[StephenMaturin]

Hi All,

My wife and I moved away from the Puget Sound 2 years ago where we cruised for 5 years. We sold our C&C 34+ at that time. We miss the sailing there significantly, so much so, that we are considering buying a boat and keeping it with a charter fleet out of Anacortes.

Prior to buying the boat, I'd like to consult with a few charter companies in order to have the best strategy for buying a boat for this purpose.

Can any owners recommend a few good charter companies in the area to work with? Can any folks who've chartered out of the area make any recs based on good experiences?

... and before you ask... "why buy a boat instead of just chartering one from the company"... we plan to do a number of extended trips including the inside passage, circumnav Vancouver Is, etc that would be cost-prohibitive on a weekly charter rate. Also, this boat may eventually make it on a few longer expeditions.

Thank you in advance for your help.

 

[k7el]

I've chartered once (last year) with Anacortes Yacht Charters - they were OK, but not quite as on top of their game as San Juan Sailing out of Bellingham at least in my limited experience. But if I were going to put a boat into charter, I think they would be OK. My impression is that San Juan Sailing has a longer list of requirements for the boats they put into their charter fleet. Are you set on Anacortes? Bellingham would be another option.

 

[StephenMaturin]

Thanks for the info!

No, we're not set on Anacortes. We'd look at Blaine, Bellingham, and even Seattle if need be. We bought our old boat in Blaine and we loved that marina. Bellingham is a fantastic town that we'd love to visit often. Anacortes just seems like the obvious choice due to proximity (and they have the best muffin shop in the world).

My primary concern, as an absentee owner, is that standard preventative maintenance is done properly and frequently.

Thanks again.

 

[k7el]

Seems like Blaine could get a little shallow. San Juan Sailing is a well-run company - they seem to always have their charter boats ready to go and generally ship-shape. We had a couple of maintenance issues on the one charter I did from Anacortes Yacht Charters, but it's hard to generalize based on one person's experience. Plus we wer the first to take out the boat for the season. Not sure about the financial side for owners - I'd recommend you compare AYC and SJS to see who will give you the best deal. You'll want to find out where your slip would be also. AYC uses more than one marina.

If you'll be going to mainly the San Juan Islands, Anacortes is definitely a little closer. But you can probably get up into the Gulf Islands and beyond a little quicker out of B-Ham. It's a pretty quick passage to South Pender to clear Customs. Buti f you're in a hurry, Bellingham Bay does seem to go on forever.

Make sure you ask about the arrangements for taking your own boat out after you put it in charter.

Good luck.

 

[wristwister]

While I haven't chartered with San Juan Sailing, I've been to their open houses several years and chatted with many of the sailboat owners. Invariably they had nothing but glowing things to say about SJS. And they seem to be by far the most popular chartering company up here, as the reason I haven't chartered with them is because the boats I want always book up too quickly!

Now, tell me more about this muffin shop! I keep my boat at Anacortes.

 

[StephenMaturin]

The muffin shop is called "The Store" on the main drag into Anacortes. AMAZING!!

I talked with San Juan Sailing and, unfortunately for me, the boats I'm looking at are too old to join their fleet. My style is to buy an older, higher quality boat rather than a newer less expensive one. Too bad because their operation sounds really top notch.

I did find another company to work with and I hope that they will proove as good as SJS.

Thanks all for the input.

 

[djodenda]

Not to be boring, but when I was considering this, I visited with San Juan sailing. I was really impressed with their program and the advice I got... As stated above, they only want pretty new boats.. maybe 5 years old max.. Seemed like a top notch outfit. Got good advice on what boats were the most marketable. You can look at their scheduling calendar and get an idea what boats are the most popular as I recall it was 37-40 foot three cabin boats..

I've spent some time watching their operation as they clean and outfit their boats.. They really seem to have their act together..

One key reason I did not go with them was the limited time I was allowed to use my own boat and still keep the tax writeoff without what I considered to be "cheating".. Look carefully at that aspect and make sure it works for you. Good luck!