Total noob. maybe dreaming. don't hurt me.

[FreeBeerTomorro]

My first post on this site!

So, I've been a landlubber my entire life. I've been bass fishing on aluminum john boat on lakes many times. I've been on cruise liners several times on vacation. I've been on a bay fishing trip and a "deep sea" fishing trip off the Gulf coast of Texas. (50-55 miles offshore in a 32' Fountain) - so not salty by any definition!

I am 10-15 years from retirement where I am now. I have an opportunity to move to Clear Lake TX for a job that could be much more lucrative, and retirement could happen closer to the 6-8 year timeframe, with a much better retirement income.

IF this happens, I'm considering perhaps moving into a full-time liveaboard situation in a Clear Lake marina. I've been lurking on here for a while and the thought just appeals to me for some reason. My wife is open to the concept.

Right now, we live 200 miles inland, and are very close (geographically and emotionally) to her folks, kids, and grandkids. She is not real interested in setting deep roots in Clear Lake or Houston for that reason.

So my dreamer's vision is to move onto a liveaboard. Gotta sleep 6 for a weekend. 4 adults and 2 kids for sure. 6 adults (3 couples) preferred. That way we could host various permutations of her (and my) family on occassion. No need for blue water capability, nothing past the Bahamas, anyway. We could spend a few years mostly in the slip, but increasingly venturing out into the water and learning to sail.

Question 1: What's the best way for an ABSOLUTE NOOB to learn sailing? I would definitely join local clubs, etc. but are there USCG classes, etc. that I should plan to take over the first couple of years?

My dream would be to work up to an eventual sail of the Great Loop. We could park the boat a few times along the way and we (or she) could fly home to see family, as needed.

After that, and depending on family situation, satisfaction with the lifestyle, and money situation, we might (fingers crossed) look into getting a blue water ship for a multi-year cruise. But that's years down the road. Back to the immediate situation...

Question 2: Considering that this would be our primary residence and mostly in a slip at a marina, what's the best pierside/on-the-hook boat in the ~$200k and below range? Ideally, this boat can do the Great Loop down the road, prior to the upgrade to the blue water boat. (So, mast height/draft considerations play into this.) From what I've gathered on this forum, a cat has more useable living space for a given length. We'll be downsizing from a large house and yard, so that sounds appealing (less shocking, initially). Of course, it'd require a wider berth at the marina... I think that's probably worth it, but I'm not dead set against a monohull.

Question 3: what are the obvious questions I'm not even asking? Again, please be gentle. I know this is a fundamental change, and I've only been considering it for a few weeks (front of mind at least, I think the idea was planted a decade or so ago...)

This seems like a really helpful and welcoming community, and I'm glad to be a part of it. Thanks in advance for any replies.

[Kenomac]

Buy a trawler. More room, nice Large windows to look out in the marina and more practical for your eventual big loop trip.

I like the idea of a catamaran for living aboard in anchorages, but that's not what you plan to do. A Cat would be the wrong boat for your price range, intended use and you'd be paying an increased rate at the marina for its additional girth.

[JPA Cate]

FreeBeerTomorro,

Hi, and Welcome aboard, too.

Kenomac has a reasonable idea there. Without belaboring the subject, it is often difficult to sail rivers because the airflow tends to follow the land contours, and some of us tend to think that it's more than 50% of the time the wind's from the bow.

For that trip, you will not need a deep draft, but you'll want 3 cabins.

There's a Motor Boat part of CF. I bet you can find some interesting information there to think about.

Have fun, and I hope you find that free beer, somewhere!

Ann

[weavis]

Your first boat will not be your last.
Find a boat that fits your current situation and change it when the situation changes.
Motor cruisers have lots of family space, very stable and the right boat will always be desirable in a resale.

Lots of economical fun too.

[Cap Erict3]

I concur with the trawler suggestions. I am in the area for the next few weeks. Drop me a pm and I can point u at a few owner offered sail and power boats if u r interested.

I am not a broker. Just a boat guy.


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Looking for another pretty place to work on the boat.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, FreeBeerTomorro.

[FreeBeerTomorro]

Thanks for the replies! Somewhat surprising, but that's why I'm here... to let experience steer me away from making mistakes. Will start looking that direction, as well. Cap Erict3, thanks for the offer, but I'm not in the area yet, and a move/purchase is several to many months away.

I appreciate the warm welcome!

[Paul Annapolis]

Dear FreeBeer...it's a great plan...so where to start?? I see you are new to CF. Believe it or not, your set of questions is very similar to what others have asked..many times before. I suggest you make CF a regular part of your research and see how others have asked similar questions and how they have been answered. You are probably way too soon to look at specific boats, and you will find a hundred opinions on here, as already some are suggesting a trawler. Well, sail or power? So, there is a long way to go but there is a wide variety of boats in the Clear Lake area. Read a basic sailing or boating book, take a lesson or two and start narrowing down choices by parameters--as you have done. Length overall LOA is one thing but it is not the same as volume or accommodations and amenities--and all amenities short of tankage can be changed with time or money. So the next question--time and money????....time and money...time and money....DO NOT go no the hook--thats fr youngsters and low budget folks and those wh really prefer the solitude and the swing....but perhaps not for you. With a 200k budget you have many options. Why not start by looking at liveaboard marinas and assess costs, and meet other liveaboards? Then really use yachtworld and see what's for sale. Start to match budget with broad parameters BUT dont start looking at specific boats for a while--that will eat your mind. Have fun--keep us informed....

[ChrisTinaBruce]

Originally Posted by FreeBeerTomorro

I have an opportunity to move to Clear Lake TX for a job that could be much more lucrative, and retirement could happen closer to the 6-8 year timeframe, with a much better retirement income.

Not by chance a Oldcastle company?

[oldragbaggers]

I concur with the trawler, especially if the Great Loop is a part of the "big plan." It is on our to do list also but we are going to save it for our next and last boat, which will most certainly be a trawler. The complications of trying to do it on a sailboat just don't sound appealing to us. Also, as others have stated, for a given length you are going to have much more liveable space for a given length of boat on a power boat and it will be easier to get all those separate cabins you need. For dock living those nice big "back porches" with proper deck chairs that you get with a trawler can't be beat, and the big window views too. And since you have no experience sailing your learning curve will be significantly reduced. If you plan to spend most of your time at dock fuel costs aren't a huge issue but liveability is.

[FSMike]

Looking at it from a different angle, if I were you I would live as close as possible to work.
Houston traffic is unbelievable lol!

[jwing]

I'm with FSMike. If you are willing to live in a small boat, crammed in a marina, then you should consider a small apartment close to your work. Buy a small sailboat to play with; commute to the lake on your days off. Wisely invest the money you save and you'll have a good cruising kitty when you are ready to go.

I also agree with all who have recommended a trawler, based on the information you have given. Do more research on the Looper people; they use trawlers and not sailboats for good reasons.

[tankersteve]

I think folks hit question 2 and 3, but for #1, ASA sailing courses, crewing on local boats, and getting an inexpensive dinghy and having fun are all solid (and not exclusive) options.

Chartering on a larger boat, with a skipper perhaps, is also a good method to feel your way into living aboard, but a charter is not the same as living aboard.

Tankersteve

[Cap Erict3]

If the job is in the Clear Lake area then traffic is not an issue and there are a couple of marinas that offer first class amenities at a much better rate than a nice apartment.


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Looking for another pretty place to work on the boat.

[cwyckham]

Originally Posted by FreeBeerTomorro

...

Question 1: What's the best way for an ABSOLUTE NOOB to learn sailing? I would definitely join local clubs, etc. but are there USCG classes, etc. that I should plan to take over the first couple of years?

My dream would be to work up to an eventual sail of the Great Loop. We could park the boat a few times along the way and we (or she) could fly home to see family, as needed.

...

People learn to sail in different ways, but I recommend taking formal courses at least to start and then getting as much experience as you can from sailing with a club, with friends, or on an inexpensive first boat between 22' and 28'.

As others have said, you don't really sail the great loop. You motor it. Maybe if you motor the great loop on a motorboat, you'll then decide you want to sail offshore and buy a sailboat then. Or you can always motor in a sailboat. They are very fuel efficient, but they have this stick thing on the top and this fin thing on the bottom that can cause logistical issues sometimes on the great loop.