Canadians 1st Offshore Trip Any advice or Tips? Leaving Eastern US Soon!

[Vasco]

Originally Posted by chuckr

after crusing the entire caribbean and now in the med we would prefer to jug our diesel even if there are good fuel docks -- at times we have gotten fuel that was not very clean - we have 2 tanks on board - one 36 gal and one 50 gal - so it take a bit to get them filled via cans but everything goes through a filter before going into the tank

we learned the hard way

Forgot to mention dirty fuel and Baja filter in my post.

[Atoriusverus]

Originally Posted by chuckr

question if i could --
what are you using for communications once outside the usa or offshore?

just a thought --
good luck

We have 2 DSC VHF radios plus 1 handheld. 2 SSB radios with tuners. One tuner and SSB still new in the box and we have to put up a new antenna for the one that is mounted. We will probably pickup a Globalstar sat phone as well.

We also have a couple personal mobile 2 way radios for ourselves.

Well our boat gets dunked tomorrow. So 10 to 12 days off odds and ends and getting as many tasks out of the way plus sea trials and testing of all the new systems.

Anyone else ever get this far in and then wonder what was I thinking?

[Jolly Roger]

Yes me.
I’ve been hard at it three years this month, and if you look at my site you see some pretty drastic changes, inside and out. We’re getting close now and hope to be on our way by the end of January, for a trial sail to the Bahamas.
But I have worries and reservations. Even though we have many, many years of sailing under our combined belts, I worry if we’ve not left it too late for our age, even though I have re-rigged so everything is as easy as possible.
I’ve also come to the conclusion I enjoy messing about with boats, woodworking, fitting stuff, etc., more than actually sailing them.
I’m sure the answer is to get going, and leave all the other marina bound people behind, and slowly get back into it. That's why we are going down the ICW for the first four days, then out and in for a days thrash, before we cross over.

But we’ll see.

[jfarber]

I transited my CSY44 (Ophira) from Saugerties NY (90 miles north of NYC) to Charleston the week before Thanksgiving. We were in the ICW from Norfolk to Beaufort, NC (it turned out to be a very wise decision); the rest of the time was outside - motor sailing.

You seem have everything well covered.

We did have a grounding south of Norfolk - in the ICW w. of the Great Bridge there was 4.5 ft. of water. Stay in the middle to N. side of the channel here.

And the weather will be heavenly (> 8C everyday!).

[Gerrycooper56]

Originally Posted by Atoriusverus

We have 2 DSC VHF radios plus 1 handheld. 2 SSB radios with tuners. One tuner and SSB still new in the box and we have to put up a new antenna for the one that is mounted. We will probably pickup a Globalstar sat phone as well. We also have a couple personal mobile 2 way radios for ourselves. Well our boat gets dunked tomorrow. So 10 to 12 days off odds and ends and getting as many tasks out of the way plus sea trials and testing of all the new systems. Anyone else ever get this far in and then wonder what was I thinking?

There came a time we said enough and left the marina - still with outstanding jobs. I think the hardest part was leaving home base but once that was done it was plain sailing!

[jtsailjt]

I noted as part of your refit that you now have AGM batteries and just wanted to mention that they need a slightly charging regimen than wet or gel cells. It's very close to what wet cells need but not exactly the same, so to get the max life out of them, if you haven't already, get your voltage regulator set up for AGM's.

If you're still looking for a good surveyor in Annapolis, I can recommend the one who did the prepurchase survey on the boat I just bought. He's an older guy but still sharp as a tack, knows boats, and he's very conscientious. He came back to my boat a total of 4 or 5 times to double check things, and even took the trouble to bend on the jib on a cold day so he could get a really good look at it. He got the final report to me within 3 or 4 days of finishing the survey. Very dry sense of humor but not in a negative, sarcastic way at all. I enjoyed being in touch with him and watching him work. If you want to contact him, just PM me and I'll be happy to forward his contact info.

It sounds like you and your wife have got things pretty well covered and I'm envious you get to go now and I still have a 4 1/2 years to wait to live aboard full time! Others have alluded to it also, but it's super important that you and your wife are on the same wavelength about undertaking this cruising lifestyle and it sounds like you've more than got that covered. You're gonna have SO much fun together!

I also agree with others that the sailing you do prior to getting an autopilot fitted is going to serve as autopilot appreciation days that you'll remember for a long, long time! I fly airplanes for a living and we spend 90%+ of our time on autopilot, not so much because hand flying is particularly tough, but because it's monotonous and occupies a large portion of the brain cells you have available for thinking. It almost seems like when you engage the autopilot your IQ jumps up about 25 points and it allows you to prepare yourself for the next portion of the flight. I understand why you are waiting and I'm sure you'll be fine for a week or so without one, but you're going to REALLY love it once you get it installed! Good luck!