Costal cruising at retirement

[chuckr]

[QUOTE=Beneteau1954;2018690]Hello all new member here..My wife and I are new owners of an 1998 Oceanis 36cc...Our plan is to cruise the ICW, US east coast and eventually make our way to the Caribbean when we retire in 3 years..Our experience consist of 20 years of lake sailing. My question is do we have the boat that will allow us to fulfill our desires? I know that I will need to add and update equipment. Our hope is that this boat will work for us since it will be paid for by the time we retire.

First on the boat - we have seen a number of Benes in various sizes but your paid for and that is really good and you know her that is even better. Second not sure what you have on board in terms of equipment but yea update and I, will get a bit of flack on this, put on an ssb. There are a lot of folks your age out here cruising and have a great time bumping into each other and getting together. There are several nets where cruisers meet and talk and plan together if you are into that and great way to make friends and keep up on old ones. Of course good for the weather too. it is a bit expensive but worth it in our opinion as you will probably move with the "crowd" both in the early years up and down the ICW and the Bahamas and as you extend into the eastern Caribbean down to Trini for hurricane season.

I'm also a little concerned if age 65 is maybe to old to consider such an undertaking? Any thoughts or comments would be greatly appreciated.

Now as for your age - it is not as much as as physical condition. can you and admiral do it and are at least a bit physically fit. I just turned 70 and my admiral is 68. at 67 we did a 2 handed atlantic crossing and we did not even get take a sailing lesson until year 2000 and my first and only boat is a Jeanneau ds40. We just finished year 3 in the Med and planning year 4. Saying that we walk a lot and I mean a lot. We try to stay active. I have family that do not have good health. My brother is 4 years old and just had some sort of heart cath thing done, is over weight and when I suggest he walk a lot he said he has one bad knee and one knee replaced and he just can't do it but he can to work and sit at a desk all day. My 2 year younger sister and 12 year younger brother also had the same heart cath thing done and again they are sedentary.
By the way we live on the boat full time and right now I am typing this from Kusadasi Turkey so it is not your age but your physical condition that is most important. And maintaining that.

One other thought if I might. YOU KNOW that if you undertake the journey you will one day need to get off the boat for one reason or the other. We knew that when we started and have no idea how long we can continue this lifestyle but someplace along the way I will know we can no longer sail at this level. Say that I would go while you can and enjoy one of the greatest lives one can ever imagine.

[wostenberg]

I'm restoring a Newport 30 MK II 1976, and would love photos of what you've done? I've gotten Great ideas from this blog.
Thank you
Chip

[sailorboy1]

I'm planning to hit the wet road this year at 56. My wife and I are now looking forward to being referred to by other cruisers as "The Kids on that Hunter" :-)

[Sandero]

You can sail... no reason why not. You just have to take it a bit slower, use things like a good windlass, AP.. maybe a power assisted winch for hoisting the main or sail trim. You can't move as fast, see as well, hear as well... lift as much... but none of these are deal breakers.

I used to not think twice about sailing single handed to Bermuda... now I wouldn't do it with out 3 on board... But that's not an impediment of I wanted to go there.... there are crew looking for this sort of opportunity.

Go for it... you'll appreciate the entire experience and it beats chasing a little white ball around trying to get it in a little hole.

[island2]

My husband and I just did the Intercoastal Waterway in 2015 - Left May 1 from SW FL, went across the Okeechobee Waterway(did both routes on the Lake) to the Atlantic, turned North and did every inch of the Waterway to Annapolis, Maryland! Sailed on the Chesapeake for about a month - up inlets, rivers, anchorages - you name it and took the same track back! The goal was to not go ashore unless we had not been there by land previously! For us it was a challenge - as we basically are offshore sailors. Used every ounce of navigational skills we had - tides were extreme, bridges, locks, the Dismal Swamp one way and back the Coinjock Route - Met so many wonderful people - Fabulous seafood - We returned the middle of October - It was the absolute BEST journey we ever had - we learned so much about ourselves, our boat and our beautiful country!

We are 65 and 67 - and live on our sailboat - 34 ft. - 4 ft. draft. Looking forward to more journeys!

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by Beneteau1954

Hello all new member here..My wife and I are new owners of an 1998 Oceanis 36cc...Our plan is to cruise the ICW, US east coast and eventually make our way to the Caribbean when we retire in 3 years..Our experience consist of 20 years of lake sailing. My question is do we have the boat that will allow us to fulfill our desires? I know that I will need to add and update equipment. Our hope is that this boat will work for us since it will be paid for by the time we retire. I'm also a little concerned if age 65 is maybe to old to consider such an undertaking? Any thoughts or comments would be greatly appreciated.

How do I change my forum user name? Thanks

Hi Bendi1954.. Welcome to CF..
Regarding the boat.. just the job for the ICW and Caribe.. regarding your age..
If you can walk, see, hear and lift a full Stein... No Worries
I am 67 and do trans-ocean deliveries often short handed (1 crew) and sometimes solo's along W Europe..
Its more a state of mind over matter..
If'n you don't mind.. it don't matter..

[valhalla360]

As far as the boat, you are short a hull but otherwise should be fine.

I'll play the downer on the age. Assuming you are healthy, yes, plan on going cruising, the sooner the better...but this is the age when you see a lot of people giving it up as it becomes too much for them, so have an exit strategy. For every 85yr old still out cruising there are dozens who gave it up years ago. The numbers get a bit skewed as most people can't afford the time to go cruising until they are in thier 50-60's but by thier 60's they start losing the physical ability.

[Hudson Force]

Our friend Robin3 has already given you wise advise regarding your boat as he has your sistership and a strong background of knowledge and experience.

I notice the variety of posts that list caution with age and those that dismiss age with, "age is just a number"..or, "never too old". I would choose to recognize the challenges of age and use age as a risk management tool. We started liveaboard cruising in our twenties and find ourselves now about to enter our seventies. I am hoping to adapt our boat as a true "geriatric vessel" and remain aboard for as long as we find it comfortable. The challenges will not be the same for all, but these have been some of our changes from our twenties:

Anchor windlass, roller furling, dinghy davits, block & tackle for outboard lifting, shorter step interval for boarding ladders, warmer/thicker wet suits, less tender dinghy..... In addition, we make some "lazier" choices with weather challenges, beating to weather and longer passages. Some of these changes are not necessarily related to the challenges of age, but just a more casual and less stressful motivation. I know I drive slower and make fewer lane changes on the highway too!

[Robin3]

Originally Posted by Hudson Force

Our friend Robin3 has already given you wise advise regarding your boat as he has your sistership and a strong background of knowledge and experience.

I notice the variety of posts that list caution with age and those that dismiss age with, "age is just a number"..or, "never too old". I would choose to recognize the challenges of age and use age as a risk management tool. We started liveaboard cruising in our twenties and find ourselves now about to enter our seventies. I am hoping to adapt our boat as a true "geriatric vessel" and remain aboard for as long as we find it comfortable. The challenges will not be the same for all, but these have been some of our changes from our twenties:

Anchor windlass, roller furling, dinghy davits, block & tackle for outboard lifting, shorter step interval for boarding ladders, warmer/thicker wet suits, less tender dinghy..... In addition, we make some "lazier" choices with weather challenges, beating to weather and longer passages. Some of these changes are not necessarily related to the challenges of age, but just a more casual and less stressful motivation. I know I drive slower and make fewer lane changes on the highway too!

Thanks Hudson,we have all of those highlighted except the boarding ladder step mods. In our home slip we have dock steps to aid getting on/off but have nothing portable yet to take with us. We could reverse in and exit via the stern bathing platform but the dinghy in davits is an obstacle unless dropped out of the way. We ( read I was instructed to) Went for a boat with in-mast reefing mainsail, the first I've ever had which is convenient, quick and easy for the ICW's bridges ,twists and turns and sailing posssible /not possible variations.

I had both hips totally replaced in the UK ( FOC thanks to the NHS) before moving here and then had a stroke so I don't dart about like I once did and nor can I or want to get into tight corners anymore so routine engine jobs and other maintenance is usually done by paid help whereas I used to do it all myself. That said I can project manage the paid peeps well enough . Likewise Theresa says no more mast climbing for her even though she was better at it than the paid monkey we had to have replace a wind direction vane that a bird removed. OUr dinghy is a RIB which is stable and easy to enter/exit from the swim platform and the davits and their lift tackles help hold it in place and provide solid and convenient handholds to use. FOr Docking and undocking we have rigged dock lines that are held in a reachable place from the side deck in our regular slip and we have a practiced looped stern spring line system for other occasions in away slips. The Beneteau Oceanis is remarkably manouverable in both ahead or astern and with ours and it's Yanmar 3GM30 there is not a huge amount of prop kick, just enough to help if needed for a tight right turn in and a port side preferred stop alongside. ( We were able to choose our home slip and this was a consideration as was also being generally parked facing into the wind and/or being blown on rather than off of the finger dock.

We have a full canvas cockpit enclosure which is good in harbour but a tad inconvenient for maximum and rapid accessibility unless the centre top section is unzipped or fully removed ( as for going along). It was designed at our instructions to fold or roll away in sections but could still be used fully erected if we so wish. So far we have just removed the centre top panel and side access panels for visibility and quickness coming alongside and would probably stick with this to keep the sun off the helm anyway although folding it all away like we used to in years gone by in Europe still appeals for longer trips, but back then we didn't have to contend with the tropical Florida sun, or for that matter the tropical downpours!
THE original owner of ours had also modified the owners stateroom to have the 'queen' bed run athwartships rather than fore/aft and this suits me for ease of entry/exit and will also I think be better in a rolly anchorage situation than laying sideways on and allowing pitching rather than rolling back and forth in bed. If necessary we can easily revert to fore and aft dozing mind

After our last UK sailboat, a Doug Peterson designed Jeanneau Sun Legende 41 cruiser/racer, the Oceanis 36CC lacks the huge stowage we had but in fairness the old boat was significantly modified from standard for long distance fast cruising by two, not to sleep it's usual full race crew of up to 10! The doorway from the galley to the aft cabin on the Oceanis could be a couple of inches wider for me too in an ideal world, or I could ditch some weight.

If the Op has other specific questions I will be happy to answer wherever I can but I think they will do just fine and of course wish them well with their plans, fair winds always and happy safe sailing.

Robin

[TrentePieds]

As for age: West Vancouver to Gulf Islands is 26NM across the Straits of Georgia. On a lumpy day, powering across, and therefore shifting your weight from foot to foot as she rolls [TrentePieds is pretty roll-ey under power :-)] is rather like a 30 mile route march :-)

Great way for an old geezer like me to stay fit and active :-).

I am beginning to notice the onset of macular degeneration. But so what? I had a friend (F)/client who'd made the mistake, many years ago, of marrying a hossifer of the RAF some time after she had lost her sight as a teenager. The two of them crossed from the UK to the coast of Brazil in a 36-footer. There our intrepid hairman put the ship on the beach. Gladys (NHRN) set up shop in a small village as a "medical resource person" (having had legitimate medical training as a physio in the UK), and eventually made her way to British Columbia sans the incompetent navigator and his war-time hairforce norms.

If Gladys could do it, so can I!

In middle age I was seriously threatened with going blind as a result of the retina in my one good eye coming unstuck. Responding to the threat I practiced going about my daily business as if I were already blind. Well, the retina got fixed, so I will not now go completely blind, but faced with the loss of detail perception (and with colour blindness) as a result of the incipient macular degeneration I am teaching MyBeloved the skills of pilotage and navigation as well as how to be a competent coxswain. As long as I see well enuff to have the broad picture I'll have no worries.

So, OP — you are prolly NOT too old and decrepit :-) Just play the hand you've got, think about what you are doing, and go get some sea-miles under your keel

TrentePieds

[chuckr]

Originally Posted by RolfP

As for age - everyone else has already said it - go until you can't.

As for boat - its a fine boat

As for equipment - go FIRST - you will find out what you might like to add as you go.

I just left this August from Lake Superior and I'm still only halfway down the East Coast. The more I go the more I uncover the things that might make life easier on the boat, and the more I learn what I don't need. So take what you have and go, and find out what you don't need along the way, and you will also find out the things that you wish you had - day after day - those are the ones to get.

I would like to second this. We had a fairly new boat when we left and sailed the Bahamas our first year and then up to Maine and back to Miami then back to the Bahamas and all the way around them from the middle to the bottom to the top then we went into the Cheaspeake with a long list of things we wanted on the boat if we wanted to continue. We went into Deltaville Boat Yard and added a small watermaker, a secondary fuel tank, another solar panel and I forget what else. But we made her not only ours but a long range cruising boat and we never ever had the idea of crossing the Atlantic but wanted a comfortable easy to use boat.
So maybe go out for a bit and see what you need and what the Admiral wants (besides the washing machine) - and what the boat lacks if you want to lay on the hook for weeks on end.

[Canibul]

We bought one of those plastic $200 Panda washing machines on Amazon. Been using it for two months now. Works great so far.

And I don't praise chinese products easily.

[dlymn]

We've got a Happy Duck washing machine. Bought in China, shipped to me in Australia and then was my luggage to Greece. Works fine although doesn't spin dry well. Handles king size sheets, uses 20 litres a small wash and rinse. I swab the decks with the used water and also flush out the head and holding tank . Next to that is a 800w reverse cycle air con which we use with shore power only. Luxury!. We keep the arthritis tablets in the gap between the two.

[Hudson Force]

We find that laundry is of less concern when we are cruising in warmer climates simply because we are wearing less. Thin T-shirts and light weight shorts can be quickly washed in a bucket during our own bathing and rinsed with little fresh water. Our only laundry of significant volume are the bed sheets. We keep our sheets lasting fresh longer with two important "rules". We always bathe at the end of the day so were into the bed clean and, most importantly, we NEVER go below with any saltwater or salt sprayed fabrics or bodies. Once you have any salt on fabrics they will remain damp and need laundering.

[a64pilot]

I figure it will be sheets, and towels that I need to size for.
Neither one of us really likes the feel of a microfiber towel, we both like a thick, cotton towel

Anybody know anything about this machine? Haier, I think is German?
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...f_rd_i=desktop