DISTANT SHORES BECKON

[hatteras53]

Greeting all Shipmates,



Here's the deal as someone in an important position keeps saying these days in Washington. The Filipino wife and I have been preparing our old boat (44' Nauticat Motor Sailor) for many years now with an almost complete refit of every major system other than a fresh paint job/fiberglass redo (no I don't have a spare 20-30k for a u.s.a. done work) and outward appearances mean so little to me anyway (and probably would give boatyards/others the idea that I am wealthy which would be incorrect) and I keep having thoughts of an extensive journey way beyond the Chesapeake Bay. My experience level is fairly good, having been an airplane pilot/having owned larger boats/etc. Other than my wife, I am willing to have crew aboard for all offshore legs of this trip of a lifetime. Briefly, here is the planned route. Norfolk to Florida, then to the Panama Canal. Then up to San Diego. Next will be Hawaii and onward to Manila. Then to Singapore. Onward to India and up the Suez Canal. Across the Mediterranean to Gibraltar. Finally to Cape Verde and across to the Caribbean Islands and back to Norfolk. There would be no timetable and this would all been done in a post Covid 19 world when everything is open. The idea would be that our boat would be docked/put on the hard/etc after the completion of a leg of the journey. Other than always learning and having crew aboard for any offshore work, my concern is about insurance. It seems to be unattainable/cost prohibitive and it seems best just to go with no coverage other than liability. We are in the planning stage and would greatly appreciate any and all comments.