New to this forum and boat life - need some help please

[Exctyengr]

Originally Posted by picklesandjesse

Here's one in your area, but it's wood. Pacific Boat Brokers are listing it. It needs some understanding on how to maintain. If you see a problem with a wood boat you must do something immediately. Don't wait a few weeks. Keep the paintwork up. Throw buckets of salt water over the decks almost daily. Allow air to travel around the boat especially in the bow and stern area. Don't stow wet ropes or gear in those areas..... you get the idea ?? Wooden boats are best not sitting in a marina and should be on a mooring or anchored out. Think fresh air and salt in the bilge. Best to get some advice before even thinking about it as this particular boat is very special and deserves a caring and knowledgeable owner. They might not even sell it to you. I doubt that I would if I owned this boat. The Gardner engine is very fuel efficient and legendary.....none better. Asking price 109k but you might get for 80K in this market. Attachment 215653

I have owned wooden boats and frankly love them over some of the floating Clorox bottles that seem all the rage these days. But as the previous poster opined, you cannot in good conscience recommend an older wooden boat to a newbie. He is already on a steep learning curve and to add to it the constant maintenance of an older wooden boat is a blue print for total and complete chaos. I have probably looked at Dilly a dozen times on YW, and she's a beauty but she will require constant maintenance, a steward if you will of BC boating history. I do not think that would work for a FNG (If you are old Army, you will know what that means!)

[picklesandjesse]

Originally Posted by sandy stone

How, in good conscience, could you recommend a 70-year-old wooden boat to a complete newbie? And then turn around and say that you wouldn't sell them the boat if it was yours? Plus it's way over their stated budget? What was the point?

Obviously I'm not thinking !!! And I don't drink. Sorry. But I had seen it advertised a few days ago and it sprung to mind. I would love this vessel for the BC coast and lived on Ruxton Is for 25 years and miss it very much. Australia is not the same but a warmer place to die and we have beautiful birds. Maybe someone else will see this vessel and give it a good home.

[Warmland]

Welcome to boat life. I live on Vancouver Island and bought a 41ft sailboat last may 2019 and live on it full time through the winter too. I would recommend first step is making sure there is a liveaboard marina that will take a large boat. I found 1 marina south of Nanaimo that had room.

Secondly make sure the boat is insulated, or insulate it yourself if possible. Stops condensation during those cold wet winter months and makes life aboard so much more comfortable. You will learn a lot as you go. I didn't have a tonne of experience about engines and maintenance but knew how to sail. People in the marina are very helpful.

Thirdly, take the power squadron courses asap especially the basic level 1 to get your ticket which is like your drivers licence for the water. There are tonnes of courses through the power squadron about coastal navigation , marine radio etc that will give you a baseline.

I love living on the water year round and am just starting to cruise the Pacific NW.

Tanya

[Macblaze]

When I first started boat hunting i looked at a lot of powerboats. 3 cabins seemed to be a rarity in the 35-45 foot range; I never could figure out why as lots of sailboats in that range have 3 cabins. I guess manufacturers figured powerboaters had more money and less family

Take a look around at options about where to berth. Lots of places have winter moorings available (Victoria for one) and then you can live on the hook during the summer months.

I would certainly take the advice to do some chartering. I learned powerboating on twin screws which is a lot different to handle than single screws. While I hear a trawler style will get pretty good fuel consumption, we did a charter on a 38 foot Bayliner and I had a tendency to put the throttles forward a wee bit too much: $500 to refuel at the end of a week. Ouch. Some experience in a few different boats might help you settle on what its like to handle different configurations.

Way back when we started by taking a liveaboard cruise and learn where we chartered the boat and did Competent Crew, Day Skipper, and Coastal Navigation in one week aboard a powerboat. Since there are no sails to worry about its imminently doable and will get you used to docking, anchoring, tidal rapids, navigation and general boat handling for what I thought was a good price.

[GeneM]

You seem like you would be good boating people, especially if your older daughters join you.

If you truly want to be fulltime boaters for 4 people, then definately get something big - maybe 50 ft or bigger. That should get you 3 staterooms. If daughters are part time, smaller might be OK.

Trawlers are a great choice. If you like a traditional look, maybe get a Grand Banks. They are usually slower, max 8kts. If you want a more sleek look, get a fast trawler to get upto about 12 kts. I love the Navigator.

I have an express cruiser that goes about 22 kts on plane. It's great for running from hurricanes and looks great. But, it rocks tremenfously because of no keel extension. The props are unprotected. It horses tremendously at anchor to pull out almost any anchor.

I often run at 8 kts to save fuel and am passed on long trips by trawlers doing 10-12 kts while they burn less fuel.

[DanCan]

The “Trawler Forum” is also a good place for more ideas and suggestions. The site has very interesting old time trawler boaters with tons of experience:
https://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/

[Scorpius]

I absolutely applaud you for wanting to this. However one major piece of information before suggesting whether it is practical or not is whether you intend to work while doing it. If so you will need to stay somewhere where you can access your job – and, in practice, that means a live-aboard slip. That is VERY difficult in BC these days, particularly anywhere near Vancouver – although there are some pretty scruffy docks on the Fraser whose owners may look the other way in return for perhaps some enhanced largess.


If you don’t need to be near a job and can cruise full time, go for it! I’ve been cruising the BC coast and offshore for the past 30 years – and for the past 10 (in BC) I’ve had NO home base. If you are happy anchoring in often beautiful and secluded coves and inlets on the coast, you have no need to pay for docking anywhere. I can count on the fingers of one hand the number of nights per year I pay for wharfage. Most of the “government” docks on the coast allow anywhere from two to four hours free stay (during the day) to go shopping etc. If you come in late morning after the transients have left but before tonight’s batch arrive, there’s usually space at even the most popular places even in the middle of high season. Living this way, and travelling slowly (lower fuel and maintenance costs), can be really cheap.

And, as others have pointed out, the BC coast is one of the best cruising grounds in the world. There’s 17,500 miles of coastline in the 500 miles (as the crow flies) between the Washington state and Alaska borders – and 95% of it is inaccessible except by boat or float plane. Learn to cruise here. You’ll get lots of help and support, won’t have to worry about ocean crossings (until you are ready for them), language issues, Covid-19, health insurance, etc., etc., etc. while getting your sea legs under you – and you will learn if the lifestyle is for you.

As for boats, at Jack’s Boat Yard in Lund there are two or three, I think all available for $50,000Cdn or less (Jack’s is well off the beaten path and so doesn’t get a lot of people kicking the keels) that might meet your requirements. One is Esperanto, a King’s Legend 45 (I think) that has sailed extensively offshore, and is, I think, very well maintained. Another is Parallel Dreams, a gorgeous, steel, Amazon, that I think has spent considerable time offshore. The third, and I can’t remember her name, is a centre-cockpit job of about 45 feet. She might be a Morgan or something like that. Personally, if I didn’t already have Scorpius I would buy Parallel Dreams in a heartbeat (I’m a BIG fan of steel boats. They are virtually indestructible if well maintained). Give Gerry (a wonderful woman and the manager of Jack’s – and Jack’s daughter) a call to get contact info for the owners: (604) 483-3566 during business hours. I don’t think any of the three boats are represented by brokers so you’d be dealing directly with the owners in each case.

Besides, at trip to Lund and Jack’s is a treat in its own right! Take care and good luck!

[Newadventure52]

Thank you all for the helpful replies. I appreciate it a lot.
We don’t plan to physically work while on the boat, we have it virtual. So that would t be an issue.
I guess the fact that we are totally new to boating and sea territory, I personally will feel most comfortable be close to shore line, live in marina, and be close by to other boaters. At least until we have more heads on with the boat .

We all want to just take the boat out there and just sail, but at this stage when we are so newbies, i personally don’t feel comfortable doing so.

So we planned to start with BC area , and see how it goes.

We are very familiar wit living in closed quarters and be together 24/7 , literally 24/7 so small space is n issue but I guess less than for someone who is used to living in a house.

Having said that it’s still 4 adults and sometime the space is really needed that’s why we wanted 3 cabins. Although it seems to me from looking around and her your comments that 3 cabins is an option that might be way more than our budget.

I saw some trawlers that had a fly bridge that was closed to a separate space and maybe that would work. It create like a separated space from the boat.

My question is because those spaces don’t have an access from the inside of the boat, just from the outside, is it safe, comfortable or preferable at all?

Thank you so much 😊

[ranger58sb]

Originally Posted by Newadventure52

I saw some trawlers that had a fly bridge that was closed to a separate space and maybe that would work. It create like a separated space from the boat.

My question is because those spaces don’t have an access from the inside of the boat, just from the outside, is it safe, comfortable or preferable at all?

Thank you so much ��

I think you'd find better info at trawlerforum.com (sister site) as was already recommended above.

The members there are more finely attuned to the nuances of various powerboat configurations, and can answer questions about flying bridge access (it varies, some do indeed allow access both from inside the boat and from the cockpit) and other features.

And they probably won't beat you up on the terminology as much as the sailors do, here. And they probably won't tell you right off the bat that a powerboat is completely unsafe compared to a sailboat. (Tongue planted firmly in cheek! )

Anyway, you'll see boatloads of existing thread debating hull forms, the number of engines, flybridge verses pilothouse versus sedan, etc ad infinitum.

If you haven't already, you can look at sites like yachtworld.com to peruse variouos models that are listed for sale... and there's Powerboat Guide available that attempts to briefly describe boats, their layouts, etc. The Broker's Edition is better for that, but do be aware there are many boats that just aren't in the guide for whatever reason.

Three staterooms isn't so hard. Just guessing that a decent boat for $CAN 60-70K may be more difficult, but maybe not impossible -- assuming you can use up to the other $CAN 30-40K to bring it up to your own standards.

Welcome aboard!

-Chris

[FAST FRED]

I suggest you take a vacation and go to the Erie Barge Canal this summer.

You can rent a steel canal boat that is perfect for a novice.

In the canal there is no navigation and you can tie up to a free dock every few miles for overnight and a resturant.

The most important thing you will learn is size and volume need not be as in a dirt house .
So should you decide to purchase a boat a roomeran is NOT required , good design and setup count for way more than mere volume.


ENJOY!

[rsn48]

You also need to understand that Motor Yachts of a type and size your stated budget permits are FAR less seaworthy and safe than are Sailing Yachts available for the same amount of money. Within that enormous breakwater that is Vancouver Island, Motor Yacts are fine. In the hands of an inexperienced skipper going north of the top of Vancouver Island, into Hecate Strait, they can be dangerous. And let us not even speak about the west cost of Vancouver Island - “the graveyard of ships” -, or, a fortiori, the west coast of the States of Washington, Oregon and California.

So Motor Yachts are not, in my opinion, really suitable for the things you have indicated you would like to do.

This is completely not true. I will give you a link to a small (three owners) who take "slow boats" in small groupings (for a heavy fee) up to Alaska, most leaving from Seattle and areas. The link will be to one of their many excellent videos, and their site is a good resource. The name of the company is "Slowboat."

This first link is "Inside Passage" Overview. They discuss for example what kinds of boats can you take up to Alaska, and the answer is all kinds of types. But the discuss sailboats in the Inside Passage, and many go up to Alaska, but it isn't the preferred way.

Sailboaters think they can go most of the way sailing, and they are wrong. Take Johnstone Straight, this is a relatively narrow area, so if sailboating you are spending a great deal of time tacking. The problem with the many narrow passages is the wind is funneled down these water ways and so the wind is always on the nose, not a pleasant point of sail, and why you have to tack so much, "noserlies" winds and close shores means a very long time to cover a straight line. So the majority of sailing in these areas is motoring, slower than a trawler.

Then there is a the weather, but watch the video. Sailboaters are out in the rain a lot.... a lot. Ketchikan gets more rain in July than Seattle does in November, and that's saying something.

You just need to learn about weather windows and cruise on the good days and don't on the bad days (windy). You might get up to Port Hardy and have to wait three days to make the next jump north. But so what, you are on your boat having a good time, even if tied up to a dock.

Also pay attention to the boat one of the company owner's took up to Alaska twice and down the West Coast of Vancouver Island. Maybe a bit small for you and me, but it was doable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_c...ature=emb_logo

This second link is "Crossing the Strait of Georgia." kind of a bonus video, of issues you need to be aware of out there on the pond.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdNu...ature=emb_logo

And lastly, two recommendations for boats are Cutwater and Nordic Tug, both from the same company in our area. Look for boats in those two styles.

[rsn48]

You also need to understand that Motor Yachts of a type and size your stated budget permits are FAR less seaworthy and safe than are Sailing Yachts available for the same amount of money. Within that enormous breakwater that is Vancouver Island, Motor Yacts are fine. In the hands of an inexperienced skipper going north of the top of Vancouver Island, into Hecate Strait, they can be dangerous. And let us not even speak about the west cost of Vancouver Island - “the graveyard of ships” -, or, a fortiori, the west coast of the States of Washington, Oregon and California.

So Motor Yachts are not, in my opinion, really suitable for the things you have indicated you would like to do.

This is completely not true. I will give you a link to a small (three owners) who take "slow boats" in small groupings (for a heavy fee) up to Alaska, most leaving from Seattle and areas. The link will be to one of their many excellent videos, and their site is a good resource. The name of the company is "Slowboat."

This first link is "Inside Passage" Overview. They discuss for example what kinds of boats can you take up to Alaska, and the answer is all kinds of types. And they discuss sailboats in the Inside Passage and many go up to Alaska, but it isn't the preferred way.

Sailboaters think they can go most of the way sailing, and they are wrong. Take Johnstone Straight, this is a relatively narrow area, so if sailboating you are spending a great deal of time tacking. The problem with the many narrow passages is the wind is funneled down these water ways and so the wind is always on the nose, not a pleasant point of sail, and why you have to tack so much, "noserlies" winds and close shores means a very long time to cover a straight line. So the majority of sailing in these areas is motoring, slower than a trawler.

Then there is a the weather, but watch the video. Sailboaters are out in the rain a lot.... a lot. Ketchikan gets more rain in July than Seattle does in November, and that's saying something.

You just need to learn about weather windows and cruise on the good days and don't on the bad days (windy). You might get up to Port Hardy and have to wait three days to make the next jump north. But so what, you are on your boat having a good time, even if tied up to a dock.

Also pay attention to the boat one of the company owner's took up to Alaska twice and down the West Coast of Vancouver Island. Maybe a bit small for you and me, but it was doable.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_c...ature=emb_logo

This second link is "Crossing the Strait of Georgia." kind of a bonus video, of issues you need to be aware of out there on the pond.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdNu...ature=emb_logo

And lastly, two recommendations for boats are Cutwater and Nordic Tug, both from the same company in our area. Look for boats in those two styles.

[rsn48]

Can't get rid of one of the two duplicates.