Outfitting for a 1-year cruise

[Beach View]

Hello CF

My wife & son are just about to cut the lines!

We will be setting off from Naples, Italy for a 1-year cruise starting in May 2021. The first 6 months will be in the Med/Iberian Peninsula, crossing to St. Lucia in the ARC+, then ~5 months in the Caribbean. We will ultimately end up in the US, most likely on the Mississippi gulf coast.

We’ve had the boat since it was new (2013 Lagoon 400S2 #320, owner’s version). It’s done 2 Atlantic crossings and is sailed regularly. Most of the prep work is done--all the safety gear is current and ARC-approved, we have lots of tools & mechanical spares (engines, genset, on-board systems, etc.), and the sails are in ok shape. Cooking and provisioning will not be a problem. In short, the boat will be ready, but what about all the other non-boat "stuff" that is/is not essential?

My questions for CF are these:

What did you bring but wished you left behind?
What did you forget to bring that you had to buy later?

I’m guessing the L400S2 has about average (maybe less…) stowage space for a 40’ production cat, and I really want to avoid overloading the boat, especially since we will be out for a year.

Thanks in advance for your advice!

Bill

[Tomodore]

Good question Bill. So easy to cram tons of spares and as you know it really effects performance on a cat. A couple years ago we spent the summer off the boat traveling in Europe and had one bag and small pack each. The mantra is take 1/2 the stuff and twice the money. Except for your crossing things will be available and your experience suggests that you are already capable. Have a great trip!