World Cruiser

[aroundtheworldsoon]

Hi I am new to sailin, with very little experience. However, I am very ambitious and would like depart to travel the world within the next few years. I am wondering what size of boat and type would be best suited. I want to have very few limitations on where I can go. I want to extensively sail the north, the south, as well as the south pacific island chains and the carribean. I want a vessel sea worthy enough to take on Cape Horn. There will be 2-3 of us on the voyage(which I guess would have the most implcations on size). I am most interested in a very reliable and durable boat, not as much as super luxury, but want it to be well outfitted. Also can anyone recomend a good book, one on sailing basics, two on offshore cruising/world cruising.

Thank you for your time,

Ryan

[swagman]

Wow.

Good to hear of the plans but some might say the concept of tackling Cape Horn whilst also admitting inexperience is difficult to balance.

I'm from the EU so it might be better for other forum users perhaps based Stateside to respond on what style of boat you could select. You are sure to get a variety of responses as most sailors are pretty 'one eyed' about what they believe is best. It's usually what they chose for themselves.

The reality is with experience and planning, a sailor can take most yachts almost anywhere in relative safety. Sad fact is what may be best to round Cape Horn is possibly not best choice for a Caribbean cruise - so you'll need to compromise in your eventual choice once you know where you will spend most time.

There are literally hundreds of good sailing books to study - suggest its best to go to www.amazon.co and search their watersports sections and read the biogs before selecting a few.

Also it might make sense to maybe dial yourself into either a crew position if you've a local yacht club - if not maybe consider some basic sail training courses. Over this side of the pond the accepted 'best' authority controlling training are the RYA although I know there are others Stateside who set simialr courses. There are again, hundreds of firms who run them.

I'd also suggest once you feel confident in basic sailing skills, you go charter a small yacht somewhere nice for a vacation and get a feel for being a skipper. One usually finds you take to it like a duck to water - or you learn pretty quick its not for you.

Goes without saying - its better to find that out before you spend hard earned money on a boat.........

Great to see the plans, hope you realise them, and this forum is a great place to some if you ever need advice or feedback.

Good luck

JOHN

[GordMay]

Also wow! - And fully supporting your laudable ambitions, I would also reiterate John’s comments regarding “universal” boats.
As with many things, “one size fits all”, or “ten tools in one”, generally produces a compromise solution that doesn’t fit/perform in any single specific application very well.
Given your age, I also have to ask: are your world-cruising ambitions in the near future (within the next 1-3 years), or a little more long-term?

[haloman]

Hi Ryan

I have got the same idea. So far I found out the Tayana boats are designed to go deep ocean. I've still got a couple years before I can start. I don't even have the boat, but I've been looking. As far as books, a lot of magazines like Good Old Boat has a lot of useful info and places to go to find info. The best thing is to talk to people down at the docks. I've found out more from them than most any books. Look at the Straights of Magellan. It's better than the horn. i wish you the best of luck in finding the right boat if you find a better boat let me know

[aroundtheworldsoon]

I am very ambitious, but Cape Horn would definitely be toward the end of the trip. I would say 1-3 years is about the time span I am thinking before I depart. I guess perhaps the best question to ask would be size of the yacht. Is something in the 30 foot category going to be suitable for 2-3, or am I going to need in the 40/50 foot range.

[dana-tenacity]

Step 1: buy a laser or similar and spend the next year racing at every opportunity you get.
Step 2: crew on a keelboat in your local race fleet, at the end of that year try to get a ride offshore with someone, maybe join a delivery crew coming back from a race ( you won't be good enough to be be offered a ride in the race).
Step 3: buy a small keelboat and race it/sail it for a year, try to get in at least 75 sailing days in a year. At the end of that time charter a bigger boat somewhere. Do another offshore passage as crew.
Read the thread here about the guy who just abandoned his boat and was rescued trying to sail around the horn. Pay particular attention to the level of preparation he did - it was inadequate.
This is an absolute screaming minimum if you don't want to endanger yourself and others.
It takes 4 years to learn just about any profession and longer to get any good at it, think of the process in those terms.

[Intentional Drifter]

And I thought I was ambitious! I would love to see Patagonia and (at least say that I have) sailed around the Horn, but I've scratched those ambitions, and a fair number of others, off the list.

Seriously, though, without repeating the many worthy suggestions, above, a specific book I found helpful is Hal Roth's How to Sail Around the World. You will find Hal's opinion well-stated, throughout, with many specifics. While his reasoning is clear, there are other opinions, too. But, he never leaves you guessing about why he thinks what he thinks.

Good luck and I hope to see you out there.

ID

[Tnflakbait]

I must agree that you should gather some experience. You may not even like sailing. (hopefully you do) Before you do a trip like this you should know what type of boat you need based on YOUR experience and knowledge. Good luck!

[knottybuoyz]

I'm surprised nobody's mentioned the "bumfuzzles" yet!

[ssullivan]

Without giving any advice (and I have plenty stored up), I'll answer your question:

A boat suitable for 2-3 crew can be any size, from say 27ft up to 100ft. A lot depends on how close the crew is and how deep your pockets are.

The bigger the boat, the more expensive and usually more complicated. Also the more forces that will be on the sheets, etc... But also the less the boat cares about large waves.

The smaller the boat, the easier it will be to handle, pay for, and do quick maneuvers in an emergency. However, it will be more "lively" at sea, bouncing around a bit. This has more to do with the weight of the vessel than the length, however.

Now, you will need to get out on the water like everyone says and try to see what you like. See if you like the larger or smaller boats. See what makes sense to you and your crew.

Certainly, read this website and every book or magazine you can get your hands on. It's a long process. I've been sailing for about 20 years. I started young and even worked professionally at sea. There are still plenty of things I don't know. It's a life long learning process.

As the others said, don't just set out expecting you can "wing it." Get the basics down pat before doing any offshore sailing.

Originally Posted by aroundtheworldsoon

I am very ambitious, but Cape Horn would definitely be toward the end of the trip. I would say 1-3 years is about the time span I am thinking before I depart. I guess perhaps the best question to ask would be size of the yacht. Is something in the 30 foot category going to be suitable for 2-3, or am I going to need in the 40/50 foot range.

[ssullivan]

Originally Posted by knottybuoyz

I'm surprised nobody's mentioned the "bumfuzzles" yet!

Here we go...

[Sandero]

This is not serious... I am sorry to say.

It will take years to trick out a yacht, learn to sail, storm tactics, naviagtion, repair and maintenance of the systems... the list of what your need to know and how you learn it is very long... and you need a decent amount of cash.

I want to go to the moon... too.

I suggest you go to the library or bookstore and read up a bit and take some sailing classes... and go to some boat shows and see some yacht brokers. And then spend a few thousand hours sailing in all sorts of weather conditions.

You might want to study meteorology and radio use (ham and SSB)... and take some courses on marine diesels and electronics... and Ded Reckoning and coastwise navigation. Learning to use a sextant is not a bad skill to have too... doing a noon sight is pretty basic and handy stuff.

I don't think people should evenb indulge dreamers such as this fella who didn't even bother to do any research on his own... a bad sign for someone who wants to sail off around the world...

Which way to the equator?

Jef
sv Shiva
Contest 36s

[SkiprJohn]

Aloha Around,
Welcome aboard!! Sometimes we're very critical here. My best advice is start reading (at the library) and start sailing small. Get "Royce's Sailing Illustrated" and a copy of "Start Sailing Right." Go aboard as many boats as you can talk your way on and get lots of experience.
I've had way too many people show up at our basic sailing classes saying they want to go bluewater sailing and after their first lesson learn that they just don't like heeling or being out on the water. I hope you aren't one of those and will just have fun and live your dream.
Kind regards,
JohnL

[GordMay]

Autonomous sailing vessel “Ecolution”

An innovative steel-hulled sailboat being designed to generate sustainable energy and maximise automation to give autonomy at sea will have auxiliary power and heating from a pair of Yanmar diesels.

The 25m (82ft), 60-tonne craft is to be called “Ecolution” and will be built by Ecolutions in the Dutch city of Groningen. It is being led by former Challenger space shuttle astronaut Wubbo Ockels, now a professor at Delft Technology University, and involves shipyards No Limit Ships and Marvis.

Within just a few days of sailing, the boat can create and store enough energy in its battery pack for a month of comfortable living on board. A software management system will advise on sail settings, predict power use and storage requirements, and monitor onboard systems and environmental changes. It is being integrated with multi-functional navigation and mooring will be facilitated by position and directional control, using two propellers, two rudders and a bowthruster.

All operations can be performed single-handedly via a one-button device. The system architecture mimics the space shuttle in that it is fully redundant and its safety is tolerant to two failures.

Project “Ecolution” Goto: http://www.zonnestroomproducenten.nl...ON%20Sunny.pdf

[Trim50]

Even more interesting...

http://www.haveblue.com/about/index.htm

HaveBlue has partnered with other industry leaders and is currently engaged in a technology demonstration program involving a zero-emission sailboat that is highly beneficial to the boat owner as well as the environment. Designated the X/V-1 vessel, it is the first program of its type and many analysts within the industry feel its potential impact on the future of our seas is far reaching. Read all about it in the X/V-1 section by clicking here.