Where to live and learn??

[rayncyn51]

On the west coast, stop at Morro Bay. I lived and sailed SoCal. Too expensive, limited day sail destinations, and work is either minimum wage or post graduate, not much in between. I second Oriental, NC. Great little laid back sailing town. Three sailboats for every resident. I chose the Chesapeake. Reasonable season, relatively low costs, many smaller towns with opportunities to make a living, and lots of places to sail to. The key is, I think, to be very flexible (minimal?) in your lifestyle, no matter where you choose to be.

[Jotun]

Chesapeake Bay -- You can pretty much live anywhere in the MidAtlantic (Southern NJ, PA, DE, MD, VA) and be within striking distance, from major cities (Philadelphia, Baltimore, DC) to small towns.

[lans0012]

Hey I was born and raised in MN and by dumb luck landed down here in SW Florida St. Petersburg. It's pretty much awesome weather all the time and the boats are cheap. There's no jobs but I'm sure if you are resourcefull you could find one cleaning fish or scrubbing hull bottoms. If I were you I would get a job outside of the marine industry becuase there's no money in it. Start getting all of your ASA certs, get some crewing exp(racing etc), then get your captain's licencse and deliver boatsor teach lessons. Go up to Annapolis for the summer(I've never been but I here it's nice )Damn it why didn't I think of that before. Tons of stuff to do for young people. I'm 27 and rent a beautifull townhouse about 5 blocks from the marina and it's cheaper than Minneapolis(which is cheap). Bars and restaurants and lots of marine facilities. Leave your girlfriend in Alaska, they're hotter here.

[MatthewM]

Originally Posted by lans0012

Leave your girlfriend in Alaska, they're hotter here.

She is actually my wife, so I am pretty sure she has to come. But thanks for the advice about everything else. Everyones suggestions are great.

I should clarify, I just meant that the location would have general employment opportunities, not specifically sailing jobs. Although, I would imagine that in the right combination that could work pretty well.

Matthew

[sailingmum]

I'd love to hear what you're thinking about after all of us have chimed in ?
BTW, I don't know what immigration is in Belize now, but I did spend 5 years there and it is a remarkable place. English is primary language, public schools are good and there are lots of American, English, German.
Inexpensive place on the beach to stay in Placencia is Ms Lydia's. I wouldn't suggest that as place to live though there might be some opportunities there.
If you end up visiting Oriental, NC let me know and I'll make some introductions for you. You might find it a fine place.
Also, there's Rehobeth Beach, DE
Fair winds.

[Lostmt]

Don't forget the Texas coast. You are close to Mexico and points south. You can even get the heavy weather experience here. Just wait one of them hurricanes will come along.

On a better point the sailing here is year round. You don't have to haul out for the winter and look at your boat for 9 months.

[Mimsy]

Matthew, while Annapolis is larger than your target size, downtown/old town Annapolis FEELS much smaller. Thanks to St. John's College ( and to a lesser degree, the Naval Academy) the old town area has very much a college town feel. I loved this, if you and your wife are into other things besides sailing- such as readings, plays, concerts, etc. There is ample opportunity right in reach.

[MatthewM]

Originally Posted by sailingmum

I'd love to hear what you're thinking about after all of us have chimed in ?

Well, right now the plan is to take two road trips in the next year. One this fall down the west coast, and one in January down the east coast. We plan on taking our time and visiting all the suggested places in this thread that are on the way. My uncle lives in Fort Lauderdale so that will be our destination in January, and I hope to take an ASA course from there.

My wife is a school teacher, and due to budget issues has lost her job in Alaska so we are using that as an opportunity to look around a bit. I have worked in many different areas so I am pretty flexible. We are just hoping that we find some place we will fall in love with.

Thanks for all the suggestions and I hope to hear more.

Matthew

[craigimass]

Just a short update.....
I was driving around Bristol RI today and saw quite a few boat manufacturers - some with help wanted outside their factories.

Also, as Zee says above, Cape Cod has the Maritime Academy:
Massachusetts Maritime Academy

The more I think about it, the entire area around RI and the Cape probably offer more actual marine jobs than most places...and many tied to sailing.

Here is a local museum tied to sailing:
Herreshoff Marine Museum & America's Cup Hall of Fame

Here is just one of the many local boat makers:
Goetz Boats - Custom Built Sailing Boats, Racing Yachts, Power Boats

[sailrkev]

Milwaukee!!
You can't beat the prices for mooring/docking/storage, and the city is undergoing somewhat of a renaissance.

There is no better place to be in the summertime.

Winter, not so much. The universe is not without balance