Newbie, Wondering...

[Wavewacker]

Hi, from Missouri! I'm really brand new to this and trying to figure out if I'm nuts or if I should sell my house and take off, while I still can. (LOL)

I live a hundred yards f4rom a municipal lake that flows into a river that goes to the lakes, and as you all probably know, into other rivers to the Big Muddy that leads to the Gulf of Mexico and from there the rest of the world, so you might see my facination with all this. I grew up on rivers and lakes in SW Missouri, was in the English Channel aboard a hovercraft that made me rather ill in rough seas a it floated over the water. I have sailed various small boats, but can't say I'm a sailor. My largest tub was a 24' Invader cuddy cabin and now a Sea Raider (14' jet boat) sits in the backyard!

I enjoy reading this site, but many topics are bursting my perception of the liveaboard lifestyle with a dose of reality. Catching rainwater or hauling water? Being boarded by harrassing law enforcement, which would set me off real quick and it appears that every foot of the waterway is regulated by those who don't want you there.

Just read about cruising of $500 a month, sounds great, but is that really possible?

And the boat, I really want something that has a shoal draft, as I really want to hit the rivers and tie up at the banks. I was wondering about a Carri-craft houseboat, a 45 or 50 footer. Then again, I like the Gemini 105, too. Guess I'm saying hi and looking for encouragement, or maybe it's reality I should be made aware of! Thanks all... Bill

[Ex-Calif]

Originally Posted by Wavewacker

Hi, from Missouri! I'm really brand new to this and trying to figure out if I'm nuts or if I should sell my house and take off, while I still can. (LOL)

You are asking a bunch of drug addicts if you should do drugs -

Originally Posted by Wavewacker

I enjoy reading this site, but many topics are bursting my perception of the liveaboard lifestyle with a dose of reality. Catching rainwater or hauling water? Being boarded by harrassing law enforcement, which would set me off real quick and it appears that every foot of the waterway is regulated by those who don't want you there.

These are various levels of reality. If you love cruising you will learn to minimize and avoid the bad stuff.

Originally Posted by Wavewacker

Just read about cruising of $500 a month, sounds great, but is that really possible?

And the boat, I really want something that has a shoal draft, as I really want to hit the rivers and tie up at the banks. I was wondering about a Carri-craft houseboat, a 45 or 50 footer. Then again, I like the Gemini 105, too. Guess I'm saying hi and looking for encouragement, or maybe it's reality I should be made aware of! Thanks all... Bill

Well you won't cruise on $500 a month on either of those boats IMO.

And in fact you probably won't cruise on $500 a month on any boat if you stay in the US.

As far as encouragement - I encourage you to go sailing. A lot. Like every weekend. Get hooked and then you'll figure out if this is for you.

[Wavewacker]

Hi, thanks for the tips! LOL, asking an addict.... Really my thought was to find a boat that 1. is seaworthy in the event I really wanted to head south to Belize and points between and single handed (that's without having the endurance of crosscountry runner too). 2. That is small enough to be easily maintained, simple and functional. 3. Speed is not as important as ease of operation and cost of moving the brick in the water. 4. Comfort, while important, does not mean that reasonable tradeoffs would be acceptable. Standing headroom in the shower is a necessity, (stating that is has a shower should be a clue as to what tradeoffs are acceptable, LOL) a functional galley with a regrigerator. Water can be pumped to eliminate any pressurized system, sufficent space for 4 to set down and eat. A queen size berth would is a big plus and not real excited about a V berth. A chart table would probably never have a natucial chart on it, maybe one could be laid out and covered in clear polyurethane as part of the decore. A laptop and GPS should tell me what I need to know. I suppose a radar is going to be a necessity as well. So if you have any suggestions from those requirements, I'd like to hear them. Now, here is something nuts....I'm a biker guy and can't imagine going somewhere without a bike (motorcycle). If would be nice to but my 1600 cruiser on board, but my 400 lb dual sport Transalp will do. So, guess that means either sufficient clear deck space or some swim platform type arrangement, lots of ideas there.

As for sailing every weekend, I don't have a boat this week and there really isn't any opportunity to charter in my neck of the woods, I guess I could pay some bow babe to go with me and hang around the docks, I could wait until she is asked to go out and then I could pop out from behind a dock locker, saying, sure, we'd love to go! Much like guys do with female hitchhikers do along the highways. Actually, I think I could sail any boat, say under 40' in an emergency, it may not be pretty, people may stare from the shore and those on the dock might decide to run, but I'm sure I can get it back! LOL. I do love sailing and I'm willing to test myself in a good downwind run, since I'm an excellent swimmer.

The whole idea of doing all of this is the feeling of freedom to travel, unrestricted. My thought was that I could simply anchor out or run up on shore, spend a couple nights and move on.

I know those here cringe at the thought of a Carri-craft, but the little 45 footer is a nice way to be on the water. I have read that owners have taken them to Panama, so there you go! Maybe a mizzen would work with those cat hulls, lol.

[Ex-Calif]

Originally Posted by Wavewacker

Hi, thanks for the tips! LOL, asking an addict.... Really my thought was to find a boat that
1. is seaworthy in the event I really wanted to head south to Belize and points between and single handed (that's without having the endurance of crosscountry runner too).
2. That is small enough to be easily maintained, simple and functional.
3. Speed is not as important as ease of operation and cost of moving the brick in the water.
4. Comfort, while important, does not mean that reasonable tradeoffs would be acceptable. Standing headroom in the shower is a necessity, (stating that is has a shower should be a clue as to what tradeoffs are acceptable, LOL) a functional galley with a regrigerator. Water can be pumped to eliminate any pressurized system, sufficent space for 4 to set down and eat. A queen size berth would is a big plus and not real excited about a V berth. A chart table would probably never have a natucial chart on it, maybe one could be laid out and covered in clear polyurethane as part of the decore. A laptop and GPS should tell me what I need to know. I suppose a radar is going to be a necessity as well. So if you have any suggestions from those requirements, I'd like to hear them. Now, here is something nuts....I'm a biker guy and can't imagine going somewhere without a bike (motorcycle). If would be nice to but my 1600 cruiser on board, but my 400 lb dual sport Transalp will do. So, guess that means either sufficient clear deck space or some swim platform type arrangement, lots of ideas there.

Well you are talking a big boat here. I don't normally suggest boats because I am not experienced enough with all the boats out there. I do think there are two approaches.

1 - Pick a boat size/category/style and figure out how to make the budget work
2 - Pick a budget and start compromising.

Originally Posted by Wavewacker

I guess I could pay some bow babe to go with me and hang around the docks, I could wait until she is asked to go out <snip>

If you got a bow babe you may not need the boat - LOL.

Originally Posted by Wavewacker

Actually, I think I could sail any boat, say under 40' in an emergency, it may not be pretty, people may stare from the shore and those on the dock might decide to run, but I'm sure I can get it back! LOL. I do love sailing and I'm willing to test myself in a good downwind run, since I'm an excellent swimmer.

The whole idea of doing all of this is the feeling of freedom to travel, unrestricted. My thought was that I could simply anchor out or run up on shore, spend a couple nights and move on.

I know those here cringe at the thought of a Carri-craft, but the little 45 footer is a nice way to be on the water. I have read that owners have taken them to Panama, so there you go! Maybe a mizzen would work with those cat hulls, lol.

Lot's of things to think about for sure. Dive into the forums and fire away. Not all the smart guys do meet and greets forum so you'll get more traffic in other areas of the forum.

[captain58sailin]

Greetings Wavewacker, welcome to the forum. There is always a trade off for going to sea. The trade offs are only limited by your imagination, & priorities. You are the one who defines what your program will be. If you wish to live in a marina somewhere and want your bike, then you will find a way to make that happen and when you are ready to move to a different marina you will work out the logistics. It boils down to what your priorities are, stand up shower no problem, what ever room that takes up will shorten room for something else, same is true of the queen sized bed. If you have a larger boat to accommodate your wishes then the expense goes up, and you may limit your areas of cruising by your draft, or if you go with a Cat, you may be limited to the marinas that can accommodate you. Over time you will learn what is truly important to you and work out how to obtain it.
Good Luck!

[SkiprJohn]

Aloha and welcome aboard!
Hope you can find lots of threads on this forum to read. If you get bored then check the links and book recommendation after my signature.
kind regards,

[Wavewacker]

Thanks guys for the replies. I'm still looking and trying to figure out what I really want to do. I read a forum somewhere that suggested setting up a room in your house the size of a boat and see if you could stay in that area. Pretty funny too, sugesting wasjing dishes in the bathroom sink, only using one shelf of the refrigerator cook on two burners and sitting on the deck. That didn't last long. At 59, I'm not sure how confined I want to be. Having been an Army guy, camping is not really a hardship for a few days but I'm not sure about trying to watch the seasons pass that way.

Thanks again, I'll see you in the other forums....Bill