Island hopping

[Toddcolumbus]

Any recommendation for an inexpensive twin screw island hopper/great loop ship. For a retired couple on a fixed income and maybe some visitors every now and then...not trying to sell the home place.

[a64pilot]

Define inexpensive, to some people half a Million is inexpensive, to some it’s 10K.
I suspect your in between of course.

My belief is that twin screw and inexpensive don’t go together, or said another way inexpensive twin screw boats are often expensive to use.

Why not single engine?
I’d be tempted to use a 20 HP dinghy motor as a get home motor myself.

[Toddcolumbus]

I'm on a modest retirement so I can't really justify spending more money on a boat than let's say the price of a new truck assuming that truck is between 30k to 50k...meanwhile average cost of a 1 week vacation nearly anywhere for me and my wife could run 6k to 8k not counting kids Cancun or carnival cruise helps me justify the money spent. Being near the Cumberland river and access to a ship gives me a wide range of vacation possibilities bypassing flights and traffic jams and could culminate in great loop or island travel...I'm not new to boating or to cruising but am new to the idea of being the captain where everything could be up to me...as well as the potential risks involved. I want to make a cost effective choice where the same 8k could last a month instead of a week of vacation with more experiences to show for it...plus I could satisfy my sense of adventure....I'm tired of couch sailing YouTube....

[Toddcolumbus]

A64pilot thanks for the reply and pretty cool my first reply was from an assumed ah64 pilot...I was a uh60 crew dog...my brother is a hooker and multi frame.....so I'm an old soldier trying to find my inner salty sailor...

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Todd.

[a64pilot]

Most of us sailboat guys cruise on around $3000 a month, assuming avoiding Marinas. That number is highly variable of course.
In your price range, I’d look for a mid 30’s sailboat, even if you have little to no intention of sailing. Reason is they are a dime a dozen, and the cost to motor is honestly insignificant. On average figure 1/2 a gallon an hour to motor which is about 4 gls a day for fuel when motoring the ICW.
The average mid 30’s sailboat is from what I have seen the most inexpensive way to get cruising. Much smaller than that is really small. Again just an opinion.

Next is similar sized twin gas engine power boat. The boat will have more interior space and is easier to get in and out of and the space is more usable and house like. However the price to motor is honestly likely ten times as much. They do make good liveaboard marina boats though, cause engine and fuel costs don’t matter if you don’t move.

Maybe you could get a smaller single Diesel engine trawler in your price range, and that might be your best bet. Combines the room of a powerboat and the economy of a sailboat.
There is a sister site trawler forum that may be better if you decide to go that route. Sailboats work in the ICW, but they are not the ideal boats due to their usually deeper draft and the mast of course.

On edit, yes I’m an old retired AH-64 Pilot

[Lepke]

You'll be looking at older, used boats. Properly checked out, most will do fine, but will have blemishes. Used diesel engines are usually better than used gas engines. Properly maintained the diesels will outlast the gas by several times and be cheaper on fuel.
If you can find a wood boat in good condition, you get more boat in wood for the money. But it needs to be well surveyed and costs more to maintain.
I'm 70 and spent most of my life on the water. About half on steel ships and half on large commercial boats, mostly wood. Tugs and fishing. My current boat is wood. I cruise the North Pacific.

[DVF2001]

I purchased a 38' Bayliner last October and have spent the winter dressing it up. Launched last weekend. It has twin 175hp Hino diesels (made by Toyota)that are very economical to run. Many people have done the great loop in 38' Bayliners and many have traveled to the Bahamas with them. These boats are very popular in the Pacific North West but there are some available all around the country. The 38' Bayliners were built from the mid 80's until the mid 90's. They have dual cabins, 2 heads and even a small bathtub with shower. Nice size salon and galley. Upper and lower helm and small but nice cockpit. There are many people that will bad mouth Bayliners but the larger Bayliners (32' and larger) have a very well built solid fiberglass hull, not cored like some of the small Bayliners. These 38's can be purchased between $35k - $60k depending on condition. It would be worth it for you to check out this style of boat online. The 32' Bayliners also have 2 cabins and sell for slightly less money. Good luck with your search.

[Sea Life]

34’ Mainship MK1 1977-1982 and the later MK2 are very affordable diesel powered boats. I put 2000hrs on mine from Florida to Maryland. Could do Bahamas, but wouldn’t go much further....

[jsc7]

At this price point, the only thing I would recommend would be a Ranger tug, like a R-21EC.

Anything else this cheap will be very poorly built or will be a "project boat" or both. Trust me, if you are a first time boat owner you do NOT want a project boat.

The Ranger 21EC is a very basic boat, but it is solid and it WORKS, and you can get a decent one used for under $50,000.