Peace and Quiet?

[NoTies]

Originally Posted by Mareva

So to experienced liveaboard cruisers (and especially ones with children!) - what is the situation out there? How often is your sleep disturbed by (unreasonably) noisy neighbours?Julie

I hesitate to include myself in the "experienced" category but having lived in a number of marinas for 7 months off & on the only real problem I have had as being docked opposite a charter stinkpot (Gallileo in Seaview Wellington for the locals). They had some pretty noisy gigs in the summer when we had to work in the morining but I eventually joined them on a couple of occasions, became friends and persuaded them to limit their parties wherever possible to the nights I could attend. It worked pretty well.

[Sandero]

Long term live aboards are quite "invisible" accoustically. It's obviously the people who are there specifically to party who are the inconsiderate ones. They come to their boats with lots of booze with the intention of partying.

Others, perhaps like Julie, don't see a boat as a place to party hearty, but more like a home in what is supposed to me a calm and peaceful setting.

When I did live aboard in the Carib and in the Canaries, we LEFT the boat and went to some bar to socialize with gusto and used the boat for more quiet and intimate dinner parties or sundowners.

Our sleeping became habituated to the sun and so we were early to bed and early to rise and this was also appealling as we felt more in tuned with the rhythm of nature.

I think if you are in a "hot spot" you can expect noisy parties... like St Maarten during the Heinekin regatta or Antigua during race week especially. These are charter hot sports as well and attract noisy escapees from up north on a regular and continuing basis. But most of the other anchorages were very quiet... also because they were removed from onshore bar scenes.

But the question does remain... why do humans have to be noisy to have "fun"?

jef
sv shiva

[ssullivan]

Originally Posted by Mareva

To the party crowd, I have no urge to rain on your parade. The problem is that I am a really light sleeper, and if living aboard means that we have to contend with noisy neighbours three or four nights a week, and until 2-4 am, then quite frankly I'm not (and my husband isn't) willing to live that way. We'd rather sell the boat and just charter. (I could handle little sleep for a week. A year is a whole different kettle of fish.)

Julie

As others have said... living aboard (I have for 2 years full time on this boat and also on a megayacht as crew) is just a microcosm of the same people you would encounter living ashore. Thankfully, there are fewer of them, so you aren't as crowded in.

The Med is always crowded, and it looks like Croatia is becoming that way too. The Caribbean is crowded in many spots as well. The only way to get away from noise (if you can't handle it) is to leave. Go elsewhere.

[Capct]

In the summer our little village comes alive with tourists...loads of American boats come up to visit.People want to enjoy themselves ...have a drink ...socialize and carry on ...thats what they do....The waterfront has all sorts of little bars and restaurants.Its noisy every night in the summer till around 2 AM and often later.Bands ....Music...theatre of life...
Big container ships slip in and out regualary for wood in the middle of the night.The tugs will all fire up at 3AM to help a big one in.
The docks are noisy
boats and ships are noisy


I mean its a marina ....not a monestary.
If you want peace and quiet there is a whole ocean out there.Thats one reason why we have boats if we dont like the view or our neighbors we can move along

[JusDreaming]

as a livaboard, we have never had a problem with loud neighbors for more than a night. If we have some how anchored in a party spot, we just move and find a spot of our liking! They have the right to party as much as I have a right to peace and quiet!!!!!!!! But it is much easier for me to move than to have any kind of confrontation.

[seafox]

A liveaboard parked next to us had an argument with us one night. We had just returned from an 8 hour trip from the Sounds and had been drinking all day. Our Pink floyd cd was a little loud and my mates were a little bit pissed. He ended up being told to "Buy a house, this is a marina, a boat park, not a cheap accomodation alternative".
He aparently got up at 4am (according to my wife) and started his motor, played Classical music and rattled chains. All aboard Seafox (except my wife) snored away blissfully sleeping off their booze.

[GordMay]

Indeed ...

Originally Posted by JusDreaming

as a livaboard, we have never had a problem with loud neighbors for more than a night. If we have some how anchored in a party spot, we just move and find a spot of our liking! They have the right to party as much as I have a right to peace and quiet!!!!!!!! But it is much easier for me to move than to have any kind of confrontation.

[shellback]

At our marina, we here in the Great Lakes experience the same challenges. However, as loud and roudy we've been, we do keep it casual as the nite wears on...normally due to too much rum consumed! LOL

But yes, we too have some motoroboaters down the way, that are hard-core partiers, younger kids (mid-20's 'n such ) that will stay up all nite almost 'n crank the tunes. However, I'm 12 dock slips away, my wife and I are fortunate that we don't hear them too much.
They can party, we can be subtle 'n quiet...or visa versa...isn't that what freedom is about?
As long as people respect others, i'm good.

[sailorm]

Hi there,
Noise? In 15 years of live aboard I probably spent at least 90 percent of it at anchor for the very reason of your complaint. Well, that's the time when I wasn't on a long passage. The quietest long passage I had was to Easter Island. Didn't encounter any traffic at all. I did talk about that in my book, The Mighty Merry Too. Now it is really hard to get used to living on land where there is so much noise Mary the Antique Sailor

I live at a marina with a large percentage of liveaboard boats. If anyone expressed the obnoxious attitude of:

"Buy a house, this is a marina, a boat park, not a cheap accomodation alternative"

they'd be run out of town in short order. That behavior is just rude. It just goes to show you don't have to be an Amercian to be Ugly.

Our marina is far quieter than others, people tie off their halyards, they keep their music turned down. We know that we all have to go along to get along.

The last time we had a problem with a rowdy party it was a crowd borrowing a boat blasting music at 2AM on a weeknight. The drunken fools did eventually turn things down when asked by enough different people who had to go to work in the morning. They thought they were going to have the last laugh though when they decided to shoot off a series of Roman Candles at 6AM. Of course the people who complained were already awake getting ready for work. The drunken morons failed to take into account that such fireworks are very illegal here and we are located about 100 yards from the police station. They got a visit from the local law enforcement team who foound other "contraband" on the boat.

What a shame. :P

[Minitee]

Mareva,
I'm sad to report that I have encountered a lot of noise at many other marinas and I've never been to Croatia.

I guess it could be because many marinas are located right in the heart of a town, where nightlife is allowed by law. In other words, this isn't a residential area, it's a money making tourist spot. In one such place, I was told "tough" when I complained about the really bad karaoke. However, once the nearby million dollar house owners said something, then the marina listened and the "music" promptly stopped at 10 pm.

Other noises that may drive you crazy when you liveabaord:
- Banging halyards from the "abandoned boat" on a moring ball.
- Fido the watch dog who barks at everything, including the waves.
- Anything spoken, sung or groaned on the boat next to yours.

I have to disagree with the "get up and move" solution. Certainly this may work for true cruisers, but many liveaboards have ties to job, schools, etc. And in some regions, waiting lists for a slip are years long. Some other solutions:
- Button up your boat, closing all the hatches, etc.
- Use noise reducing head phones (Bose and Shure make great ones).

mini

I guess I have to make a moral and philisophical distinction between the noisiy local bar, and the antisocial dock neighbor. Complaining about the bar seems a bit like buying the cheap house next to the airport and then complaining about airplane noise. No matter how bad the kareoke is Of course I have the luxury of living in a town that does not allow any kind of public amplified music without a permit.

The guy who thinks that everybody else has to listen to HIS choice of music at HIS choice of time, and just doesn't care about the difficulties he is causing for his neighbors has just bought into the philosophy of "It's all about ME" that makes cruising to very remote places so appealing.

Maybe I am just old fashioned, but I can't understand the life outlook that allows someone to replay to a polite request to turn down the music with an "f--- off" instead of an apology.

Bill's Law of Modern Music: If you can't be good, be LOUD.

Rant complete.... ooommmmmm..... ooommmmmm.... Peace and Tranquility returns....

[seafox]

bit like buying the cheap house next to the airport and then complaining about airplane noise

My point exactly. A boat park is a place to park your boat. Want to call a noise control officer....buy some REAL ESTATE.

"It's all about ME"

that's my middle name.

[seafox]

you don't have to be an Amercian to be Ugly.

[Alan Wheeler]

Darryl, I love it. Your the last person on earth and Andy would be close second, I would want to ever become my "Neighbour from Hell". Yikes, just imagine living in between you two if I was "difficult".