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Sea Wolf · 02-02-2009, 09:02

Over the years we've met people who crossed oceans in boats as small as 24 feet. That would be entirely too small for me! We were in a 33 foot Gemini Catamaran and did coastal and island cruising for 5 years, but others have crossed oceans in sister ships, so providing you have a good sturdy vessel, seamanship is the key. We have been told repeatedly that 40 foot is the minimum length for comfort and safety... something about the distance between the waves, but I've never done any research on it so can't say for certain. We now have a 50 foot Prout and are preparing to travel to the South Pacific and beyond. A circumnavigation? Not the plan, but may happen as we've always decided where we're going next when we've gown saturated with a place we're visiting.

We started from scratch, too... no knowledge, no experience... just your every day 'dirt dwellers' with a dream. The best advice I can give you is to start reading everything you can get your hands on. We also, started with Lin and Larry Pardey's books. They're great and very informative. Go to boat shows and sit in on seminars; sign up to crew at local boat clubs; go to marinas and walk the docks so you can strike up conversations with sailors. Don't be shy, most sailors are more than willing to stop to talk about their adventures. Make sure your vacations include places that rent boats; charter boats you're interested in. The list goes on and on, but I think you get the idea.

So many people asked us how we managed to drop out and go sailing that we decided to put up a website so they could read about our adventures without our having to constantly email everyone. Our website, cruiserslife.com tells how we started and did it. Maybe you can pull some viable info from it. If you have any specific stuff you'd like to know, just email us from cruisersforum or our website.

The bottom line is don't give up your dream. One foot in front of the other, one day at a time and you'll get there. Good Luck and hope to see you out there!

02-02-2009, 09:02	#55
Sea Wolf Registered User Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Living aboard in North Miami, Florida Boat: Prout, Quasar, 50' - Sea Wolf Posts: 98	What's too small and how is it done Over the years we've met people who crossed oceans in boats as small as 24 feet. That would be entirely too small for me! We were in a 33 foot Gemini Catamaran and did coastal and island cruising for 5 years, but others have crossed oceans in sister ships, so providing you have a good sturdy vessel, seamanship is the key. We have been told repeatedly that 40 foot is the minimum length for comfort and safety... something about the distance between the waves, but I've never done any research on it so can't say for certain. We now have a 50 foot Prout and are preparing to travel to the South Pacific and beyond. A circumnavigation? Not the plan, but may happen as we've always decided where we're going next when we've gown saturated with a place we're visiting. We started from scratch, too... no knowledge, no experience... just your every day 'dirt dwellers' with a dream. The best advice I can give you is to start reading everything you can get your hands on. We also, started with Lin and Larry Pardey's books. They're great and very informative. Go to boat shows and sit in on seminars; sign up to crew at local boat clubs; go to marinas and walk the docks so you can strike up conversations with sailors. Don't be shy, most sailors are more than willing to stop to talk about their adventures. Make sure your vacations include places that rent boats; charter boats you're interested in. The list goes on and on, but I think you get the idea. So many people asked us how we managed to drop out and go sailing that we decided to put up a website so they could read about our adventures without our having to constantly email everyone. Our website, cruiserslife.com tells how we started and did it. Maybe you can pull some viable info from it. If you have any specific stuff you'd like to know, just email us from cruisersforum or our website. The bottom line is don't give up your dream. One foot in front of the other, one day at a time and you'll get there. Good Luck and hope to see you out there!