Sailing vs Cruising

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by belizesailor

No need to retire, just take a sabbatical and see if it works for you.

No time for sabbatical yet, but I day sail and do short cruises in the bay and ocean frequently. (long tacks on the ocean side of the bridge as part of a Northerly sail)

Last Winter I had the boat hauled and painted darn near the whole thing plus added a new dodger, mainsail cover, LED Lamps, shades, halyards, outboard bracket, and serviced the outboard except impeller which I'll replace soon.

[Coast Wanderer]

Originally Posted by belizesailor

No need to retire, just take a sabbatical and see if it works for you.

Good advice.. Mine only lasted for 3 months, but that's just me.. Most people are probably smarter than I am, lol..

[Group9]

Originally Posted by belizesailor

No need to retire, just take a sabbatical and see if it works for you.

Good advice!

[TrentePieds]

Quote: "I'm trying to determine if I can go for a month or two on my present boat which is a Bristol 27...?"

Aren't you still evading the REAL question? The answer to what you have asked (quoted above) is clearly: YES, of course you can!

Plenty of people have done so in boats of this size and this genre.

Having read all of this thread with some care I conclude that the REAL question, the one you are evading, is: ""I'm trying to determine if I WANT TO go for a month or two on my present boat which is a Bristol 27...?", or, rephrased a bit:"I'm trying to determine if I WILL LIKE GOING for a month or two on my present boat which is a Bristol 27...?'

Surely it is obvious that only YOU can answer that?

TP

[Ghostrider421]

Originally Posted by thomm225

So is there a difference?

I'm thinking there is a big difference between those that want to motor or sail a few miles then hang out a marina (or anchorage) on a condo style late modern fin keel boat for a few weeks and call it cruising compared to those that have an objective to sail the world or their immediate area for a few years

This sort of goes back to the full keel boat threads that have recently popped up.

If you are constantly on the move for a few weeks, months, or even years then the old narrow full keel boats that can be had at a very low price might be the best boat to purchase at least until you figure out if you actually enjoy the cruising life since it isn't about hanging out down below etc unless it has to do with sleep or bad weather

Sorta - most sailboats with full keels are slow under sail and only perform well under power = hence motor sailing.

If you want to sail - fin keels are the way to go. The boat becomes responsive to the slightest gust and hull speed will determine the capability.

On cats you have two choices - go fast with daggerboards or just condo cruise safely - which is what charter companies prefer you to do.

I had been working on gulets which have simple sails, but mostly rely on hd power units to move 50,000kg displacement.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by Coast Wanderer

Good advice.. Mine only lasted for 3 months, but that's just me.. Most people are probably smarter than I am, lol..

My first one was 3 months with the intent of then going on 6 months on-6months off. I worked in an intense environment, 110% throttle all time...after a 3 month cruising sabbatical, my throttle just didnt go there anymore. I tried to make re-entry for a couple of years and was never fully successful...after that I fired myself for poor performace. Its good to be the boss! [emoji6]

Left cruising again and never came back. That was in 2004...15 years now...wow!

[Briggers]

Originally Posted by belizesailor

Why do you care how it gets categorized? Decide what it is you want to do and go do it!

Screw categories and the opinions of others.

With you on that Belize, labels are for parcels

[Briggers]

Originally Posted by thomm225

Certainly sorry to offend.

I'm just one of those that thinks it's a bad thing to actually retire.

Are you mad? Have you tried it?

I retired from a job that I loved 22 years ago - UK Fire Service. I would hate to be doing it now, the job has changed beyond all recognition..

I have a small part time business I run from home, this is just to cover the cost of sails, water pumps etc.

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by TrentePieds

Quote: "I'm trying to determine if I can go for a month or two on my present boat which is a Bristol 27...?"

Aren't you still evading the REAL question? The answer to what you have asked (quoted above) is clearly: YES, of course you can!

Plenty of people have done so in boats of this size and this genre.

Having read all of this thread with some care I conclude that the REAL question, the one you are evading, is: ""I'm trying to determine if I WANT TO go for a month or two on my present boat which is a Bristol 27...?", or, rephrased a bit:"I'm trying to determine if I WILL LIKE GOING for a month or two on my present boat which is a Bristol 27...?'

Surely it is obvious that only YOU can answer that?

TP

I'm sure I'll probably cruise a few months on my Bristol 27 unless I decide to give living aboard a try and buy one of those Bristol 35.5's that are for sale in the area and get rid of my apartment

https://moreboats.com/boats/bristol/355-sloop/284220

https://www.sailboatlistings.com/view/77203

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by Ghostrider421

Sorta - most sailboats with full keels are slow under sail and only perform well under power = hence motor sailing.

If you want to sail - fin keels are the way to go. The boat becomes responsive to the slightest gust and hull speed will determine the capability.

On cats you have two choices - go fast with daggerboards or just condo cruise safely - which is what charter companies prefer you to do.

I had been working on gulets which have simple sails, but mostly rely on hd power units to move 50,000kg displacement.

I raced beach cats for something like 12 years so I know how nice daggerboards can be.

I did maybe 400 buoy races and probably 50-60 distance.

It's lot of fun when moving along downwind at 20 knots plus but still having to look back for approaching gusts so you know when to turn down without losing any speed. (just don't forget you are sailing downwind and turn up which results in an awesome pitchpole)

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by Briggers

Are you mad? Have you tried it?

I retired from a job that I loved 22 years ago - UK Fire Service. I would hate to be doing it now, the job has changed beyond all recognition..

I have a small part time business I run from home, this is just to cover the cost of sails, water pumps etc.

Not mad I don't believe but I have had opportunities to observe retirees.

I'll be one soon enough but I have a job that allows me some room to workout/run at lunchtime and sail on multiple 3 day weekends which most times I add a day to and have time for other things as well while running the site remotely

Plus I'm lucky enough to have a bay right in front of me that is 150 miles or so long and 30 miles wide in certain areas. And if that isn't enough I can sail out into the Atlantic

Have I tried retirement. Yes! I was off for two weeks between the military and my civilian job. I was 24 then

[TrentePieds]

That's it! 3 months in a Bristol 27 on the hook in an exposed anchorage will make it PATENTLY clear whether "cruising" is for you. Basically a costless voyage of discovery :-)

With interesting stuff to read, or scale models to build, I'm as happy as the proverbial piggy. Without such things to do, I go bonkers in three days. Maintenance of the kind you can do afloat, such as wiring jobs, is fine too. A 27-footer is on the small side for it, because you don't have room for a lay-out table, but canvas work done in the hand is fine too. Marlinspike seamanship and scrimshaw are the traditional means whereby "the lower decks" kept themselves from going bonkers. Knitting too!

Passage making is just plain hard work, and except when caught out by hard weather, really doesn't involve anything that really requires mental acuity or exertion. Strictly a "get from A to B as quickly as you can" kind of proposition.

Being a good cookie can also be fun. Check out Jimmy Oliver's "30 Minute Meals". His shows are more showmanship than high culinary art, and his dishes are not inexpensive, but great for inspiration. I'm not in his league by far, but in the days when I skippered Crooz'n'Learn jobs in a vessel big enuff to carry a Dickensen stove (meant for small commercial vessels, really), preparing meals beyond what you normally get on C'n'Ls was part of my schtick. To do it you need to "industrialize" your provisioning. In TP we have a bi-weekly rotation of daily menus all committed to paper, which of course is the basis for the "bill of provisions". Works just like industrial stores-keeping. The stove is a propane-fired three burner motorhome job with oven.

All in all, there it NO reason you should go stagnant intellectually while cruising, so what's not to like?

TP

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by TrentePieds

That's it! 3 months in a Bristol 27 on the hook in an exposed anchorage will make it PATENTLY clear whether "cruising" is for you. Basically a costless voyage of discovery :-)

With interesting stuff to read, or scale models to build, I'm as happy as the proverbial piggy. Without such things to do, I go bonkers in three days. Maintenance of the kind you can do afloat, such as wiring jobs, is fine too. A 27-footer is on the small side for it, because you don't have room for a lay-out table, but canvas work done in the hand is fine too. Marlinspike seamanship and scrimshaw are the traditional means whereby "the lower decks" kept themselves from going bonkers. Knitting too!

Passage making is just plain hard work, and except when caught out by hard weather, really doesn't involve anything that really requires mental acuity or exertion. Strictly a "get from A to B as quickly as you can" kind of proposition.

Being a good cookie can also be fun. Check out Jimmy Oliver's "30 Minute Meals". His shows are more showmanship than high culinary art, and his dishes are not inexpensive, but great for inspiration. I'm not in his league by far, but in the days when I skippered Crooz'n'Learn jobs in a vessel big enuff to carry a Dickensen stove (meant for small commercial vessels, really), preparing meals beyond what you normally get on C'n'Ls was part of my schtick. To do it you need to "industrialize" your provisioning. In TP we have a bi-weekly rotation of daily menus all committed to paper, which of course is the basis for the "bill of provisions". Works just like industrial stores-keeping. The stove is a propane-fired three burner motorhome job with oven.

All in all, there it NO reason you should go stagnant intellectually while cruising, so what's not to like?

TP

Geez, I have read only your first paragraph TP!

I'd never spend three months at an exposed anchorage even if i was chancing losing my boat to sail off! (my $2,000 cruising boat)

I was told in the 1990's by cruisers that the hardest thing is to unhook the dock lines

[valhalla360]

Originally Posted by thomm225

Not mad I don't believe but I have had opportunities to observe retirees.

I suspect this is part of your problem.

If your observations are going down to the local old folks home to volunteer and you see the guys chew the fat in their rocking chairs...that would be depressing to shoot for that when still relatively young and healthy.

There are a lot of other retirees out doing stuff and they likely won't be found in the same places....or maybe they did that stuff for a decade or two and as they slowed down, they settled back into a more sedate lifestyle.

I suspect you are hung up on the old idea that retirement is being put out to pasture where you quietly wait until they fit you for a pine box.

[thomm225]

Originally Posted by valhalla360

I suspect this is part of your problem.

If your observations are going down to the local old folks home to volunteer and you see the guys chew the fat in their rocking chairs...that would be depressing to shoot for that when still relatively young and healthy.

There are a lot of other retirees out doing stuff and they likely won't be found in the same places....or maybe they did that stuff for a decade or two and as they slowed down, they settled back into a more sedate lifestyle.

I suspect you are hung up on the old idea that retirement is being put out to pasture where you quietly wait until they fit you for a pine box.

Actually I had the opportunity to observe retired cruisers along the Gulf Coast for many years

Many hung out at the docks, beach bars, or drank too much while not sailing a lot. Others motored along the ICW with all manners of things on deck

Some of these folks had some great stories though

There were a few that did sailed. I remember one old guy with long hair and beard headed west toward Pensacola Pass on some ancient craft. I was a racer at the time and went by him fast on a Nacra 6.0.

His sails were no where closed to being trimmed correctly (his ragged out jib was even luffing a bit flapping around) and I was like what the hell. I was teetotal racer guy at the time and sails always had to be trimmed right

So later I'm coming back in the pass as he is exiting. He sets up on what appears to be his final destination which appears to be a heading for Mexico and as he does all sails suddenly are looking good

So in my mind looks like he was setting sails early for the tack he'd be on for a week (or for hours and hours) rather than worrying over the one he'd be on for 30-40 minutes

Another old guy coming in the pass had all sails up, boat's engine running, and dinghy which he was pulling had it's engine running as well. I took that to mean he'd had some experience with treacherous passes/inlets

At least three cruiser friends that longed for the cruising life for years and had their boats before they retired lasted for 2-3 months of cruising after they did retire

One guy had sold his car and most of his possessions before hand and had to buy all that stuff again. His boat was a Tayana 37. He had also stopped drinking because he'd get into trouble after a few drinks. Well he started drinking hard again when he started cruising. The word was he sailed out of an anchorage etc near Tampa just ahead of the law