Cruising on $500 per Month . . .

[olaf hart]

Originally Posted by w1651

Don't retire. Retirement means you sit in a chair and do nothing. If your on the boat sailing or sight seeing in a foreign country you are NOT retired. People who retire DIE !!!!
So get ready for the adventure of your life or sit back in a chair drooling and waste away. It's all up to you.
I'm going with the first option myself.

Agree.
I detired a year ago, working my butt off.
But I am not stuck in an office now, I get to fix things like the house, the farm and the boat.
May do a bit of part time work once I catch up, but that is on my terms, not others.
I never want to sit behind a desk again.

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by w1651

I'm glad no one's here stirring the pot...

Can't we all just get along?

Hey if the animosity amongst cat owners and mono owners is like this on a sailing site. What is it like at a anchorage? We should start a show. When anchorages go bad and sell it to Sailing TV.
Gotta Go!

Ya know, the funny thing is that once you get out from behind the computer screen and anonymity and actually get out into those anchorages, well, the animosity just seems to vanish. We, as happy monomaran owners, socialize with and are friends to many multi-hullers, both 2 and 3 hull types. We share meals, stories, sundowners and wisdom with them all. NO ONE in our long cruising experience has ever engaged in acrimonious mono/multi squabbling when we're out there together.

All this hateful crap rather turns my stomach. There are sure a lot of delicate egos showing up 'round here these days.

Not that this has anything to do with low budget cruising... sorry folks!

Cheers,

Jim

[goprisko]

Mike stopped by the docks this week. He came in for water and vegies.

He is cruising the east coast inland water ways in his 16 ft aluminum canoe.

You may remember my mentioning a canoe as the absolute cheapest cruising boat out there.

Mike fixed up a sailing rig for his grumman, uses a 20 L jug for his water tank,
cooks on a single burner propane camp stove, and sleeps ashore on spoil islands.

He is on his way to the keys.

I think his monthly budget is about $100. He has no engine you see.... So, only
groceries and some LPG occasionally and clothes from Goodwill are sufficient.

INDY

[sctpc]

Originally Posted by goprisko

I think his monthly budget is about $100. He has no engine you see.... So, only
groceries and some LPG occasionally and clothes from Goodwill are sufficient.

INDY

that is in no way cruising its barely living I think its quite sad to be honest

[xymotic]

Originally Posted by sctpc

that is in no way cruising its barely living I think its quite sad to be honest

It really only matters what HE thinks.

[Doodles]

Originally Posted by sctpc

that is in no way cruising its barely living I think its quite sad to be honest

I think it depends on whether you seek in cruising a life of leisure or a life of adventure. Nothing wrong with either in my book.

[44'cruisingcat]

Originally Posted by xymotic

It really only matters what HE thinks.

Exactly. If he's happy he's doing it right.

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Ya know, the funny thing is that once you get out from behind the computer screen and anonymity and actually get out into those anchorages, well, the animosity just seems to vanish. We, as happy monomaran owners, socialize with and are friends to many multi-hullers, both 2 and 3 hull types. We share meals, stories, sundowners and wisdom with them all. NO ONE in our long cruising experience has ever engaged in acrimonious mono/multi squabbling when we're out there together.

All this hateful crap rather turns my stomach. There are sure a lot of delicate egos showing up 'round here these days.

Not that this has anything to do with low budget cruising... sorry folks!

Cheers,

Jim

Until I joined CF I had no idea that a Mono vs Cat squabble even existed.

Thanks to CF my life is now complete

[sctpc]

Sorry I would not have thought anyone would be HAPPY living off good will.

[Doodles]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Ya know, the funny thing is that once you get out from behind the computer screen and anonymity and actually get out into those anchorages, well, the animosity just seems to vanish. We, as happy monomaran owners, socialize with and are friends to many multi-hullers, both 2 and 3 hull types. We share meals, stories, sundowners and wisdom with them all. NO ONE in our long cruising experience has ever engaged in acrimonious mono/multi squabbling when we're out there together.

All this hateful crap rather turns my stomach. There are sure a lot of delicate egos showing up 'round here these days.

Not that this has anything to do with low budget cruising... sorry folks!

Cheers,

Jim

So true! We've been stuck at a small rural marina for the last couple years where we have lived aboard when not overseas. There is a lot of camaraderie among all the boat owners ... mono, multi, sail or power ... and we have them all.

[xymotic]

Originally Posted by sctpc

Sorry I would not have thought anyone would be HAPPY living off good will.

"Good Will" is a chain of thrift stores. I don't think he meant literally begging.

Buying clothes at good will is a very good way to save a LOT of money.

[Doodles]

Originally Posted by sctpc

Sorry I would not have thought anyone would be HAPPY living off good will.

In the US "Goodwill" is a nonprofit store that sells second hand merchandise. You can find some nice stuff there cheap.

[goprisko]

Originally Posted by xymotic

Um, more like "a totally negative slant on cats" than "hidden truth"

A modern cat has two engines. This is either a huge plus or a huge negative,for the man of limited means depending on your own personal outlook/situation.

In fact most of your hidden truths contain a similar bias. Yes, they have a weird motion, *for some people* and for plenty of others not fighting heel ALL the time is a blessing. You don't fight heel, if you learn to sail properly, and choose routes that permit reaching and running. And of course, if you choose a good old boat.

They ARE two boats in one.

A 32' cat has about the same space as a 60' mono. and no, I guess you can't load it down like you could a mono, but you can load it with as much stuff as you'd put in a 32' mono and still have TWICE the space!

C. Everything Cats have been overwhelmed and turned upside down, under conditions that cause but a knock down in a mono-hull, even just cruising from island to island, most often during squalls encountered at night, which catch the crew unaware, sometimes in squalls encountered during the day, which prove much stronger than expected.

d) They have awesome Flat nearly no motion most of the rest of the time, and again, a lot of people find fighting heel and motion exhausting on a mono. No, most folks, who choose mono-hulls from the good old boats list, which means boats with displacement from 6-8 tons, have well behaved sea-kindly boats. It is those who choose recent very light boats who have this problem, as do those who cruise on cats

e is flat false. They have higher costs than a similar LENGTH mono, but a 32 cat and a 64 mono probably have similar maint & mooring costs. And As stated before cats do have advantages over most monos in where they can go and ability to be beached. This is flat out false. There are deep draft cats and there are shallow draft cats, just as there are deep draft mono-hulls and shallow draft mono-hulls.


I have a mono because of one reason, COST I got a 36' world cruising steel boat for $6500. But I also know some guys that just got a 54' cat project boat for FREE. so it's not all black and white right and wrong

Finally, admission. In this thread COST IS EVERYTHING!!

Cats are more expensive to operate. As admitted above.

Cruising on a micro-budget requires minimalism. In today's world, with
today's costs, it is either that or sea-steading... sitting in one place, going nowhere.

This thread is for the guy who, like me, is on a very limited budget, with very limited means.

As such, we are looking for ideas that show others how it can be done.

For example, much as I like Jim, solar panels on a micro-budget boat make sense PROVIDED that boat is very simply equipped.

By this, I mean LED cabin and nav lights, perhaps an energy mizerly fridge like the engle, hand pumped water, bucket head or hand pumped WC. Hand operated winches and windlass. If you need heat, a stove which does not require electricity to operate.

Now that I am back north, out of the tropics, my solar panels do not provide the power they did in St. Thomas. It is very windy here so I will fix the wind turbine and between the two have enough.

I'd now like to talk about the last few days here in Cocoa.

Yesterday, I was invited to Thanksgiving dinner at the gazebo downtown. A group of very nice folks put on quite a feast for any and all who choose to come. It's free. They also bring clothes for those in need. I learned of it after I'd thawed the turkey, so I baked the bird anyway. Will use the leftovers for quite a while.

Two days ago, Mike was at the docks. He is cruising the US East Coast in his 16 ft aluminum canoe.

He has a 20 L jerrycan for a water tank, a tent, a camp stove, mess kit, cook kit, sailing rig. He camps on spoil islands. He is having a great time. His only problem enroute the keys will be Miami-FtLauderdale where he is concerned about being waked by high speed boats.

He is spending about $150/month.

There are thousands of miles of protected water cruising in the US alone. The north channel of Lake Huron, north coast of Lake Superior, the mid-western rivers.... DesPlaines, Fox, Illinois, Kankakee, Wabash, Ohio, Mississippi, Tennessee, Black Warrior, Missouri and Monongahela,
the ICW from NYC to Houston. All await.

Key to finding places to camp or moor is shallow draft. A sharpie or similar is very practical for this kind of cruising. A canoe if your means are extremely limited.

Of course, the Canoe opens virtually all of the Canadian Lakes to you to explore.

Lost your job? Now on SSI and Food stamps? This thread is for you.

Go back and read pp 28- 37 where we discuss how to cruise on this budget:

Our annual cruising budget now is:
Maintenance and Repair $ 970
Provisions $ 2,400 ( diet high in legumes, all meals cooked aboard)
Entry & Clearance Fees $ 150
Fuel $ 100 ( LPG for galley stove )
Mooring & Marina Fees $ -0-
Communication $ 200
Excursions/ Entertainment $ 800
Navigation $ 700
Insurance, Boat $ -0-
Insurance Health $ 240 (money put in rainy day fund)
Souvenirs $ 150
Clothing and Sundries $ 290



TOTAL $ 6,000


From my neighbors, I am discovering that one and all got their 28-34 ft mono-hulls for less than $6000. Of course, virtually all these boats are worn out.


Jim is a case in point, he has been fixing his 32 for the past two years. He likes buying worn out boats, moving aboard, fixing and selling them. It's his hobby. This is instructive.


For a couple of grand a savvy guy can get a worn out good old boat these days. It floats, the hand pump for the water may or may not work, but jugs will carry the day. The food pantry, or seniors home supplies a hot meal daily, so a broken cooker does not matter.


What matters is a dry interior, and a place to sleep. Given that the man of limited means can anchor near a town, he can turn his limited income to fixing the boat, while living aboard. To get extra cash he might do odd jobs, sell insurance (my broker is looking for agents and claims a go getter can make $3k monthly. Not bad for talking to folks while sitting in an office, or work at a boat yard.


I think this much better than subsisting in public housing while the housing authority takes 75% of your pension check.


Once the boat is fixed, then it's time to go some where.


If you're tired of living in penury on your SS pension, then central america is for you. Better yet asia or India.


Fair Winds,


INDY

[Cormorant]

Your friend Mike reminds me of the book "Beach Cruising and Coastal Camping" by Ida Little. She and her husband cruised the Bahamas in a 16' Hobie cat towing a canoe full of gear. They camped out on uninhabited islands for weeks or months at a time. VERY low budget. Maybe not what everyone here wants to do, but quite inspirational. Many of their tips and tricks and attitudes can be adapted to cruising any boat cheap.

[David_Old_Jersey]

Originally Posted by goprisko

Two days ago, Mike was at the docks. He is cruising the US East Coast in his 16 ft aluminum canoe.

In recent times I have been developing a hankering to build one of these:-




Originally the "plan" (half a daydream? ) was a 21 foot Wharram Tiki - built in Malaysia (by me ) - at some point in the vague and distant future......but something like this might be an alternative - and something I could build next summer, over here (and then try and drown myself locally ). And either ship it out or only part of it and build the rest on site.....or simply use my newly acquired boat building skills for the Tiki.