Advice for transporting my boat and myself to VA, USA

[Clamdigger]

Lauren assuming you already registered the boat in your name in NY, if it were me I would get it over to the least expensive haulout marina within a mile or so of you. I would either ask for a slip or haulout, and explain your situation. Some old timer might accept the boat as collateral until you pay the haulout, storage fee. Be sure to have all of your paperwork in hand to show you are willing to leave the title & registration with them. It might just work out that you get employed in VA and can remit the money during the Winter to the boatyard, and next Spring have it there for you.

Catching a BoltBus out of NYC to Norfolk is usually $30-50 bucks if you dont buy in advance, $25 if you get online and score one a week ahead. Its a cheap option to get you home. Selling the kayak will get you your bus ticket home with some food money leftover.

With air temps in the 40's at night and water temps not much higher you need to get off the water as a kayak is not safe to use at this time.

I would try and move the boat dockside into a slip with one of the local sailors hip tied to your boat with their dinghy. It should be done at Sun up when the weather is at its most calm. Unload all of your personal items to shore and do not leave there until your friend with his car arrives. You can do this and all the previous posters and myself all have been where you are. Hang in there lots of other young people want to read about your sailing on this forum in the Spring!

[coastalexplorer]

I see that Don Moyer at Moyer marine is recognised as the expert on the Atomic 4.

Address: 5625 Langford Bay Rd, Chestertown, MD 21620,



Phone: +1 610-421-4436

However when I looked at a gulfweed several years ago that had an Atomic 4 I seem to recall communicating with a company in New Jersey.
perhaps Toms River location?

given the age of those engines surely there is one laying around in some bodies shed somewhere. or have they become coveted collector items?

[Suijin]

Originally Posted by Clamdigger

Lauren assuming you already registered the boat in your name in NY, if it were me I would get it over to the least expensive haulout marina within a mile or so of you. I would either ask for a slip or haulout, and explain your situation. Some old timer might accept the boat as collateral until you pay the haulout, storage fee. Be sure to have all of your paperwork in hand to show you are willing to leave the title & registration with them. It might just work out that you get employed in VA and can remit the money during the Winter to the boatyard, and next Spring have it there for you.

This is probably your best bet for keeping the boat, although I suspect no yard will agree to it. Pretty much every yard on the east coast has a few derelict boats where the owner stopped paying and the yard is waiting to take possession so they can cut the lead off, sell it, and chop up the rest. They don’t come out ahead.

I guess it’s worth a try. I would even offer to sign over the title to them with the understanding it gets transferred back if you start paying within a specified time frame. Can’t see them agreeing otherwise. Still a long shot.

However, haulout and yard storage fees may well quickly eclipse the value of your boat and/or the cost of replacing it.

[lfalco]

While we would all hate to say so, under the circumstances with limited resources and finances, try to sell quickly or donate. Sell the kayak and he off the water. There’s no way to stay on much longer with freeze warnings in this area for the past couple of nights.
I’m just North of you in Bridgeport and know the cold of LI Sound.
The Bolt Bus is your best option to get south.
Get with family, get to a doctor and take care of yourself. Boats can be replaced, but we only get one life.

[hamburking]

Sailing (a 30 foot boat) in confined waters with no motor is sailing at an expert level.

Sailing solo, especially on trips (more than a day sail) is the apex of sailing.

Combine the two, and you have sailing at its highest level.

As you have already learned, sailing a boat on the ocean is not like driving a car. You can't just hop in and go. The clock and the calendar are no friend to the sailor.

HOWEVER,

You chose a good boat. That model is certainly capable of your goals.

You reached out to the sailing community. That was excellent. Because we are a group of like minded people. Some of us have lots of money and buy expensive new boats and tons of equipment. And plenty of us have worthless, 50 year old boats with just basic gear. But we all share the same wind, and the same elation as we pursue our sailing dreams.

Lots of good advice in previous posts. My advice to to connect with the sailing people around you. Sharing your passion (and your needs) may be the way to achieve your goals.

I care about you. Hang in there. Winter sucks for all of us. If I were geographically closer, I would come help you. Getting a new (to you) boat is always tough, for everyone. It gets better. Please don't give up.

[coastalexplorer]

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Universal-A...YAAOSwI6xblF1j


It looks like the cost of re-powering Laurens boat is about $6,100 USD.


Providing the propeller and the prop-shaft still exist?

[Sailorman Ed]

Lauren,
I am a REAL optimistic person and having lived not far from you and now in NC, you CANNOT spend the winter on your boat. And I would suggest even in VA, it would be miserable. It sounds like even getting it hauled and onto a trailer is beyond your finances. Give the boat away, get all your stuff off, sell the kayak and get south. It may be hard to even give it away this time of year.



There are lots of free or nearly free boats from VA south, most w an engine. In the spring, those here on the forum will help you find a suitable boat.


Others are correct, you need to make your health your priority. Cut your losses and move on with life. Start again in the spring.

[hamburking]

Originally Posted by john61ct

When I was really broke I knocked on doors with a bucket full of cleaning stuff and a toolbelt asking who wants stuff done around their house. Quickly had more offers than time, kept putting my rate up for each next client, before I knew it was able to rent my own place and buy a car.

They say right now is the tightest job market for many decades

There may not be many "jobs", but there is plenty of WORK!

I too had a time in my life when I was totally broke. I made hand written signs and posted them at local marinas and yacht clubs. I got a few gigs sanding hulls and lending a hand. It was enough.

[Clamdigger]

My post above was suggesting that Lauren get a local sailor with a suitably large dighy to power her boat to a dock slip. Then I suggested that she approach the owner of the facility boat papers in hand, and if need be hand them the papers as collateral for a haul and storage. If the marina owner has the boat's paperwork in hand it makes it uch easier for them to transfer title to a new owner in Spring.

Lauren seek out women in the marinas and explain your case, ask for help. You are safer off the boat at this time. Find the local contact numbers for the Power Squadron and USCG Auxiliary, someone at either of these organizations WILL assist you with your situation. Please post here once you are safely home so all of us can breathe a sigh of relief.

[atlantical]

I have been in your position before, I had a boat that I didn't know whether to abandon, to burn it, or try to give it away, and all I was doing was getting drunk, and then decided against every bit of advice to take it to sea, and head east, I sailed it with no engine, down the intercoastal for 18 miles (though I did get some help from a gentleman who saw me stuck, the I sailed it out the Wimington exit, and on to Bermuda, fixed the engine there, and eventually sailed to Scotland, one person followed me and my boat when it was in the travel lift and heading for the water, and told me that I coudln't go, and was really angry when I left, I had no money left, (drank it all) very little food, and just had to put everything to chance. You are going to end up somewhere, look at it positively, this could be your best opportunity, you don't know what is going to happen between leaving where you are and getting to your destination, you don't know who you are going to meet, you don't know what help you will get, or what job offers you will get, its all an adventure, I am quite jealous, won't be leaving where I am until spring, but wish I was going just now.

If you get a chance, look at the book I wrote about my adventure, its online, called loose cannon on deck, I wrote about the bad as well as the good, and the things that just turned up right when I needed something to turn up, just like someone was looking after me, and making sure, that I didn't suffer too much.

[john61ct]

Others taking such foolhardy, almost-suicidal advice may not be so lucky.

And IMO the height of hubris and irresponsibility to rely so much on the grace of God and the compassion of strangers.

Asking for help is fine.

But just going out and putting yourself in harms way is in effect demanding it, preying on those willing to help.

[odonnellryan]

There are a million boats and plenty of people who like to work on boats for a few beers or at least lend some helpful advice (good or bad) when asked. Or give old parts for free: I received some good hardware and gear because of kind souls, or was given parts very cheap because someone who loves to sail always wants to see others on the water, but safely.

If Lauren wants to own a boat it is in their capability to do so, even if they need to write this one off there are plenty of boats that need love and plenty of people here and elsewhere to lend a hand come spring.

Just a few months and a few holidays before the weather will be getting warmer, not colder.

Even if we're not counting the danger of the trip, certainly it would not be a fun one, by any definition of fun I can think of. It'll be cold, things will certainly break, and if you don't have self steering ... well, it would be quite a rough trip.

No reason at all that kind of trip must be done, unless one is intentionally seeking that kind of thing...

Just a few months. Lots of caring people here and wherever you go.

[atlantical]

You say you are depressed, if you give up on the boat, and lose it, you will be very depressed, and you will regret that you didn't try to take it south. I havent sailed that far north on the waterways, so I don't really know it, I don't know north of North Carolina, but I did sail on the intercoastal, on two boats with no engine, both went aground, both got towed off by passers bye, I did call out sea tow once, but the guy was useless, I was a member, but he just told me to wait for the tide, that was near Willmington NC, the other time was near Tampa Florida.

It was this time of year that I left North Carolina for Bermuda, it was getting cold in North Carolina, nice during the day, but could be frosty in the morning, so if you don't start going south very very soon, forget it, you need to leave the boat, pick it up in the spring, or just get rid of it, and spend the winter regretting losing the boat, and asking yourself why you just didn't try to take it south. Sell the Kyak, stock the boat, and head south, sail during the day, anchor at night, its only a couple of hundred miles, and I have never had a problem getting a tow off someone, biggest problem I found was the bridges when you are under sail, you end up having to anchor at the bridge, and wait, then raise sail get the anchor up, and if the tide turns, its a big problem.

You can though sail for hours with no problems on the intercoastal, if you anchor to spend the night get out of the channel, as the big stuff goes through at night, and they like a lot of space like I say though, don't much know the area you are in, but I believe you can either go down the outside, or the inside from there, the outside is a bit faster, but its off shore.

[odonnellryan]

You're giving really bad advice.

It's not a possibility to just head south where they are. Without an engine transiting the East River is not something you should do. Like, really. There's not usually good wind in the area, or wind will be light, who knows what direction it's going to be coming from, and you're constantly going to be in the wind shadow of some large building, bridge, etc..

"its only a couple of hundred miles"

It's not. It's going to be over a 500 mile trip because you first have to sail around the east side of LI. Just sailing during the day, let's say you make an amazing 60 miles during daylight hours, you're going to be on the sea for at least nine days.

Did you look at the weather for the next week? 30s at night. No heater. That's possible, but... there's no reason to do this.

There are tons of free boats, even with working engines.

[Clamdigger]

Originally Posted by atlantical

You say you are depressed, if you give up on the boat, and lose it, you will be very depressed, and you will regret that you didn't try to take it south. I havent sailed that far north on the waterways, so I don't really know it, I don't know north of North Carolina, but I did sail on the intercoastal, on two boats with no engine, both went aground, both got towed off by passers bye, I did call out sea tow once, but the guy was useless, I was a member, but he just told me to wait for the tide, that was near Willmington NC, the other time was near Tampa Florida.

It was this time of year that I left North Carolina for Bermuda, it was getting cold in North Carolina, nice during the day, but could be frosty in the morning, so if you don't start going south very very soon, forget it, you need to leave the boat, pick it up in the spring, or just get rid of it, and spend the winter regretting losing the boat, and asking yourself why you just didn't try to take it south. Sell the Kyak, stock the boat, and head south, sail during the day, anchor at night, its only a couple of hundred miles, and I have never had a problem getting a tow off someone, biggest problem I found was the bridges when you are under sail, you end up having to anchor at the bridge, and wait, then raise sail get the anchor up, and if the tide turns, its a big problem.

You can though sail for hours with no problems on the intercoastal, if you anchor to spend the night get out of the channel, as the big stuff goes through at night, and they like a lot of space like I say though, don't much know the area you are in, but I believe you can either go down the outside, or the inside from there, the outside is a bit faster, but its off shore.

Sorry, I have no choice but to dismiss both of your posts in this thread as drunken rants from someone who has no idea of the circumstances. A moderator should consider deleting one if not both of your posts due to ignorance. Your advice could cost Lauren her life.

Lauren disregard what that fool posted and follow the previous advice given to you by local posters, people in the thread who know what they are talking about.

There is currently a thread with a guy looking for a free boat Lauren. Contact him and see if he will take this boat off your hands asap.