Cruisers that gave it up?

[Therapy]

I guess this is the right place for this question.

Although it is a cruisers forum so I don't really expect too much first hand info since I don't think they spend much time here. So second hand info from cruisers who know cruisers who "gave it up" would be OK I guess.

Why did they give it up.
Do you know/have you heard.......specifically?


Storm scare?
Money?
Illness?
Break up?
Loss of vessel?
Boredom?
Death?

Maybe I covered some of them and answered my own questons..........easy..........but I am asking for true stories.
"stories"..................well, yea, I guess so.
Facts would help though.

[Delezynski]

Therapy,


We have been out and about now for almost 4 years. We know of a lot of people who are done cruising.


Of the boats that departed California coast area about the same time we did. 1 quit due to a storm scare.. that is, they were in storm and got very scared Less than a month later, they quit, sold the boat and went back home.


We know of 1 boat that ended the cruising due to a break up, she quit both the boat and him.


We know a couple of boats that quit because the cruising they were doing did not live up to the dream of cruising they had. Cruising IS HARD WORK.


We know at least 2 boats who departed about the same time as us, sailed the boat quickly to the south pacific, and then home, and are now done! Objective archived and now off to do something else.


We have met a LOT of people here in La Paz who started out cruising, (some even still have boats), but are finished cruising. They found they liked it here and have quietly quit cruising.


We knew one couple who had sailed their boat on the Great Lakes for over 5 years as they prepared it for long distance cruising. The spared no $$$! They retired, put the boat in the water in Florida. Less than 4 months later they were finished! They didn't like the salt, the tides, the current and all of the other things that go with full time living aboard and cruising. I tried to get them to write and article something like, “what would I do differently now that I know”. But it was never put to paper.


We are about to head over to the Mexico mainland. We are still going, slowly as before, and enjoying it as we go.


Greg

[Therapy]

Greg,

Thanks for the reply.

I have seen a lot of your site in the past.

I spend more time on the "gear reports"

Thanks for all that!

I wish you well on the mainland.

[shadow]

That's a great and direct question. I am also curious as to why people do stop cruising. I am actually in the process of saving for my boat and wanting to go cruising without any expectations as well as romantic views of it. I am fully aware that it is a life change as well as a life choice. I also know that it is hard work.

[David M]

Excellent question Therapy. I think the different answers to your question should shed some light on the situation for those that are dreaming about cruising, such as my wife and I.

A boat is a huge expense (I almost called it an investment. Not!). To buy a boat and then decide this is not something you wish to do, and then to turn around and sell it can be a huge loss...possibly a loss of hundreds of thousands of dollars, considering the difference between new and used boats.

[Steve Pope]

1 case that I know of, it was his dream, on the first proper sail in around force 4 to 5 winds and 6 hours sailing she was seasick and hasn't set foot on the boat since. End of dream or end of marriage ?? I expect to see it up for sale soon.

[senormechanico]

We sailed from Seattle to Mexico in 1993, lived on the boat about 8 months of the year and spent the summers in Seattle until 1997. Wife missed the family, white picket fence, etc. I was given a friendly "I'm leaving for the Pacific Northwest. Do you want to come with me?" After being married since 1970, the answer seemed obvious, although I still really miss tropical cruising. It's now been 38 years since we got married and we're back on land, but haven't given up sailing. Boat's parked at the dock in the back yard, and about a 6 hour sail from the San Juan Islands.
I guess we're both pretty good at making compromises.

Steve B.

[Ex-Calif]

I know one couple that did it early and are now into having kids and will probably be back sooner than later...

I think the reason's for quitting are going to be as diverse as the reasons for going.

I am also not surprised to see a few "second guesses." i.e. am I doing the right thing, or not having had the SO on board until launch day etc.

If you haven't had significant time on the water with extended week long cruises, I would say you are at the right edge of the risk curve...

A lot of folks at our club won't sail in bad weather. I am actually happy when the weather goes crap and we have a thunderstorm to sail through. I know it's only going to be 30-40 minutes and I know I am less than 3 miles from SAR. What better place to practice?

[ssullivan]

I know people that have done it as something to check off (like bunjee jumping or going to the Empire State Building or something). Their cruises have planned ends to them. Remember the Bumfuzzles? They seemed to do that as well - went around - very quickly, sold the boat and on to the next.

Other people I have met that have stopped have done so due to age and the inability to walk anymore or some health problem.

Personally, we went back on land after we sold the Gulfstar and were happy to be doing so... until we remembered how much we despise white picket fences, being stuck in one place and all the people around you on land.

Feels GREAT to be living on the water again.

[Fishspearit]

For us, a lot of it was just a too small boat and too little money. After 7 years the glamour had worn off. I know that many people get upset if you rattle the cages that hold their dreams and suggest that cruising isn't all perfectly safe and perfectly picturesque anchorages. My post may be a little depressing. Everything gets old after a while. Most people will tell you 'go now, don't wait, live your dream'. We did that, left when I was 25 on a 30' sailboat living hand to mouth. If we had $3000 that was a full cruising kitty and we took off until we were back down under $500 and started looking for work wherever we were at.
Like working as a dive instructor or dive boat Captain, for the first few months it's great, you're "living the dream", out on the water diving everyday, tan, healthy, happy. Then after a while you have to really work to pretend to be excited about seeing another barracuda or parrotfish. Eventually you are just filling tanks and herding cattle on and off the boat, and then it's time to move on.
For years we loved living on the little boat and didn't mind not having refrigeration,onboard shower,electronic gadgets, or any of the usual boat toys, because even if we had the money there was no room to put the stuff on the boat along with the rest of our worldly posessions. At one point we went 3 full years without ever touching a dock. From West Palm all the way to Puerto Rico. That's a lot of lugging Jerry cans. Eventually we started to feel like we weren't exploring, we were just going to another identical island in the same old little boat with no money in our pocket. We decided that for us to enjoy it anymore, we needed to be more comfortable.
We quit cruising, but we always planned to go back to it. We spent the next 7 years living in the woods working and saving, and now we just bought another boat. This time around we are planning more of a part time cruise routine, rather than the openended 'sail off into the sunset' type of cruise.
I don't regret anything about our time aboard or having gone the way we did. But I've learned that having a fixed income is a Huge asset to open ended cruising, and worth a few extra years of work. And having a boat that's comfortable and big enough to store all your crap is Very important. However, those two opinions seem to flow against the normal tide of advice.

[David_Old_Jersey]

As already said, probably as many reasons as people..........

FWIW I do not see their being anything "wrong" with folk stopping.......life moves on / desires change and new dreams are born - that is just how things are, and IMO meant to be......folk do also get tired of a rootless existence.......and the "White Picket Fence" is not without it's upside.......

[Charlie]

Originally Posted by Fishspearit

For us, a lot of it was just a too small boat and too little money. After 7 years the glamour had worn off. I know that many people get upset if you rattle the cages that hold their dreams and suggest that cruising isn't all perfectly safe and perfectly picturesque anchorages. My post may be a little depressing. Everything gets old after a while. Most people will tell you 'go now, don't wait, live your dream'. We did that, left when I was 25 on a 30' sailboat living hand to mouth. If we had $3000 that was a full cruising kitty and we took off until we were back down under $500 and started looking for work wherever we were at.
Like working as a dive instructor or dive boat Captain, for the first few months it's great, you're "living the dream", out on the water diving everyday, tan, healthy, happy. Then after a while you have to really work to pretend to be excited about seeing another barracuda or parrotfish. Eventually you are just filling tanks and herding cattle on and off the boat, and then it's time to move on.
For years we loved living on the little boat and didn't mind not having refrigeration,onboard shower,electronic gadgets, or any of the usual boat toys, because even if we had the money there was no room to put the stuff on the boat along with the rest of our worldly posessions. At one point we went 3 full years without ever touching a dock. From West Palm all the way to Puerto Rico. That's a lot of lugging Jerry cans. Eventually we started to feel like we weren't exploring, we were just going to another identical island in the same old little boat with no money in our pocket. We decided that for us to enjoy it anymore, we needed to be more comfortable.
We quit cruising, but we always planned to go back to it. We spent the next 7 years living in the woods working and saving, and now we just bought another boat. This time around we are planning more of a part time cruise routine, rather than the openended 'sail off into the sunset' type of cruise.
I don't regret anything about our time aboard or having gone the way we did. But I've learned that having a fixed income is a Huge asset to open ended cruising, and worth a few extra years of work. And having a boat that's comfortable and big enough to store all your crap is Very important. However, those two opinions seem to flow against the normal tide of advice.

FS:

Thanks for the firsthand tale. Very interesting and food for thought. I've been noticing that the admiral likes to be on land more than on the boat. She likes to have her dogs, her llama, and her goats. I on the other hand would like a dog and could do w/o the other critters. Well we've compromised and agreed to go sailing for three months to see how it goes. I feel like I'm an addict to sailing. Checking out this board a few times a day and getting everything ready. I like the sense of community on boats more than the sense of community on land. Admiral's probably the opposite. This thread is a good place to study the what has the best possibility of working. 3 or 4 months a year in Mexico? then back to the white picket fence? Maybe. Or like Senor Mechanico move to PNW. I guess I'll have to play out the hand and see how it goes.

[Delezynski]

Like everything in life, nothing lasts forever! I have never thought it was a failure to stop cruising.



The only time I feel a bit sad is if some one had set a specific target, and then quit short of it.


We had a friend in a large boat that set off from the SF Bay area about 2 years before us. He had sold the house and everything and bought the big boat.. His wife was NOT happy about the move and stated it to us more than once.


At any rate, they departed with the plan to sail down the west coast, go through the Canal, then to Florida and sell the boat. During the first month of traveling down the coast they had a mechinal problem, then got caught in a 35 to 40 Kt storm for about 8 hours. They did make it to Mexico, but shortly after they shipped the boat back to the Bay area and sold it after it was on the market for more than a year. I think they took a BIG loss. (I DO NOT know that for sure.)


That has been in the back of our mind. It is another reason why we are so happy with our Nor'Sea. We could come home at 55 MPH if we decided to.


Once we decide to stop cruising (we know that will happen some day), we can drop our Nor'Sea back on it's trailer and park it in the back yard.


Greg

[rtbates]

My retired air force WWII fighter pilot, fear nothing, mountain climbing, jungle explorer uncle decided in the 1968 that he wanted to travel the globe via a sailboat. He had no experience, but hey he didn't know about Alaska wilderness living till he literally camped in the NW territory over the winter of 66-67. He could/would learn all he needed by reading and as he went. He moved to Fla, Ft Lauderdale and found a very salty double ender. Spent 6 months getting her ready, including lots of coastal cruising to learn. Then in Jan 69 he departs Miami heading for Bimini. He left as a norther was diminishing or so he thought. It didn't it got much worse just about the time he made it into the middle of the gulf stream. So there he was, novice sailor, in the middle of the gulf stream as a norther blew down like hell. He said he was never so scared in his life. He was sure that there was no way that his boat could survive the waves. He was knocked flat a good dozen times as he was broached when hit by a breaking wave. Well, the boat did survive. He finally limped into Bimini, walked off the boat, asking the dock hand, " want a boat?"... He went back to climbing mountains and surviving in jungles...and abandoned the boat in Bimini..

Moral of this story is to be sure that you get the chance sail in a good rip snotter, life threatening storm BEFORE you sell the farm to cruise the oceans of the world..

[GordMay]

Originally Posted by rtbates

... He finally limped into Bimini, walked off the boat, asking the dock hand, " want a boat?"... He went back to climbing mountains and surviving in jungles...and abandoned the boat in Bimini..

Moral of this story is to be sure that you get the chance sail in a good rip snotter, life threatening storm BEFORE you sell the farm to cruise the oceans of the world..

I've always counseled newbies to make certain that they (and the ADMIRAL) get lots of excellent, idyllic, sailing in the beginning. This ensures that the first big storm is experienced in a positive context, as the exception; and doesn't become the "poster child" for cruising.

I think that your advise is more prudent, than mine, which might derived from my years in sales.

Perhaps our advice could be modified to, simply:
Be sure that you get the chance sail, BEFORE you sell the farm to cruise the oceans of the world.