Is Cruising Boring?

[maxingout]

I've never been bored on Exit Only. There are too many places to go and too many things to do when I get there.

There are things to fix, friends to have over, websites to create, books to write, forums to participate in, preparations for the next passage.

If you are a member of the Life Long Disoriented, and you don't know who you are or where you are going, the cruising lifestyle might not work for you. People who are adrift in their life will be adrift when they cruise.

How could I be bored.

We visited over thirty countries.
We dodged pirates in the Gulf of Aden.
We created a documentary of our adventures in the Red Sea called The Red Sea Chronicles. http://RedSeaChronicles.com
My son recorded music in a ministudio on board the boat.
We son did 10th, 11th, and 12th grades on board, and I was his instructor for the challenging courses (Chemistry from hell).
My daughter did 11th and 12th grades on board, and I was her instructor on the difficult courses.
We shot 200 hours of professional video during the last half of our circumnavigation.
We have more than a dozen websites.

Bored?

I don't think so.

Too little time and too many dreams.

[rebel heart]

Originally Posted by cabo

By the way hand steering to me is like a gentleman sailing to weather. We don't do that!

I love that quote, and the hand steering comments make me laugh. I couldn't imagine being "bored". There is an endless array of boat projects, planning, and just sitting back reading and relaxing to be done.

I've never been bored in my life. I love how calm and peaceful the time is when on a hook for days straight. So relaxing and enjoyable.

[GordMay]

Gentlemen Never Sail to Weather: A Story of an Accidental Odyssey
by Denton R. Moore

[Butler]

Right on Gord May. The RD Moore book is one of my very favorite sailing books. He's straight up, pull no punches honest about his own learning curve with a lot of humility given his long experience fishing commercialy. He also reminds me a bit of Mark Twain.
"The skill of adjusting the angle of an engine with lag screws in wooden engine beds is a fine art handed down from father to son, unfortunately my father trained polo ponies"
Not exact but close.
I enjoy handing the tiller and seem to have a great tolerance for "doing the wash" as a friend of mine put it.
As a charter member of the "Lifelong Disoriented" I resemble that remark and don't place much value anymore in what most would consider being "oriented".

[Panaseaya]

Of course you'll be bored! At first. After about two weeks of mind crushing boredom, everything becomes facinating. It is amazing how much you can learn from sitting under a shady tree on a secluded beach watching crabs and lizards.

[AndrewG]

In many ways being stuck at sea with just books to read and a ocean to look at is dead boring. On the other hand listening to music, gazing up at the Milky Way in the open ocean is one of the most wonderful experiences out there! It is also punctuated by moments of sheer panic. In fact there's always that nagging doubt that some disaster is about to happen that makes it exciting. We lived on board for couple of years, cruised the Caribbean and loved it. Off to sail the Med nxt year I hope! Whether its boring or not, the real problem is its addictive.

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by cabo

We got to wondering if any of you cruisers ever got bored.

Nic reads a lot. I have never had much of a chance to read. Most cruisers swap books are crap... not quality non-fiction. All just crapy novels - I just don't get the time to read. Even most quality fiction I am not into either as its other peoples adventures... god we have enough of our own! LOL

I started the encyclopedia and am only up to E.

I would love several months of doing nothing

I want more nature books and identification books. There was a great one called Identifying Whales and Dolphins. I couldnt afford it last time I saw it ($60) but that sort of thing, and sea birds as well. Wow that would keep me interested for weeks!

Mark

[Albro359]

When our kids were young and would say "Dad I'm bored", my response was...you know where boredom is ? .... it's in your mind !

If you decide to be bored you will be !

Me, I've never found the time to be bored !!