Reasonable

[Bash]

Originally Posted by Terry Fallis

we plan on upgrading electonics including chart plotter and anything else that needs it next summer.

Taking that chart plotter in to Mexico could be a nightmare if you don't have a temporary import permit.

Here's a good site for Mexico first timers: Latitude 38's First Timer's Guide To Mexico

[arleen]

thanks! Well, I polished the hull when we were on the hard (interestingly, the port side was about 44'; the starboard side felt like 150' .....I've scraped off bottom paint and repainted; polished the prop, stripped, sanded, and resealed all the teak exterior.....I've climbed into the engine room, pulled wires and hoses, replaced a variety of screws and bolts....With help, I can get the dinghy off and the engine mounted --- and I can start and run it. I can identify most of the parts of the boat, know the points of sail and the know the basic rules of the road....But to be honest, none of these jobs are easy or really fun for a small, relatively feminine woman. I no longer have "nails" --- and I have learned to wear the same clothes more than once (or twice .....I don't have to dye my roots any more -- 'cause my head is black from all the bruises (hahaha).....I've gone from a 600 sq. ft kitchen to a 18 sq. ft. galley...The adaptation has been an adventure --- and a positive challenge.......I think the key is in what you said --- you have to know and be who you are. For many of us women, this is a very foreign environment. I will probably always be more "pink" --- by want as well as need. But I also want to be safe, confident, and comfortable. Finding my "spot" is still a bit vague. Laughter helps; tears provide relief......

[arleen]

[quote=Bash;310442]Taking that chart plotter in to Mexico could be a nightmare if you don't have a temporary import permit.

OK.....I'm confused. What does the chart plotter have to do with a TIP??

[Randy]

Originally Posted by arleen

My concern: am I a liability or an asset in taking on this venture? What can I do to better prepare myself (physically and emotionally)? If we wait until the Baja Haha, what/where should we go now to get more experience under my belt ---- and keep me liking the boat? I have to admit, although I find it exciting and thrilling, I'm a bit scared and frustrated.....Any thoughts?

thanks....
Arleen
s/v Ubuntu
KPeterson 44

If you've got the time head staight out to sea for a week (two weeks round trip). Time underway is the best prep for an extended venture. From your previous posts you're familiar with the basics and your boat's systems and being under sail for a few days at stretch will build your confidence and alleviate the waiting frustration.

Good Luck keep us posted, alright.

[Sandero]

Perhaps the most basic "thing" about the sailing life style is that less is more. You learn that land lubbers acquire and spread out and sailors like to do with much less and are happier for it.

They feel connected to their home, in the sense that they must tend to it or they could end up in Davy Jones locker. It is a life of deep and broad personal responsibility AND competence. The more you are at it the better you become at "getting it" - living with essentials and enjoying being alive more and very much attached to the environment around you.

Today some nasty T storms and heavy rains passed through my neighborhood... but I hardly even notice inside my home. How different it is when I am aboard. I hear the wind pick up, feel the direction change, am keenly aware of the changes in humidity, and hear or see even the most minor rain shower. You can't be oblivious the weather at port or underway... your life depends on it and that is very different from the "sheltered" life we live on land... When you want to go somewhere you buy a ticket and someone takes you there in a device others maintain... or you drive and follow the road which leads you to your destination. Life on land makes you or allows to be like a child... can't do that on a boat. On a boat you are an adult, no ifs and or buts.

Sailor's get it.

[Hunter42]

Arlene: I know what you mean about adjusting to the size of the galley. The key is to be organized! We live on the boat on the West Coast of Mexico for six months and then return home (mountains of Arizona) for the summer, and it's always an adjustment. My land based kitchen actually feels too large when I first get home, find myself wonder around it looking for things! This fall we'll begin our 5th sailing season and we're so ready to get back to the boat! What I miss the most is the sailing community . . . so many wonderful, helpful people!

When we first started sailing I was apprehensive too, but after the first season was in love with the life style and the challenges!

Diana
The Galley Wench

[Cheechako]

It's an adjustment to us men as well as you women for sure! The simplicity and self suffiency is what I enjoy...

[Hunter42]

Exactly . . . I really enjoy the challenge! Beside making our own water and electricty, we make our own bread, grow our own sprouts; I've even learned to make my own ricotta cheese!

[Cheechako]

Taking that chart plotter in to Mexico could be a nightmare if you don't have a temporary import permit.

So "Vessel in Transit" no longer works? I've taken Ham radios etc etc in in luggage, but it's been years. You just gamble you are going to be the one inspected, then that you cant explain it's for a boat in transit, then worst case, pay the tariff... Might help to have the receipt made out to the vessel name and as "In transit"....?

[Hunter42]

Wouldn't it be cheaper to get the 10 year permit? It can be applied for online!

http://www.banjercito.com.mx/site/im...sIITV_ing.html

[George Wade]

Originally Posted by Pblais

You can't predict the future, but you can make choices...... Always post experiences in Cruisers Forum so we all have something fun to read. we like all this stuff.

Should you require technical expertise we have a whole forum of captains, crew,and technicians waiting in the wings. That is what we do best here.

Real life is conflicting opinions, sailing opinions are X 10. That is part of a cruising education.

Getting 'sailmail' will be a great aid to everything: when you go to a sheltered anchorage and find the wind blowing straight onshore... I envy you!