Can I Live In A Boat That I Won't Be Able To Stand Up In

[Rustic Charm]

You asked for the 20-24 foot 'preferably' smaller

Why do you want something so small, 'to live on' and yet you want 'head room'?

[hamburking]

You never mention your height?
Kind of an important factor when considering headroom.
So...how tall are you? 5'1" or 6'2"?

Aside from that, you should consider the C&C25. Very solid boat, lots of room for a 25 foot boat, and usually very inexpensive to buy (same price as most of those 22 footers you mention). I had one for years and was very comfortable. Never really thought about the lack of headroom, except when I hit my head.

If money is really tight, the Grampian 26 is famous for having 6' headroom on a small, inexpensive boat. Around here they sell for hundreds (not thousands) of dollars.

Old boats are very inexpensive right now. Why search for a small boat...why not search for a good boat at a price you can live with. An older C&C27 (mk2 or mk3) would make a great live aboard for you, and they sell very cheap. Good solid, high quality boats that sail well and have plenty of comforts.

In any case, please let us all know what you decide, and how it goes.

[blakeney]

I would consider an Albin Vega or an Alberg 30 . Both have circumnavigated & have lots of head room.

[Rustic Charm]

People pay attention, he wants 20 to 24 feet and has a preferance for smaller.

TO LIVE ON

He want's something like the Mermaid that Kenichi Horie crossed the Pacific in.

[vjm]

Bristol 24.

[ohdrinkboy]

If you are on Lake Norman, there are a few Helms 24's around that have decent head room.

[smo]

I think you should consider the capri 22. This boat has a fairly roomy interior for a 20-24 foot boat. I considered one of these when I bought my corsair f24 trimaran. I am 6'5".
The capri cabin is quite a bit bigger than my corsair. I have a dodger that I can stand under. For liveaboard you could make up some cloth panels to close up the cabin. Around the dodger.

I would suggest you add some custom cloth duffles to attach to the cabin sides above the berths for equiptment, blankets sleeping bag, clothes, etc.
I would also consider building a galley box that would hold your stove and pots , pans, dishes, and utensials. This can be built of 1/8 inch ply with epoxy filets and could also be brought into the cockpit. If you are a coffee drinker, a jet boil stove hanging from the ceiling and a backpackers french press will have your coffee ready in no time.
Possibly you should check the net for the smallest teeny microwave stove for "baking needs.
There is some space behind the 1/4 berths that you could set up for storage of items not used much. Try to find a small handy friend for glassing in this storage area. The older capri 22's have cockpit lockers open to the cabin. The newer 22's have their own box built in to the cockpit locker.

[orso]

Originally Posted by vjm

Bristol 24.

+1 on that. Your in the right place to find one as well. Plus they have 6' headroom and a decent galley space. 50% b/d ratio. Some had inboards but a boat like this can easily be powered by outboard for cheap.I cruised one my nordica 20 with 4-8" headroom for 2 weeks. Solo it was perfect size for me at the time. So It can be done, but there are options out there with standing headroom. I loved the small nordica but on the top of my must have list for my new boat was standing headroom. For a few days at a time sitting is fine. But as stated, when it's raining non stop and you can't have the companionway hatch opened, it gets harder to dress/stretch/etc. Still possible tho, especially at your age. Good luck


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[Snowpetrel]

I lived aboard a 26 footer without standing headroom for about 7 years, around NZ and south eastern australia.

The thing that made it possible in the southern NZ climate was a good sturdy canvas spray dodger over the large companionway hatch.

The spray dodger had a canvas flap on the aft edge so it could be enclosed like a pilothouse. This gave me about half a square meter of standing headroom in almost any weather, and also kept out spray and rain. It also gave me a measure of privacy and valuble extra space for cooking and for wet weather gear and boots to be stowed out of the rain, but not inside the boat. The good ventilation provided by leaving the main hatch open most of the time helped keep the interior dry and fresh even during cold wet winter weeks.

Without the dodger life aboard would have been very grim in wet weather, but overall with it I found living aboard quite pleasant.

[markpierce]

Originally Posted by Tayana42

In the San Diego area the go to boat for the very very limited budget live aboard sailors seems to be the old Cal 25. Not standing headroom but the raised deck does increase the livable space below.


S/V B'Shert

As in flush deck.

[mawtty]

I lived on a 26 foot Eventide for 5 years.
I am 5' 10" boat has 5' 8".
I spent 12 years trying to get my upper back straight.
Much pain and misery.

[markpierce]

My Dad offered me the use of his 28.5-foot sloop with six-foot head clearance while in college. I much preferred, and chose, a college dormitory.

[Adelie]

Originally Posted by markpierce

As in flush deck.

Flush deck and raised deck are technically different.

A flush decked boat has a "flat" deck at about the elevation of the shear line. Any number of racing boats fit this definition such as the Aphrodite 101, Tartan10, ACC, . . .

A raised deck boat has a "flat" deck at the elevation of the top of what would be the doghouse or cabin. Cal20, 25, 28, Columbia Defender, . . .


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[Tayana42]

Originally Posted by markpierce

As in flush deck.

Okay, flush deck. Does that make it okay to pee over the side?


S/V B'Shert

[Adelie]

Performance wise I would start with the Cal 25, but it lakes headroom unless you want to modify the pop-top like the Martins did when they circumnavigated. Even then I don't know what the headroom was.

Bayfield 25: For an affordable (