Advice on Buying Your First Cruising Sailboat

Lin & Larry Pardey's advice:

"Go small, go simple, but go Now!"

 

THE COST CONSCIOUS CRUISER: CHAMPAGNE CRUISING ON A BEER BUDGET

https://www.amazon.com/-/he/Lin-Pardey/dp/1840370785

 

My particular advice: 

• Never buy a new boat
• Treat your first crusing boat purchase like you would budget to buy a used bicycle, with training wheels.
• There are plenty of good reliable boats for sale, under $20K - and often, for $10K or less.
• If you pay attention to lien sales, and marina auctions - you can find some real bargains.
• There are non-profits that acquire used boats - and turn-around and sell them. Those can be interesting sources for finding very discounted boats for sale.
• Programs like Sea Scouts often sell donated boats, too.
• I would also consider looking for boats that were damaged after recent hurricanes - and there are some sites that specialize in selling salvaged boats.
• Some of the most motivated boat sellers are folks going through a divorce, who have lost a job, or have to relocate for a job.
• There is a non-zero probability that some couples who annually make the crossing ("The Pacific Puddle Jump") to places like Tahiti - that will be *very* eager to sell their boat upon arrival. 

Now, there are some that would argue that buying a used boat, or one that is hurricane-damaged, or designated as "salvaged" - will require you to do repairs yourself (to keep the refit costs reasonable)...and that is true - but trust me when I tell you - you are going to need to learn how to do repairs yourslef - BEFORE you embark on a cruise of any appreciable distance. Better to do that in  a location that has ready access to marine supply stores, marine professionals, etc. 

For it is a saltwater truism: 

The definition of Cruising: "Fixing your boat in exotic locations." 

 

“The cure for anything is saltwater – sweat, tears, or the sea.”

– Isak Dinesen

 

(2004, Bahia Balandra, Baja Sur Mexico)

 

 

 

Marina Swap Meet Treasures

Today was the annual Marina Swap Meet - where "treasures of the bilge" may oft' be found - such as this book I picked up for $1 - by the world famous small boat sailor / and master ship wright - that documents the construction of his Lyle Hess designed vessel Taleisin - upon which he and his wife (Lin) circumnavigated. It was serendipitous - for I have met them both - and have sat in the warm cabin of Taleisin on a cold winter day when she was tied to the dock on Lake Union in Seattle for a boat show event.

Details of Classic Boat Construction, The Hull, 2nd edition
by Larry Pardey
$1


Upgrading Your Small Sailboat for Cruising
by Paul and Marya Butler
$2

Practical Yacht Joinery
Tool, Techniques, Tips
by Fred P. Bingham
$2

Understanding Rigs and Rigging, revised edition
by Richard Henderson
and
Don Casey's Complete Illustrated Sailboat Maintenance Manual
(Special Value - Six Books in One)
$20 (for both)

Sailboat & Marina Internet Connectivity Ideas

This is a placeholder for ideas and links to interesting articles on setting-up internet connectivity on a sailboat

Tip of the hat to Steven K. Roberts for mentioning this article on one of his recent posts
https://www.sailbits.com/blog/2017/01/grace-redundant-internet/

Book Review: Sail Like A Champion, by Dennis Conner

I'm not a racer. I probably will never enter a yacht race. Up till now, I have not had much interest in the sport of yacht racing. So, my expectations were fairly low with regards to what I might get out of reading this book.

...I misjudged.

Serendipity played a hand in how this book came into my possession: I picked up a copy at a Friends of the Library sale, where I think I paid the grand sum of $1.00

However, I will say that just one lesson learned, on even just one page of this book (see page-115), would have been worth the full purchase price:
"In heavy winds, the main's leech is loosened by easing the sheet, allowing the sail to twist or sag off, minimizing weather helm"

Think of this book as the tune-up guide to use your sled most efficiently, and how to make it go faster by leveraging every aspect of the boat, its various systems, the wind, weather, and current. :)

Sailing Adventure Opportunities in Thailand?

I'm interested in chartering a sailboat in Thailand later this year. This blog posting will be my research notes as I look into different options:

Sailing Thailand Yacht Charter, Sailing Courses - Island Cruises Co,. Ltd.

2009-10-09 - Lessons Learned from my 1st Voyage

In 2004 I departed King Harbor, Redondo Beach, California on a voyage and adventure that was to last five months. I had no particular destination in mind, and was able to indulge my desire to travel at a leisurely pace - with no concern for schedules.

I sailed aboard my home - a 1971 32 ft. Islander, built by Wayfarer Yachts, in Costa Mesa, California. She as sloop rigged, with a fin keel, skeg-hung rudder, and a 16 hp. diesel to push her through the water. She was not a fast boat (or at least I never learned to sail her properly to show her true stride) - but I was sure of her - and she kept me safe in some sketchy conditions. She was my version of pre-school...a training ground for exploring what worked for me,and what didn't.

I had in my mind the idea of beginning a new chapter in my life of working 6 months, and sailing for 6 months.

Here's what I learned:

- I love cruising

- There are many types of people that go cruising, but the majority I found belong to a common tribe that is easily identtifiable by their common characteristics: independent, self-reliant, friendly, helpful, outgoing.

- I don't need big, new, fancy, shiny. I'm perfectly happy with older, simpler, efficient, sturdy, safe.

- Speed is not a priority for me...if it was, I would fly there. I sail because there is something mystical in the weaving of wind, wave, man, boat. Looking up at the stars each night and beginning to get a feeling for how to steer by them bridges a connection with skills that have been all but lost - a connection to ancestors that surely were seafaring folk.

- Plenty of freshwater on board (or the ability to make it) is important

- A shower may be a luxury - but I want the option of being able to offer a real shower to guests on my next boat

- The first time you are caught in a narrow, busy shipping channel...at night...in heavy fog...is the last time you'll say: "I don't think I need a radar"

- Although the Garmin YachtBoy Shortwave Receiver I had on board did allow me to listen in on weather reports, I __really__ want a full SSB radio on my next boat.

- Having a backup to the electronic autopilot (mine was an older ST-3000) would have allowed me to have a bit more piece-of-mind at times.

- Having a Wind Vane (for self-steering) installed would have __really__ given me peace of mind. Hand steering from Los Angeles to Catalina Island to San Diego, motivated me to dig out my electrical tools and learn how to repair the wiring in the ST-3000's control unit.

- 16hp was very efficient at fuel consumption - but there was a moment in a gale at sea that I really wished I had at least a 50hp to help punch through those waves...

- A fiberglass dinghy, with the full sailing kit, will be my 1st choice - not an inflatable. And forget about rowing everywhere...buy an outboard. When you are traveling in the dinghy...especially at night - think about having the following on board: an anchor with 150 ft. of rode, flares, a flashlight, and a portable VHF radio. Ask yourself what would you do if your motor died, you dropped an oar overboard, the current started dragging you out of a bay...

My voyage completed, I returned to the Pacific Northwest to find work again...with a strong desire to restructure my life so that when I depart on my next voyage - I will be able to generate passive income in one or more ways to allow a longer voyage - and more freedom.