Sailboat Security

[Tigerlily]

Here's a question for all the live aboard voyagers or anyone who has gone on an extended cruising trip. When you want to travel inland, to get supplies or for a longer time to see incredible stuff, how do you make your boat secure? Maybe leaving it in a marina is pretty safe, but what about leaving it anchored? Has anyone done this in third world countries?

[Euro Cruiser]

Tiger, the short answer is 'yes' - cruising sailors routinely leave their boats to travel inland. How they do this - and how they feel about it - obviously depends on the specifics of the circumstances.

The first asset that makes this possible is the cruiser grapevine; crews share info ranging from how much care is provided at a given marina to what's worth seeing ashore; it's very common for folks to share info via SSB Net, email, cruising related pubs (e.g. Noonsite and SSCA Bulletins) and simple word of mouth and this could range from incidents of theft to weather & anchorage conditions.

It's probably fair to say it's much more common for folks to park the boat in a marina when traveling inland, since the boat is usually more secure (re: security & moorage). Some marinas develop a reputation for this that overcome questionable conditions (e.g family 'marinas' on swift running tributaries of the Tiber where cruisers stop in order to see Rome and other Italian cities). OTOH there sometimes is no marina, or no berthing space available at those which exist, and one must leave the boat at anchor. Either way, yachties will often pitch in and boatwatch one another's boats to make travel possible...and sometimes, crews who are staying put for a while turn this into a small business. E.g. we left WHOOSH in the care of a young British woman, on the hook, in Luperon DR for some days while crossing the island to visit Santo Domingo, the first city in the New World.

Assuming there are inland sites you want to see, sometimes conditions just aren't compatible with leaving the boat. More often, when there are places to visit, there is a gaggle of fellow yachties there to see them along with you - and often, berthing options as well. Sometimes the limitation is not the security of the boat but the size of your cruising kitty; inland travel can be relatively expensive. Other times - e.g. when visiting Tikal, the Mayan ruins in the Guatemala interior - it's tough to put a price on the experience!

Jack

[Tigerlily]

Thanks, that is a good start. But how about a longer stay inland? Is it a good idea to haulout if the inland trip is more like a month or three? Or is there another option? We would ultimately like to get to south america, leave the boat for several months, and travel inland to the Andes. How could this be done without paying too much for facilities?

[delmarrey]

Like Jack was saying, other boaters are your best option. Here in the PNW (not like we have much trouble), in fair weather, we raft up together while one party goes ashore the other hangs out and keeps an eye on things.

Another item we have in the works for the future is a motion detector hooked up to a recording of a large visious dog barking from within the cabin.

In the Philippines we'll have family aboard................._/)

A good insurance policy is to get to know the locals, and provide as little info as possible about yourself and your plans. Other cruisers are your best bet for watching your boat, as they have a common concern. A good source for finding a good caretaker for your boat would be a local yacht club. Vacant boats with shiny parts make good targets. Just because a boat is vacant, does not mean it has to look that way. Hire someone to come wipe it down once a week while you are "in town for the day". Have other cruisers board your boat and have a beer in the cockpit. If the boat appears to be occupied at random times it will make less of a target.Lights and a radio on timers, can also help if you have solar panels to feed them.

[JSSailem]

So you stop an person in the act of burglary on your boat. Your anchored. What do you do. Make the pirate walk the plank? Not likely to survive a swim to the beach in the PNw. Call the Coast Guard?
Just wondering.

[JSSailem]

Originally Posted by JSSailem

So you stop an person in the act of burglary on your boat. Your anchored. What do you do. Make the pirate walk the plank? Not likely to survive a swim to the beach in the PNw. Call the Coast Guard?
Just wondering.

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