A home Base while Cruising???

MoonSailer · #1 (**permalink**) 11-30-2008

A question for cruisers. Do you cruise out of a home base for a month or two at a time or do you keep moving???? Say you have a slip in Panama City do you cruise for a month or two and return to PC or do you stop somewhere else say Charleston SC?? For us we are trying to decide a style of cruising. So say we are in Mobile and sail around to the Chesapeake bay. Should we leave our boat at a slip in virginia for a few months to visit family or return to Mobile??? right now I am thinking no permanent base cruise for a month or two at a time and find a slip locally to leave the boat for a break then return to pick up where we stopped.

camaraderie · #2 (**permalink**) 11-30-2008

Moon...lots of people do it both ways. It's all good!!
Especially if you are just cruising in the States...leaving the boat somewhere for a few months is no problem but it does get a bit pricey since you will be paying higher rates than for a full time slip at home...and the prices are a bit higher most places than in your neck of the woods.
We still had our house when we went cruising as it had not sold yet...and it was always a hassle and a constant worry so we were glad when it sold. Other friends rent their place out to generate some income while retaining ownership...but you need someone to take care of the place and deal with broken water pipes at 3am.
The most important thing is to find a cruising lifestyle that you are both comfortable with and can afford. If you do go with the "leave it there and pick it up for the next segment" plan..always allow a week in your plans to deal with new found problems. Boats just don't sit...they start to deteriorate when not used.

Vasco · #3 (**permalink**) 11-30-2008

In our winter cruising we do not have a home base. Costs too much to keep a slip that you don't use. We cruise the Bahamas for six months always at anchor except for a few days in Nassau where we check in and replenish very vital stores (rum mostly). At the end of the six months we put the boat on the hard for six months and go home to Toronto.

Valiente · #4 (**permalink**) 11-30-2008

Rick, do you rent out your Toronto home, or just clean out the fridge, turn down the fridge and turn off the water supply?

I'm asking because we are renting out half our house quite soon, and will, when we can, move aboard, overwinter aboard here in Toronto and rent out the second half, the idea being that we'll be "nearby" if there are tenant or house issues, as well as the obvious advantage of lessening our own expenses by living aboard and getting the "feel" of the close quarters.

Vasco · #5 (**permalink**) 11-30-2008

We have cats so we have to have someone live in the house to look after them. The cats got seasick so we don't take them sailing anymore. Also they'd get their feet wet from the morning condensation and then jump in the litter box and get big clumps of clay stuck to their feet and track that all over. One year we had some kitty litter that had bleach in it and ended up getting little paw prints all over the navy blue dodger. We usually get a single person and we charge them a bit but it doesn't even cover the utilities. Last couple of years we've had the same person but she's gone this year and I've found someone new. Get them on Craigs list. Hundreds of replies but you have to be real careful. Thought of getting a condo a few years ago but our furniture would never fit and my wife likes the house so we keep it. I would not rent my house out. Too much crap accumulated over the years in it.

Valiente · #6 (**permalink**) 12-02-2008

Thanks. I don't have a car, and so the garage will become a "stuff locker".

It's not tough in my area to find people without cars.