How far away is your boat?

[Grotius]

I don't own a boat (yet), and I'm wondering whether it's impractical to use a marina that's an hour's drive away. I live in the northwestern suburbs of DC, which are about an hour away from Annapolis and environs. Is that too far? I am lazy about maintaining my car, which is in the garage downstairs; I worry that I'll be super-lazy about maintaining a boat that's an hour away. For that matter, I worry that after the initial enthusiasm, the boat will sit unused all too often. How close do you all live to your boat?

Can anyone recommend some marinas for someone in the DC area? I know someone here in DC who is happy with Hartge marina, in Galesville, which is about an hour away. Is there anything significantly closer to me? I'm interested in daysailing and weekending on the Cheseapeake; not so interested in sailing on the Potomac, though I might take lessons there. Maybe it would help to find a marina that will let me stay on the boat overnight? Thanks in advance.

[RickQuann]

38 miles, from front door to dock. Buying a boat is the easy part, it's the maintenance and upkeep that are the most important things. Boats really need alot TLC. Maybe you should consider a trailerable boat. Almost all marinas welcome overnighting for a fee.

[petmac]

My boat is on a dock 200 ft from my house. I live in a rural setting about 30 minutes from most services.

[buckeyesailor]

And a VERY nice boat it is Rick........

You in the North East I presume?

Nice boat......nice setting.......you're a lucky man.......

[buckeyesailor]

That was supposed to say Petmac, not Rick......sorry

[Stillraining]

Well we just did this one last winter but Im game again..about 40 min.

[petmac]

Extreme Northeast...Atlantic Canada. Thanks Buckeyesailor. I do consider myself very fortunate.

[PalmettoSailor]

You live near DC. You're an hour away from anything worth anything. Hell your commute is probably more than an hour if you are anything close to "average" for this area.

I live in Loudoun, work in DC (1.5 hours each way to work), and my boat is 4 hours away in Deltaville, mainly because being down there is NOT like being near DC and we have the boat so we can experience something different. That said, I am a pilot and we sometimes cheat and fly down, cutting the trip to a bit over 1 hour each way.

I'll admit that it is a PITA in the off season to get motivated to make that long trip to do maintenence so I might move to boat closer for winter storage. Hartge is one of the places I've thought of contacting for layup, so it would only be a little over a hour to drive for maintenence. Annapolis would be another possibilty. At least there is stuff to do there in between boat chores.

[T37Chef]

There are many marinas within an hour or so of Washington, but based on what you stated I would look in Deale or Pasadena, unless you want to pay out the wazoo and keep it in Annapolis.

The Magothy would be my first choice and is awesome if you can find a slip, but that seems to depend on the size of the vessel and how much $$ your willing to fork over?

I live in Rockville, just off Shady Grove Road and keep the boat at Oak Harbor Marina in Pasadena, Rock Creek, off the Patapsco River. I choose Oak Harbor for several reasons:

• I can get to the boat without having to take the DC beltway (you know why)
• The Patapsco is in good proximity to the upper and middle bay offering great day sailing and weekend destinations
• Its only about 10-15 from my work/office
• The price is right
• The owner is a sailor
• the list goes on...

In addition, no offense intended, but if your not into maintaining your car you really have no business owning a boat unless your going to pay professionals to and that's mucho $$$$$$$.

Regards.

[T37Chef]

Damn nice! and just not fair

Originally Posted by petmac