Cruising on $500 per Month . . .

[David_Old_Jersey]

Being poor involves a lot of hardwork even to try and stay still, juggling, hard choices............and going short. Smarts alone don't always replace what cash does.

If you enjoy the challenge that comes from all that on a boat whilst cruising you may have landed the holy grail of the workplace..........a job you love (and for some that will be the case - but depends on how you are happy to have "work" remunerated, cash or time or whatever).

The good news is that being flat broke sounds like it might be the new fanny magnet - around here we have very few folk living under bridges, I didn't realise that was because the smart women were snapping 'em all up . I thought it was because we have no bridges......

..........unfortunately sounds like I will therefore have to start with building a bridge With Wimin there is always something

[Zonker]

Sounds very bold ... but I don't think one has to live on $500 if the cruising life has planned carefully from the start.

World largest place to work everywhere on earth are the financial markets. It takes many years (for me almost 10 years !) to learn how to create a steady monthly income. But it is for sure possible and it is for sure more than $500.

Obviously there must be some equipment aboard but today there is no fortune to be spent to do day trading at the coastal areas.

[goprisko]

Originally Posted by speakeasy

Nice to see you, Indy. Keeping clear on the concept is the essence of discipline .., but seeing the issue thought out upward, layer by layer to a plateau of clarity . . . is very useful.

I have been curious for a long time about cruising India. A cradle of civilization that seems to have had profound effect on all my friends who've spent any time there, mostly decades ago come to think of it. What's doing today I wonder. Did you spend much time at Sri Lanka and/or on the Indian sub-continent? I've seen almost nothing from cruisers who've visited there and would love to hear some first hand accounts of doing so. I figure it must be a monsoon/time commitment issue or is it that there haven't been any trailblazer cruising guide books written yet (Sort of a no you first phenom )?, or perhaps it's dangerous for all but the empathically curious and intrepid?

What sort of planning window would one have to give in order to cruise India, on through to Capetown? TIA for whatever you've got.

Jon

We did cruise India, from Pemban Pass to the south cape, down the south west coast. We came unprepared, without visas, without rupees, none the less the Indian Officials were most kind and helpful.

Having done this once, a few pointers.

If coming from SE Asia, get visas in Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur or Singapore.
Get some rupees from a bank in Bangkok or Singapore to cover arrival expenses.

Take small gifts to hand out to visitors. pencils, erasers, spiral bound notebooks fish hooks, sinkers, etc. are welcomed. Old clothing, mainly teeshirts, is ok, but their mode of dress is not western in the villages.

Plan on anchoring wherever you see the minarets of a mosque. You will not be bothered there. Wherever you see the spires of a catholic church, be prepared for inundation by locals looking for handouts, ie get everything movable below and lockup. They are mostly curious, and the kids especially want souvenirs.

Local food is inexpensive, fuel can be had without tax.

Be alert when coasting, there are lots of fishermen out there..

Have fun!

INDY

[goprisko]

The standard drill is to transit the Mozambique Channel southbound in October, rounding the cape by Christmas.

However, everyone who does it that way gets pounded.

I skirted the Seychelles due to lack of funds, and arrived at Mayotte in the Comorros in May. We refueled and provisioned there, were made most welcome by the French, and left SE bound for the coast of Madagascar.

We hugged the west coast of Madagascar until we came to the south end of the lagoon, about 1/3 from the south tip of the island.

We then set off SW to Richards Bay, encountering a front at 26 degrees South, per timing recommended by the SA Weather Net (Alistar)

We pushed hard and arrived in Richards Bay hours before the next front arrived.

We kept in touch with the SA Weather Net and set off for Durban in late July, arriving just before the next front hit.

Having done this once, I recommend you do the transit beginning in early July, as that is mid-winter and the time between fronts is about 7-10 days.
By late July and August the time had shrunk to 3-5 days.

We left Durban at 2 am for East London and pushed south under power into a calm, arriving hours before the next front. We lay in East London for a week waiting for clear weather to Port Elizabeth. We left in the tail end of a SE gale arriving in PE hours before the next front.

Two days later we left on the most pleasant part of the coasting arriving in Mossel Bay by nightfall.

The following day we motored most of the way to Cape Aghullas, near which a SE wind filled in and we were doing 8 knots under reefed main and staysail as we passed the cape and swept north into False Bay.

We arrived at Simonstown just after dusk and found an anchorage by the light of the moon and streetlamps.

We enjoyed Simonstown immensely, visiting Cape Town by train, and left a week later.

Two days later we entered Saldhana Bay after a pleasant trip. We enjoyed Saldhana Bay and the YC very much.

In summary, I recommend a mid-winter transit of SouthAfrica, provided you link up with Alistar or Fred on the SA weather net, which you can easily do in Durban at the YC.

INDY

[goprisko]

In pages 28-35, among other things, I developed a proforma budget for cruising on $500 USD per month. I covered food costs, maintenance costs, customs duties and others.

I specifically mentioned that wannabees should practice these skills on short and increasingly longer cruises before setting off into the blue.

Nothing beats experience in this sort of thing.

As for Fatty Goodlander, never heard of him, or saw of him during my years in the orient. He seems well known in the Caribbean, but elsewhere:???

The hardest thing for a white middle class American to grasp is this:

Most of what you believe is rubbish
Most of what you buy is un-necessary
Most of what you own is superfluous
The most important thing you own is your good health

Our annual cruising budget now is:

Maintenance and Repair $ 970
Provisions $ 2,400 ( diet

high in legumes, all meals cooked aboard)
Entry & Clearance Fees $ 150
Fuel $ 100 ( LPG for galley stove )
Mooring & Marina Fees $ -0-
Communication $ 200
Excursions/ Entertainment $ 800
Navigation $ 700
Insurance, Boat $ -0-
Insurance Health $ 240 (money put in

rainy day fund)
Souvenirs $ 150
Clothing and Sundries $ 290


TOTAL $ 6,000

INDY

[callmecrazy]

Thanks INDY!

Fatty Goodlander, while I'm sure he's a good guy, is certainly not representative of any sort of budget cruiser.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by callmecrazy

Thanks INDY!

Fatty Goodlander, while I'm sure he's a good guy, is certainly not representative of any sort of budget cruiser.

I only know of him through his articles in Yachting Monthly.... he is funny... and the uniquely US perspective on life is interesting...
He's an OK Dude but I'll agree with the above... he just makes a lot of readers think "I could do that.... Gimme a boat.."

[Therapy]

Are the fees he quotes on his passage to the Med less for somone else?

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by callmecrazy

Thanks INDY!

Fatty Goodlander, while I'm sure he's a good guy, is certainly not representative of any sort of budget cruiser.

What absolute bollocks!

Fatty's boat was salvaged by himself from the bottom of some muddy river and totally rebuilt by himself.
Every cent he makes has been from the decks of that boat writing and every cent hard won.
If anyone here has dolne it on the cheap its him and Carolyn.

Not only that this is his second circumnavigation and 40th year (or so) living on boats.

He wrote an article in Cruising World where he did a full disclosure on his budget... an article I havent seen as I can't afford the mag.
Funnily enough his anual budget is virtually exactly the same as Ram sugests is the minimum.

Go read it and instead of slagging Fatty off, start believing him as you will find between the laughs are some very relevant facts.

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by Therapy

Are the fees he quotes on his passage to the Med less for somone else?

Yes, we did Salalah in Oman and the Suez canal cheaper than him.

The agent dropped his fee in Salalah - but still ripped us off for fuel.

Suez we got through cheapest of anyone I know paing only US$10 bribes to each of 2 pilots and one stuffed key-ring size koala, 2 x packs cigarettes (hope smoking kills them).

Its all a game and the weak (or those suffering heart attacks, as what happened in a case Fatty refers to) suffer.

Nicolle and I just enjoyed the challenge

For more details check my website for a full detailed account of Suez rip off including being rammed 3 times by officals tring for bribes.... Love our fenders!!!!!!!!!

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by Therapy

Are the fees he quotes on his passage to the Med less for somone else?

It is possible/relatively easy to traverse the Med without entering a Marina... apart for fuel and water... overnights alongside a free quay are all over... just gotta know to the right folks..... the only fee's unavoidable are the Corinth Canal and the bridge at Khalkis....
Unless your a culture vulture... in which case there's only marina's..
But then I'm a Brit.... dunno about you 'Foreign folks'....

[callmecrazy]

You're right I don't know fatty from jack... except for a few vid's I've seen of him talking about his circumnavigation, where he seemed to me to be a very typical cruiser.

So let me rephrase that..
Fatty Goodlander is clearly not cruising on $500 a month, so how can he represent those that are doing it?

I believe, as INDY has demonstrated, there is always more than one way to do things. The $500 a month club is not filled with 40' yachts making 'typical' tradewind circumnavigations. They are spending years traveling remote regions, working as they go, living as the locals live, avoiding the known tourist destinations, and the typical cruising waypoints, etc..

I'm not knocking Fatty, or you Mark, your anybody else. I just seems like you think you did it the only way possible, and that nobody else should even try a different way.

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by boatman61

overnights alongside a free quay are all over... just gotta know to the right folks.....

Never did find one of them. Obviously I dunno the right folks.

How does one know the right folks? Drop in to said town dock; scoot about looking in the quay-side bars for sleazy Humphry Bogart types; slide up to them sucking on your spit-drenched charoot and giving him the Knowing Wink?

One town quay cost us US$60 for the night. In TURKEY! So beware!

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by MarkJ

Never did find one of them. Obviously I dunno the right folks.

How does one know the right folks? Drop in to said town dock; scoot about looking in the quay-side bars for sleazy Humphry Bogart types; slide up to them sucking on your spit-drenched charoot and giving him the Knowing Wink?

One town quay cost us US$60 for the night. In TURKEY! So beware!

Marmaris.... free
Khalkis....... free
Platania..... free
Glyfa......... free........... to name a few....
Actually its much easier.... chug up alongside a fishing boat and ask if you can tie up alongside... he then says... that spot over there's empty for a coupla days... he's out fishing...
The only place I paid for from the mouth of Canakalle to Pendik just past Istanbul was Pendik on arrival... anchored several times in the Canakalle and once in the Marmara...

[MarkJ]

Phil,

Which decade are you talking about?

Marmaris town dock for 1 hour to load water was $10 plus $5 for the water in May 2010.

I have the receipt right here.


Well, I would have the receipt right here if Nicolle was here to find the bloody thing!