Where do I begin???

helipilot · #1 (**permalink**) 03-20-2010

Howdy howdy! I've been doing a lot of research, a lot of studying and I'd like to get some personal viewpoints of different sailors with different boats. My goal, my wife and I would like to be able to sail the carribean as well as the atlantic and what do you guys think are the best blue water boats? Any suggestions, comments? Novice sailor, no stranger to navigation though, commercial pilot. Should I start out small and get plenty of experience along the coast? Of course the book says to do that, has anyone come along with a more economical way of doing it? Thank you for any feedback! Much appreciated.

smackdaddy · #2 (**permalink**) 03-20-2010

Hey heli - welcome to SN dude.

There's tons of info on here - as well as many, many salts that will talk you through just about anything.

While you're waiting for some responses you can start poking around in this thread: The Salt's Corner Table

It's a thread with some of the best info to some of the most asked questions around here - including yours. And you can see who some of the go-to guys are.

sailingdog · #3 (**permalink**) 03-20-2010

I would recommend that you spend some time sailing on other people's boats. The more experience you have on other boats, the better an idea you'll have of what you are looking for in a boat.

Also, how sure are you that you're up for an Atlantic crossing? The east coast of the USA, the Caribbean and central/south america provide a lot of grounds to cruise without requiring a bluewater passage. If you're not 100% sure of making an Atlantic crossing, you really don't need a bluewater boat.

Also, do you have any experience on multihulls or just monohulls? In the Caribbean, multihulls are becoming pretty common, and they do provide a lot more living space than a comparable length monohull. Many are capable of bluewater crossings.

Does your wife have any sailing experience? If not, I would recommend that she take at least a learn to sail course, preferably an all-women's course. It has been my experience that couples generally learn better when learning separately.