Well after three years of scrimping and saving the plan has come together and it's time to look for a liveaboard to purchase.
The end goal is to purchase a blue water boat to do a circumnavigation but the current thinking is to purchase something smaller and cheaper than my 'ideal' boat and spend a couple years cruising between the Chesapeake and Bahamas until I figure out just how much I don't know.
Besides lounging around, playing my ukulele, and getting lost at sea. I'm also interested in racing. Not so much racing around the marks as I don't need some adrenaline junkie who's half in the bag t-boning my home.
While hope springs eternal and past performance is no guarantee of future results, I fully expect to be single handing.
My sailing experience is almost entirely dinghy sailing. My big boat experience is completing the USSailing's basic keelboat course and going out with Jeff_H a couple times on his 38 footer.
My budget is ~100k but since I'm starting smallish I'm looking for something under $50k about 35' long. Ideally I would like something I could sell in two or three years without losing my shirt.
Must haves
1. A touch of class (whatever that means)
2. A turn of speed (I'm using a PHRF of 150 for a 35' to make this determination)
3. Ability to carry my 5.5'/11' nesting dinghy (I'd rather carry it assembled if possible)
4. Less than 6' draft
Should haves in order of importance
1. Comfortable saloon
2. Dry head (aka separate shower, this is the one luxury I really don't want to give up)
3. Swim platform / sugar scoop for easy access. (I've seen a few boats with aftermarket folding swim platforms on the transom so I'm flexible on this if a swim platform could be retrofitted.
4. 2nd stateroom
Unicorn attributes ( I don't believe in Unicorns)
1. Beachable
2. Tabernacle mast
Ideally I'll purchase something on the Chesapeake but am willing to look all over the east coast and great lakes.
If you know what boats might fit this criteria I would love your input. If I was going to to try and get my forevever boat right away I would be looking for an Ericson 38-200, Tartan 372 or similar.
thanks,
Hugh
The end goal is to purchase a blue water boat to do a circumnavigation but the current thinking is to purchase something smaller and cheaper than my 'ideal' boat and spend a couple years cruising between the Chesapeake and Bahamas until I figure out just how much I don't know.
Besides lounging around, playing my ukulele, and getting lost at sea. I'm also interested in racing. Not so much racing around the marks as I don't need some adrenaline junkie who's half in the bag t-boning my home.
While hope springs eternal and past performance is no guarantee of future results, I fully expect to be single handing.
My sailing experience is almost entirely dinghy sailing. My big boat experience is completing the USSailing's basic keelboat course and going out with Jeff_H a couple times on his 38 footer.
My budget is ~100k but since I'm starting smallish I'm looking for something under $50k about 35' long. Ideally I would like something I could sell in two or three years without losing my shirt.
Must haves
1. A touch of class (whatever that means)
2. A turn of speed (I'm using a PHRF of 150 for a 35' to make this determination)
3. Ability to carry my 5.5'/11' nesting dinghy (I'd rather carry it assembled if possible)
4. Less than 6' draft
Should haves in order of importance
1. Comfortable saloon
2. Dry head (aka separate shower, this is the one luxury I really don't want to give up)
3. Swim platform / sugar scoop for easy access. (I've seen a few boats with aftermarket folding swim platforms on the transom so I'm flexible on this if a swim platform could be retrofitted.
4. 2nd stateroom
Unicorn attributes ( I don't believe in Unicorns)
1. Beachable
2. Tabernacle mast
Ideally I'll purchase something on the Chesapeake but am willing to look all over the east coast and great lakes.
If you know what boats might fit this criteria I would love your input. If I was going to to try and get my forevever boat right away I would be looking for an Ericson 38-200, Tartan 372 or similar.
thanks,
Hugh