Living on a small boat in the Caribbean

[Eagle43]

This link from Atlantic Magazine shows a young man living alone in a boat. I doubt it's appeal to most of the forum, but he does have a good philosophy. To wit: Do it now, whatever you really like and no regrets later.

The link has no virus, as far as I can tell.

https://www.theatlantic.com/video/index/374880/living-alone-on-a-sailboat/

 

[ShokWaveRider]

We did it for 3 Seasons. But The Boat was not that small.

 

[Cobra9777]

What a great video. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Sunset]

A really nice video, another happy Canadian who found warm weather

He basically has retired very early, but perhaps thinks of it as simply taking some time off.

It looks pretty lonely.....

 

[haha]

A really nice video, another happy Canadian who found warm weather

He basically has retired very early, but perhaps thinks of it as simply taking some time off.

It looks pretty lonely.....

Picky, picky! How about the black hairdo and woman's bathing suit seen in one of the photos?

Ha

 

[W2R]

I think this lifestyle would have been extremely appealing to me back when I was working for a living. Ah, getting away from work, deadlines, hassles, getting out into nature, enjoying the silence and no pressures or stress....

But now that I am retired, it doesn't have that appeal for me any more. I lived on a boat for a while when I was younger, and I tend to think about the disadvantages. For example, what a pain in the neck it would be to lug groceries and so on down to the boat to fill my (probably tiny) refrigerator/freezer, lugging water if necessary, the upkeep the boat might require, the need for a slip, bad weather/tornados/waterspouts, and so on. And also I love my city water, city sewerage, high speed internet, and Amazon deliveries to my door.

We do sometimes drive down to the boat harbor and park there to enjoy the breeze, scenery, and sounds. It's nice and only a few blocks from here.

 

[Bestwifeever]

Picky, picky! How about the black hairdo and woman's bathing suit seen in one of the photos?

Ha

I don't think those photos are of the guy in the video.

Video guy posts occasionally to youtube: https://m.youtube.com/user/davewelsford

 

[Zona]

It looks pretty lonely.....

Like Shokwave, we spent a few years cruising and in my experience it was the opposite. I have to say we had more of a social life then than we do now on land. Lots of free time to socialize, and other cruisers were so friendly. You end up meeting your neighbors in the anchorage to trade books, DVDs, cooking ingredients, etc. Also, there was a kind of "help one's neighbor" spirit whenever anyone needed a hand fixing something. (And trust me, things are always breaking on a boat!). We met lots of people we still keep in touch with.

Of course, there were plenty of quieter anchorages too, for those who want less socializing.

 

[Fedup]

Not for me. I was on similar but bigger boat but I got seasick.

 

[Scuba]

We did it for 3 Seasons. But The Boat was not that small.

Nice! Did you just get tired of it? Or what limited you to 3 seasons?

 

[sengsational]

From what I've read, people that do live aboard boats (or RV's) do so for a while, but it becomes less fun over time, so doesn't tend to be a permanent change in most cases.

 

[Sunset]

From what I've read, people that do live aboard boats (or RV's) do so for a while, but it becomes less fun over time, so doesn't tend to be a permanent change in most cases.

I feel the same way about a house, at first it's all great, with great potential, but eventually it's just a place to live.
I think people stay longer in a house because it's

• Hard to sell.
• Lots of stuff to move (much more than if you were in an RV/boat).
• Moving to another house is not that exciting of a difference compared to RV/boat to house.

 

[Dr Dave]

I spent ten years sailing around the world on a catamaran.

It has its ups and downs. More ups than downs for us.

It's a totally different experience than living on land. Now that I am retired, I will go back to living on the boat for a significant period of time. My family wants to sail back to Australia, and that should work for me. I will give it my best shot and see what happens. If it's fun, then it will happen. If it's too much work, then it won't be a long cruise this time around.

At this point in life, it has to be fun, or I am not doing it.

 

[Scuba]

Wow, 10 years on a cat must have been fun. From my very limited experience on sailboats, it's a bit like camping. Love the idea of being able to move around at will, but not sure if the confined space would get to me after a while.

 

[pullin]

I think this lifestyle would have been extremely appealing to me back when I was working for a living. Ah, getting away from work, deadlines, hassles, getting out into nature, enjoying the silence and no pressures or stress....

But now that I am retired, it doesn't have that appeal for me any more.

This is true for us as well. In 2006 we wrote down what we'd like to do in retirement, and it was mostly vague plans about selling the house and cruising on a large boat. As time went by, lots of things changed (including us) and that desire receded. In 2016 we repeated the process (going to our corners and writing what we wanted in retirement), and discovered both of us had dropped the "live on a boat and cruise" from our plans.

We have a small version of the old dream (30' express cruiser) on a local lake and occasionally spend nights on it. But after a night or two, I'm ready for the comfort of our house. We're considering moving it to the coast after FIRE to do a little ICW cruising but nothing long term, just a few days traveling followed by a few nights in a hotel. Age changes your desires and stress tolerance I think.

 

[Totoro]

So dr. dave, care to share 1) how much work it actually is to live on a cat and 2) whether one could do it by himself?

Asking for a curious friend ..

 

[Dr Dave]

So dr. dave, care to share 1) how much work it actually is to live on a cat and 2) whether one could do it by himself?

Asking for a curious friend ..

Living on board a catamaran is about the same amount of work that it takes to live anywhere. If you live in a house that is in a poor state of repair, you will have to put lots of work into the house. If you get a boat in a poor state of repair, it will be a lot of work to get it up to speed.

If you are never going to sail anywhere offshore, the boat does not require the same level of preparation, hence, less work. If you are going to sail across oceans, you have a lot of work ahead of you to make it ready and safe for a world cruise. Most sailboats sit at the dock, and those who are living aboard are not going to do much work to their sailboat.

How much work is it to sail on a passage?

That depends. It took me 16 days to sail across the Atlantic and 21 days to sail from Galapagos to the Marquesas of French Polynesia. Somebody has to be awake around the clock to run the boat. If you have four people on board, it's a piece of cake. If you have two people on board for those long passages, it become more arduous. If you are single handing, you get out of the shipping lanes as quickly as possible offshore, and you do the best you can. You hope that you don't get run down by a ship when you are asleep outside the established shipping lanes.

Anything under 40 feet in length can easily be set up for single handing. Sail size is manageable and anchoring easily doable for a single person. That being said, unless you are a real loner, it probably is not such a great idea. Some people get a little crazy when they are offshore alone for a couple of weeks.

I have known a few single handers and they seem to be happy with their choice.

If you have a new boat, you have about a five year grace period before major systems require significant attention. A new boat is clearly less work.

Just to give you an idea, I am heading to Florida to do a major refit on my catamaran that will take three months of hard work. Then I should be good for the next five years.

I hope that answered your question.

 

[Dr Dave]

Wow, 10 years on a cat must have been fun. From my very limited experience on sailboats, it's a bit like camping. Love the idea of being able to move around at will, but not sure if the confined space would get to me after a while.

I never felt like I was camping on board my catamaran. I felt like I was home. My boat is 39 feet long and 21 feet wide, and with two hulls, there is separation of accommodations with four different sleeping cabins. Not a huge amount of room, and it is a minimalist lifestyle, but we had everything we needed to be reasonably comfortable most of the time.

Cabin fever is a more of a problem when the weather is bad. Then you are stuck in a relatively small but secure place.

It's not for everyone, but it worked for me.

 

[bearkeley]

We just got back from an 8 day trip aboard our 27ft trawler. We took 3 days to get to Washington DC when it would normally take 3 hours to drive by car (with no traffic). It was wonderful! Instead of seeing break lights of other cars stuck in I-95 traffic when we commuted to work, we enjoyed seeing eagles, sea rays, pelicans, osprey nests and landscapes of the Potomac River just minutes away.

We eventually might upgrade to a cat smaller than Dr Dave 's once we get more experience cruising and sailing under our belt, starting with a 5 month trip south to Florida and Bahamas this fall!

 

[FIREmenow]

We have spent many 2 week cruises aboard our 34ft trawler. We're used to small boat cruising, though, and have spent 25 years short-term cruising aboard various sailboats and trawlers as small as 18ft. We already know how to make the requisite "adjustments".

Planning to sell the house and do The Loop for 1-2 years when we retire in fall of next year. Probably FL/Bahamas over the winter until that following spring -- then heading North.

 

[FireCat]

Great to hear from fellow boaters. My wife and I retired two years ago this October and have been cruising full time on our boat. We sold almost everything and so far see no end in sight until the grandkids make an appearance. So until then we cruise. Currently in Grenada but plan on getting back up to Maine next summer.

 

[Blue Collar Guy]

...... he does have a good philosophy. To wit: Do it now, whatever you really like and no regrets later.

I encountered many arch criminals that had this same philosophy.

 

[Scuba]

Great to hear from fellow boaters. My wife and I retired two years ago this October and have been cruising full time on our boat. We sold almost everything and so far see no end in sight until the grandkids make an appearance. So until then we cruise. Currently in Grenada but plan on getting back up to Maine next summer.View attachment 26506View attachment 26507

Wow! Makes me miss the Caribbean even more! Enjoy!![emoji41]

 

[candrew]

Several years ago while visiting Fiji, we met a family that was in the midst of cruising around the world in their sailboat. Mom, Dad and 3 teenaged kids!

We got to know them over the course of a week while they were moored at one of the outer islands where we were staying. The parents had decided, while the kids "still like us", to sell their house in the Seattle area, buy a sailboat and learn to sail on the ocean with the intent of seeing the world as a family.

Mom quit her job as a teacher in Seattle and home schooled the kids aboard the boat. In addition, whenever they sailed into an island like the one in Fiji, Mom & Dad would request permission from a local school if it was in session and ask if their kids could attend. The kids attended a small village school during the week they were in Fiji while fully participating in classroom and outdoor activities like sports. And when I say "small village school" - we are talking about classrooms with mats on the floor (the island is completely off-grid).

What a great experience for them as a family and the kids especially having the opportunity to not only experience cultures from all over the world, but also learning hands-on about the self discipline, teamwork and resourcefulness that is required to live aboard a sailboat in the middle of the ocean!

 

[Scuba]

Several years ago while visiting Fiji, we met a family that was in the midst of cruising around the world in their sailboat. Mom, Dad and 3 teenaged kids!



We got to know them over the course of a week while they were moored at one of the outer islands where we were staying. The parents had decided, while the kids "still like us", to sell their house in the Seattle area, buy a sailboat and learn to sail on the ocean with the intent of seeing the world as a family.



Mom quit her job as a teacher in Seattle and home schooled the kids aboard the boat. In addition, whenever they sailed into an island like the one in Fiji, Mom & Dad would request permission from a local school if it was in session and ask if their kids could attend. The kids attended a small village school during the week they were in Fiji while fully participating in classroom and outdoor activities like sports. And when I say "small village school" - we are talking about classrooms with mats on the floor (the island is completely off-grid).



What a great experience for them as a family and the kids especially having the opportunity to not only experience cultures from all over the world, but also learning hands-on about the self discipline, teamwork and resourcefulness that is required to live aboard a sailboat in the middle of the ocean!

That is so awesome! Much more well-rounded of an education than kids typically get.