[TSOJOURNER]

Hi,

I am planning to go cruising permanently (or at least, semi-permanently) in 3-4 years. I realize it takes some time to outfit a boat....

currently I am without a boat, and have been for the last 5 years. I want to get a boat soon to get back into the swing of things, but I am torn between buying the ''right'' boat for the long term, or getting a coastal cruiser in the short term and then either upgrading it or trading up for a better offshore boat later.

I''m leaning towards getting the ''right boat'' now, but the problem is that it takes soo much time ! The longer I wait, the less I can sail...

can anyone give me some advice ?

-Pat

 

[TSOJOURNER]

i would go for the right boat now. if you are planning to buy a used boat it could take 3 years to sort it out and do all the upgrades for offshore.
how big a boat were you looking at?
eric

 

[Guest]

I guess the answer depends on a number factors that would be unique to your situation.

For example, you haven''t owned a boat for a 5 years, have you been sailing in these years and how rusty do you feel? If you feel really rusty I would buy a boat that is comparativelt small and responsive to develop your sailing skills again.

The decision might be influenced by where you sail now and how closely it resembles where you want to sail. If you sail in some predominantly light air venue and you plan to cruise areas know for high winds, you again might buy a light boat to mess about with and then a couple years out buy your more serious cruising boat. If you live in the Carribean and plan to cruise the Carribean then two boats might not be good idea.

Then there is funding. If you are not quite comfortably funded then you might be buying an older boat and it could easily take three years to put the old girl back in shape especially if you are trying to find used equipment or take advantage of big sales on the particular items that you need. If you are well funded you might end up buying a more modern offshore boat wna there is far less difference in speed, beating ability, and light air performance between some of the better offshore performance boats and coastal cruisers than there used to be.

Jeff

Jeff

 

[TSOJOURNER]

All things being equal, buying one boat now, knowing you are going to buy your ''real'' boat sometime later is never a good idea financially. Its expensive and often it is difficult to sell a boat.

Now is a good time to be a buyer. I might suggest the following:

1. Join a sailing club or some association like JWorld where you can sail THEIR boats. This is generally much cheaper than chartering and often you get access to different types of boats. You will get your sea legs back and learn more about boats.

2. Then spend at least 1 yr looking for your ultimate boat. I guarantee your thoughts will change in that time and you will end up with a different and better boat that you first thought you wanted.

You will save a lot of $$$ with the above approach.

Best of luck

 

[jack_patricia]

Pat:

I think you need to offer more info in order to get truly useful info. You talk about your cruising plans in relatively definite terms, but to where? Some view trips up/down the ICW as cruising, which it is, while others think of it in terms of Oz, Kiwiland and a circumnavigation.

Similarly, you mention being away from sailing for 5 years. If that was after 20 years of competitive racing, so what? If it was after dabbling for a few years, there''s a generally huge learning curve you need to climb, if long-term cruising is your game.

Finally, my sense of it (after 4 boats, 3 extended cruises and a TON of stuff I still don''t have a clue about...) is that ''sailing'' is a very teeny part of ''cruising''. Cruising is about logistics (from mail to finances to a thoughtful itinerary that finds you prepared to truly enjoy where you go), about a wide and sometimes depressingly deep need for skills (engine, pumps, navigation, etc.), and many other things that fall outside of knowing how to sail a boat...let alone, well.

Shoot some more specifics at us and I think you''ll get more helpful replies. What''s your experience level, what size boat (in feet or $$) will you ultimately be cruising, and what do YOU mean by ''cruising''?

Jack

 

[TSOJOURNER]

Yeah okay here is the low-down.

I grew up on the water, in Nova Scotia, sailing since I was a little kid in dinghies etc. I really got into competitive dinghy sailing when I was a kid and then ended up teaching and coaching racers. When I got older I started crewing and racing on keelboats. All this time, my parents always had a boat in the 32'' range, and we went gunkholing around here and there (off of Nova Scotia). 5 days trips were the max though for longer voyages. I have been in seas taller than the mast, 50knots +, etc. etc.

That was all 5+ years ago. In the last 5 years all I have done is continue teaching dinghy sailors at the local club in the evenings and occasionally crewing for wed night races. This spring, I decided to go sailing again and my girlfriend and I bareboated a 42'' in the Carribean for 2 weeks. My folks joined me for 3 days as well (present back to them). I got bit by the bug again.

What I want to do is basically be able to do some coastal cruising where I live now (British Columbia) in and around the Gulf Islands, Vancouver Island, etc. It seems pretty tame out here compared to the Nova Scotia coast, but then again, maybe I only went out on ''tougher'' days. What I want to do long term is not ICW-type cruising but some extended voyaging. Depending on how happy we are with it, I might end up going all the way around. Worst case, I will just head south and do short hops but ideally I would like to do some sort of circumnav.

I am thinking that since I want to be able to do that, I should get a boat now that I would like. I''ve always been into performance sailing and always been into singlehanding, so I want a boat on the performance end of things that I can rig to be somewhat easily handled. But I also would like to use it locally for the first 2-3 years to get back into things, and also to set it up. I imagince taking some friends out now and then, etc. until I leave.

Hope that helps, I know I sound conflicting but I am trying to describe where I am at...

Thanks for all the info

-Pat

 

[TSOJOURNER]

i too plan to purchase a cruising sailboat or catamaran as soon as i can find a suitable craft. i am going to look at a 33'' prout quest tomorrow. i like the shallow draft & no heel of a cat but like the price & weight of a monohull. we plan to sail to the bahamas & south perhaps in time as far as costa rico. i am tyring to notice from articles the types of craft people are cruising on. price of course is a factor but i expect to have between $50-80,000 invested in a cruise equipped sailer. i so far believe tartan, pearson, prout, to be capable craft. i would like opinions on endeavor, irwin, ericson, & morgan. also i would appreciate pointers on items to watch for on cruise ready craft.

 

[jack_patricia]

G2TO:

A couple of add''l thoughts...
1. If you haven''t already, you might consider visiting www.searoom.com and correspond with Alec Main. He & his wife circumnavigated on a Prout 33 and there is also info on their own website (from her book on the trip) about the boat that is quite positive & detailed. You can find their book/website info at searoom. Also, keep in mind that Alec would not choose a Prout 33 now, given what they know - wants more bridgedeck clearance & sail area - but he remains convinced it was a good choice.
2. For your planned travels - out & about the Caribbean - you''ll find almost any kind of good/bad wood/steel/fiberglass/ferro boat out there, doing it and not taking much of a risk. I''m currently in Trinidad having made the passage in a Pearson (which is just another ''price boat'', not built with extended offshore cruising in mind) and it along with its many peers are sufficiently capable IMO.
3. Therefore, I believe it''s more important you shop for an adequately built boat that''s been well equipped and maintained. This is in contrast to the oft-offered advice that one shops for an older but offshore-intended boat that comes with other issues. You''ll find the latter type of boat, while fundamentally stronger than price boats, could cost more in the end (to update the gear, or otherwise overcome the higher initial price).
4. For mere mortals, economically speaking, arguably THE most important gear you need to make sure is aboard and in top condition is either Marine SSB or a ham SSB rig. I say this because weather is your only real issue given today''s GPS tools and the short (2-4 day) hops you need to make.
5. Be advised that, at least at this time as best I can determine, Costa Rica is is usually not fully covered by U.S. insurance carriers. If coverage is offered, it will omit some of the most common losses that motivate you to carry insurance in the first place (theft, boarding-related damage, etc.). The same is true for Nicarauga, Columbia, Cuba, Haiti & often much of Panama.

If you''re thinking of doing the Carib 1500 or otherwise taking the boat in a more direct routing, much of my advice is inappropriate.

Jack