Starting out in Florida?

[laika]

Originally Posted by Ellevan

Looking for some advice on beginning my first sailing/cruising adventure in South Florida. I live on the west coast of Canada but I'm interested in getting away for the winter months with my partner next fall. It rains here nearly 8 out of 12 months, the water is beautiful but frigid, there are far fewer sailboat choices and resources, and the winds are confused and light during the nicer months... Still an amazing place to explore no doubt and I'm sure one day we'll set up here.

The idea is to either just wing it and find a boat after arriving in South Florida while renting a room, or to find an online special and then have a destination. From what I've read Ft. Lauderdale is a pretty boatcentric spot. I'm talking about a 25'-30' beginner cruiser with a little work needed. Is this realistic? I mean we're both pretty adventurous and spontaneous, willing to struggle a bit and be thrown into it.
What attracts us to that area are the sheer number of boats, the many experienced sailors around, the warmth, and of course the eventual ability to sail across to the Bahamas and beyond after much learning and practice. We would of course have to head back to Canada at or before the 6 month mark, but this would work really well for our seasonal work schedules. If we had found a boat that we wanted to keep we would look for storage on the hard. I see many young people on youtube getting small boats and having great success this way in the SE, but I don't think I've seen anyone just show up from elsewhere and make it happen. Is anyone on this forum from the area and willing to share their experience or simply their advice? Are there any Canadians reading that have done this themselves?

There's a documentary i think called Hold Fast where some youngens just showed up and did exactly what you are proposing.

You also need not to limit yourself to one spot in the boat search. For example, you could hit the states and rent a car for a week to visit any number of boats you might want to check out between FL and NC.

It's never recommended to just "jump in" and go for it, but a young cruiser looking for a small simple boat to go have fun on for a while is a bit different than an older cruiser looking for a retirement home. On the other hand, it's always recommended to do as much due diligence as you can.. the more you know = the less risk you end up spending months in a boatyard somewhere wondering what the hell you got yourself into.

I second what was said before about the bahamas being an absolutely great place. It's a wild turquoise abyss you could spend a lifetome exploring and getting lost in. And you have a place like Indiantown Marina in FL a "quick" jump back across where you can store a 25-30'er for a little north of $200/mo in the summer.

End of the day, only you know what makes sense. If you're the kind of person who is comfortable winging it yet is eager to learn and serious enough struggle through the ups and downs to make it happen, your plan doesn't sound far fetched to me.

Cheers
Ryan

[rosatte]

Funny how things are different I’m on the east coast have sailed Florida Bahamas but now I have purchased a boat on west coast will spend summer cruising west coast BC WA and in fall head south to Mexico panama etc guess it always looks greener on other side of fence

[Ken Z]

I would avoid the lauderdale coast . Good advice around sanibel ft. myers, plenty of places with shelter. I know of a good 28’ ready to go. you can e mail me kz.cuttingedge@gmail.com.

[gulfcoastsailor]

As you have no existing connections with Florida, get your boat here and scoot to the Bahamas asap. Don’t waste you time in Florida waters when the islands are your ultimate goal. Search for a boat that has spent time in the islands. Plenty of retirees bring the well equipped cruiser back to Florida and sell it every day. Limit your draft to 4’6” to 5’. Hire a good skipper to get you to the Bahamas safely. Have fun!

[Dave22q]

You might consider the Tampa/St. Pete area. Active boating market and only a few days from the Keys then Bahamas. More affordable renting as well.

[DenverSailors]

We are based in New Port Richey which is just north of Clearwater Beach and 40 minutes from the Tampa airport (which may be a consideration). The area is fabulous for coastal exploration, access to resources, and comparatively lower slip fees. We also intend to put a Hunter 28 on the market soon. You could visit our home, check out the boat, and go for a sail...what an adventure!

[Scaramanga F25]

Originally Posted by Chotu

Shhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!

Everyone please go to Sanibel. The rest of the islands there are awful and people in Fort Meyers are mean and rude like New York or Paris.

How rude of you.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by sanibel sailor

I would suggest SW Florida- Ft Myers/Port Charlotte. No insult to SE Floridians, but there are few destinations there without going to the Bahamas. Here we have sheltered waters, open Gulf, Charlotte Harbor, undeveloped barrier islands. Not as boat-centric and less sailing here generally, but less expensive, much less crowded, and a better place to learn. There is a more Midwestern flavor vs the Northeast metropolitan flavor of Ft Lauderdale.

+1. I used to live on the Manatee river in the Bradenton area...really enjoyed the W Coast of FL. Extensive cruising ground from Trapon Springs to Key West...then of course the rest of the Keys and the Dry Tortugas. Used to do short deliveries the E coast, much less interesting cruising options.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by Ellevan

Oh that's good to know, thank you. That all sounds more our style. Are there many spots to anchor out around these undeveloped barrier islands? Is there less sailing due to a lack of decent wind in the area?

Plenty of good wind in SW FL (all of FL for that matter)...sometimes more than you want though in the squally summer months or winter cold fronts.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by Ellevan

Wow, already a great response. Thank you all. I'll take a look at some charts of the areas mentioned and also what the online market is like for the boat we'd be looking for.

Let's say we did start on the west but then after months of practice or even the next year decided to head over to the Bahamas. What's the process of getting over to the east coast to a good crossing point? How long would just getting around the southern tip take? Can one cut through Key Largo or do you have to go further around?

Are there many marinas that allow you to live aboard in the areas mentioned or is this commonly discouraged?

What's the weather like October-February? Or maybe I should have started with...When is hurricane season??? Definitely not something I've ever had to worry about up here.

The trip around the tip of FL is how ever long you want it to be, why rush thru the Keys, its a great cruising ground. It could be as short as a few days or as long as a few months.

The Key Largo area is very feasible as a jumping off spot to the Bahamas. From that angle you can even get a favorable push from the Gulf Stream. There is often LOTS of commercial traffic in the Florida Straits.

Weather, winter months can have strong cold fronts. Hurricane season is July-November.

[belizesailor]

Originally Posted by sanibel sailor

Don't forget Jersey. But you're thinking East Coast.
Here we've got all those terrible people from Wisconsin and Minnesota

Yes, its an interesting demographics split. West Coast snowbirds are mostly from the MidWest and East Coast from NY/NJ.

[kmcshane]

Assuming you are planning on living aboard, no car ashore, you could anchor your boat, find a mooring ball for a small fee, or find a marina for a larger fee.
Many mooring balls and most marina docks allow for shower/restroom and washer/dryer facilities. Anchoring can be tricky with Florida's new regulations limiting time on the hook in certain areas. The good news: anchoring is free, although you will need a dinghy (need a dink anyway for The Bahamas).
There are marinas on the East side from Jacksonville to Key West. If you go to the Active Captain website/app, or the Waterway Guide, you will get local info on your options for anchor, mooring and marinas.
Remember that it's not always warm in Florida, so do some homework if you want t-shirts and sandals for six months. That can only predictably be found on a daily basis in South Florida, and I can only speak about the East side.
Of course, you can find nice weather for long stretches further North, but I'm frozen my petunias off in St Augustine while looking at Miami's 80 degrees.
I have friends who have found slips in Titusville, Ft Pierce, Stuart at fairly reasonable rates. Problem is there is not the sailing there that you find in Biscayne Bay, the Gulf side or (of course) The Bahamas.
The East Coast of Florida, imho, is one long beach from Jax to Miami, with small pockets of ICW sailing. Once you sail the Bay and the Keys, you are on an adventure with snorkeling, beautiful anchorages, some amazing wildlife and toes in warm sand. Have fun.

[Scrimshaw4]

Where ever you end up looking for a boat, be absolutely certain that you have the boat surveyed. You can get surveyor references here. You can also start your search through Yacht World and Boat Trader. While Florida is boatcentric, another area on the east coast is the greater Annapolis, MD area. It's also a fantastic spring and fall cruising ground. Just some thoughts.

[Ellevan]

We'd be hoping to get something under 30' for less than 8k, preferably closer to 5k... Would you still suggest paying for a survey? I'm pretty mechanically inclined. I've been a carpenter for 15yrs and I've built a couple of houses including plumbing and wiring. I've also rebuilt an engine. Rigging is an area that I'd be less comfortable inspecting though. Just wondering if $500 a shot is worth it when shopping around for such a small starter boat.

[alctel]

I know you said you want to get away for winter - but if you can get the summer off, there are a ton of cheap boats around BC - and cruising around there in the summer is pretty much hard to beat. So much to see and do and fish and crab etc etc. And then sell the boat at the end of summer.

Also, you'd be in your home country if (when) anything broke, and you could just bounce around from Victoria up to desolation sound (the water this year when I went there on the way up to alaska was 26c so lots of swimming) for the whole summer, be near all kinds of ports/support and still have literally hundreds of places to anchor and explore.

Maybe easier on taking a flyer and heading to a different country to buy a boat unseen, esp with no experience. Also the CAD/USD difference right now is brutal.

Just something to think about! I just sailed down to Mexico this year from BC and it's warm, tropical and everyone is very very friendly. Also there are a ton of cheap boats here as well. Just to put more options in your mind