Our expectations have pretty much matched the reality.
My partner and I are a couple who started "cold", as you put it. We took
sailing lessons through
ASA 101 & 103. Bought our Slocum 43 with the intent to
live aboard. Found that due to our inexperience, we couldn't get
insurance without agreeing to not leave the marina without a certified capt. on board. Got lucky and found a great guy in our marina. After a few months, he was willing to sign the
certification for our
insurance.
Then I learned there was a
marine technical
school in Anacortes that I could attend. It was a great opportunity to learn the boat systems at fairly low cost and also gain access to some excellent tools. During the summer recess, we began our big
refit. 30+ years, the boat needed a serious
overhaul. A 4-6 week
overhaul turned into 4-6 month
refit. Ouch!
The refit ended in December and it gave me time to slowly wrap up the closing of my business and tie up loose ends. Earlier, we had divested ourselves of
books, houses, etc. May 1st of last year was the time to get rid of the car as well and untie the
dock lines.
We had a great time cruising up the inside
passage from Tacoma to Haines, AK. We enjoyed it so much that we decided to winter-over in Sitka, AK and
cruise down the outside coast April of this year.
Bounce off a rock, check.
Drag
anchor until the
hull was a foot from the rocks while stern tied, check.
Alternator stopped
charging, check.
Motoring into 40+ knots with who knows how many feet waves, check check. (It took 6 hours to go 10nm and safe harbor!)
But it seemed like the trials came at a pace that gave us a good education without breaking our confidence. Wow did we learn stuff! Lots of reading of
forums and FB groups and books/magazines helped a lot as well.
Two things were unexpected.
1) How much work was needed on the boat before I felt that we could rely on the systems.
2) How pitiful the state of the
marine services industry is. Finding a reliable
diesel technician was virtually impossible. This convinced me more than anything else to attend the marine technical
school. There I learned not only
diesel, but also
electrical systems, and
plumbing.
We just finished coming down the
west coast of
Vancouver Island and after visiting
Puget Sound again and picking up a new drifter and
windvane, we will most likely be heading toward
Mexico in August.
Approach cruising with the attitude that there is no
destination, only the journey. If the journey isn't being fun, then tack away and begin a different one!