of years without the bells, whistles, and intensive maintenance programs that some people now prescribe.
My GF and I are a couple years ahead of you and yours. We got a 33 footer for $15K and we've put about another $10K into it and had great fun on Puget Sound and in the San Juans for the last few years. This year, we're taking her to Alaska. So there is every reason to believe you can get a good start on your dreams for what you have to spend.
Great post Scuzz my family made its first trip when I was 3 from Victoria BC to Mexico across to Hawaii and back in a 32" boat with no fancy GPS not even a VHF just a sextant some charts and a lot of good seamanship on my parents part. If my father's memory is correct the boat cost approx $1300.00 and another $1000.00 to fix before they set sail.
There are two adventures that come with putting well oiled teak under your feet and the wind at your back - the adventure of cruising the beauty of the San Juans and other coastal delights and the adventure of 'elbow grease' and working on your vessel. If you are not one of the economically fortunate sailors that can afford a new boat and can afford to pay for the maintenance of the boat, which results in missing half of the sailing adventure, you need to make sure you are handy with tools and knowledge if you are going to be a boat owner. In looking at a used vessel, here are some pointers, check to see if there are any bubbles or small bumps in the gel coat of the hull. Everything can be fixed, but this could indicate a $3-5,000 repair on the boats you are looking at. Also, look for cracks or crazing (hair line cracks) around the fittings that attach to the deck. Another indicator of potential repair work. The suggestion, already made, of getting a Surveyor to look at the boat is a good one. Make sure the surveyor has experience with sailboats. You might also check with the USCG Marine Safety office in your area and ask one of the commercial vessel inspectors about the reputation of the surveyor you have identified.
Sailing is one sport that stays fresh and new over the years and can be enjoyed at any age, so welcome to a life long adventure.
The Nordic Myst.
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