Delivery Skipper costs

[Auspicious]

Originally Posted by Rumrunner439

It would be great to find a cruiser already heading that way. I don't even know where to look to find someone heading towards Grenada.

Which USVI island are you on? Most of the cruisers are on St Thomas or St John.

The ones in my circle of acquaintance are looking to hurricane season and heading North to the US rather than down island. Even the Europeans are coming here. Destinations vary between the Carolinas, Virginia, and Maryland with most heading to somewhere on the Chesapeake. Many are talking about cruising Maine without much hope of it happening.

The upshot is that finding someone headed to Grenada is going to be hard. You'll want to be sure anyone trying to head that way isn't cutting corners. Yours is a good idea but I suspect it won't come to anything.

[Rumrunner439]

Originally Posted by Auspicious

Which USVI island are you on? Most of the cruisers are on St Thomas or St John.

The ones in my circle of acquaintance are looking to hurricane season and heading North to the US rather than down island. Even the Europeans are coming here. Destinations vary between the Carolinas, Virginia, and Maryland with most heading to somewhere on the Chesapeake. Many are talking about cruising Maine without much hope of it happening.

The upshot is that finding someone headed to Grenada is going to be hard. You'll want to be sure anyone trying to head that way isn't cutting corners. Yours is a good idea but I suspect it won't come to anything.

I have not flown down to one of the USVI yet as I am still trying to make some plans and figure out the best way to get the boat. I thought a lot of cruisers headed towards Grenada to get away from the hurricanes. This covid-19 has really messed up any hard plans. I know some cruisers in panama couldn't even leave anchor so I don't even know if it was like that in other places. But if you hear of anyone heading towards Grenada let me know.
Thanks

[Auspicious]

Originally Posted by Rumrunner439

I thought a lot of cruisers headed towards Grenada to get away from the hurricanes. This covid-19 has really messed up any hard plans.

In ordinary times yes many cruisers head to Grenada, T&T, and the ABCs for hurricane season. Some time their cruise to Rio Dulce or the San Blas before taking the Panama Canal to the Pacific on onward from there. These are not ordinary times.

Florida is a bit of a hotspot as are NJ/NY/CT. MA is no great shakes either. ME has extended their state of emergency until 11 June. Florida of course is subject to hurricanes. So for really great cruising grounds that still have ready access to provisions and to services Chesapeake looks pretty good to a lot of cruisers for 2020. Regardless, although there are a lot of moving parts (Federal, state, and local governments, CDC, CBP, USCG, TSA, et al) the US seems a predictable place to go for hurricane season. The attraction of reasonable health services and for access to one's Embassy for those from other countries for possible repatriation I'm expecting to see a lot of cruisers on the Chesapeake this year.

Noonsite is a good place to go for credible overviews and links to detail. Start here https://www.noonsite.com/news/novel-...try-worldwide/ . I and others get a lot of anecdotal information from friends, acquaintances, and contacts. Noonsite, Waterway Guide (for COVID-19 updates in the US), and official sources are the way to go for planning purposes. There is no place for wishful thinking, for rumors, or for gasbags on the Internet (including me *grin*).

I wish Cruisers Forum supported footnotes like Wikipedia does. *grin*

[Montanan]

Originally Posted by Rumrunner439

I have not flown down to one of the USVI yet as I am still trying to make some plans and figure out the best way to get the boat. I thought a lot of cruisers headed towards Grenada to get away from the hurricanes. This covid-19 has really messed up any hard plans. I know some cruisers in panama couldn't even leave anchor so I don't even know if it was like that in other places. But if you hear of anyone heading towards Grenada let me know.
Thanks

Noonsite Grenada update.

https://www.noonsite.com/place/grena...curity-section

If you wish to be able to enter Grenada by vessel for those limited vessels that have bookings in order to be able to put it on the hard or in a marina during hurricane season one needs to register your vessel on the Grenada Lima website.

But it sounds like you have a boat in Grenada which you wish to access to remove from Grenada; the issue being the country is closed except for providing the limited safe harboring of boats that have made plans to shelter their vessels; you may just need to let it stay safely in Grenada until the Covid 19 restrictions blow past.

Good luck and stay healthy. All the best.

Noonsite:

16 May, 2020: **PARTIALLY OPEN**

Marine & Yachting Association of Grenada - MAYAG's proposals for yachts with bookings in marinas and boatyards for hurricane season to be allowed entry into Grenada, have been approved.
All yachts wanting to come into Grenada will receive an email from Grenada Lima asking them to book an arrival date – https://grenadalima.com

DO NOT TURN UP OUTSIDE OF THIS PROCESS.

Yachts will have to follow strict health and security protocols, including a quarantine period of 14 days offshore before being allowed entry into the approved boatyard and marina.
The quarantine anchorage is in St. Georges.

More details at the MAYAG Facebook page.

[Northernguy59]

What if a guy bought boat in Grenada and needed it delivered to the north coast of British Columbia, Canada ?

I would be part of the crew when available. I wouldn't mind breaking it up as needed to accommodate other commitments etc.

[OloteleMtn]

Northernguy, i am curious as to your plans...that is a long way away to buy a boat and sail it home. Is it for the trip, or do you have a specific boat in mind? There seem to be a lot of boats for sale in your area.

[Auspicious]

Originally Posted by Northernguy59

What if a guy bought boat in Grenada and needed it delivered to the north coast of British Columbia, Canada ?

I would be part of the crew when available. I wouldn't mind breaking it up as needed to accommodate other commitments etc.

Your question isn't clear. So first I'll guess a few things. You're the guy and want to buy a boat in Grenada and take it home (?) to BC. Can I infer you're a Canadian citizen?

Travel is hard. For US citizens, we have https://travel.state.gov/content/tra...ory-issue.html . Not a requirement but frankly in my opinion if more people followed guidance we would not be in our current straits. Changing planes and worse layovers risk exposure and logistical issues all before anyone gets to the boat. Provisioning in Grenada.

There are tons of things that surveyors don't look at or just flat miss. You'll have to build in time for getting the boat ready. Local regulation will make that harder as test sails (out and back) may not be acceptable. Most surveyors won't even open access plates if a screwdriver is required. Don't go up the rig. Minimal engine inspection. Electronics are limited to "powers up and appears to function." No firmware rev, no chart dates, no meaningful test of VHF. EPIRB certification and registration. Getting off the dock could take two days or a week, or your skipper might look at what you bought and go home.

Let's not forget prep for Panama Canal. And fees.

Total distance is 11,000 km. The last bit from Panama to BC is a slog. At least two months pushing hard with a full crew IF nothing breaks, no one gets sick or injured, and IF there are no travel restrictions that kick back in.

Since you posted on 'Delivery Skipper costs' I'll assume your underlying question goes to cost. For me it would be $50kUS - about. Could be a bit less if the boat turns out to be a rocket ship and the weather is good. Could be more for a slower boat, adverse weather, or needing stipend and expenses for crew given the pandemic. My arm-waving number (doesn't even rise to the level of an estimate) doesn't include repairs, prep, fuel.

I wouldn't do it.

My respectful suggestion is to get an instructional skipper for the ten to fourteen day trip to Panama, get help bringing crew on for the West Coast bash ("aim for Hawai'i and miss, tack, aim for BC"). If you're lucky and the wait for transit isn't too long your skipper might do the canal with you. Now your costs would be $10kUS or less. If the weather is fair and the pandemic doesn't spit in your eye you could even break up the trip into legs which provides relief for you and makes recruiting crew easier.

Regardless you'll want some kind of long range comms on the boat.

You'll face the risk of buying a boat that is stuck in Grenada, or Panama, or Heaven help you San Diego.

I recommend shopping for a skipper or rough equivalent early who will advise you through the evaluation and purchase process.

[Snore]

Originally Posted by Northernguy59

What if a guy bought boat in Grenada and needed it delivered to the north coast of British Columbia, Canada ?

I would be part of the crew when available. I wouldn't mind breaking it up as needed to accommodate other commitments etc.

Once again, assuming you are looking at a boat in Grenada....

A few thoughts, I would NOT use a local surveyor. Favorite example- Panamanian surveyor gave a clean report on a boat with a hole in the heat exchanger! Better to fly someone in with a good reputation (they are used to doing that) and get a good report. If I bid the delivery, it would include at least 1-2 days for inspection and a day sail for a shakedown.

With all respects Auspicious may have been optimistic. Grenada to Panama should be a fairly easy downwind, down current trip. It will give you a taste of open water sailing. But the Caribbean is not the open ocean. Unless you have significant skills, it would be prudent to get help for the Panama to BC leg. Have people done it? Yes. Have people gotten into trouble? Oh yeah!

Pricing would depend on crew, size of boat and condition of boat- also possible quarantines. Don't know if I would be at $50K, but it wouldn't be cheap. Since we are entering the busy time of hurricane season, it would be prudent to wait it out.

[Auspicious]

I absolutely agree with Snore about flying in a surveyor. Even so, they're going to miss the things I talked about.

I may well have been optimistic. *sigh* Much depends not only on your skill and personality but on your ability to take guidance from crew. If you'd like to schedule a phone call we can get to know each other and give you better advice. I'd invite Snore for a conference call.

To be clear, the Canada-US border closure really takes me out of the game so I'm not competing for your business. I'm happy to help but I'm not going to sit on a boat twiddling my thumbs waiting for the US State Department to rescue me from BC.

[Northernguy59]

Thanks guys for all the thoughtful input. I am possibly interested in a boat down there but I have not been unable to hear back from the seller. I hope they get back to me sooner than later. In the meantime I am looking into what my options are. I am a USA/Canadian citizen. I can't get there to inspect the boat myself because I work and the quarantine will not fit into my current workload, schedule or situation. I would hire a reputable surveyor and get the boat surveyed and go from there. I would have no issues with flying someone there to complete the survey.

My current thinking (which can change rapidly) is that I am not in a hurry to move the boat if I did buy it. I could leave it there until the restrictions ease/lift then go down and get the boat ready to make the trip north. If I did go the delivery skipper route I would definitely get him/her involved early on. I would have to figure out how to do the trip in several legs as briefly mentioned in my original short post. I would not be qualified to skipper the boat all that way.

I hope the OP does not mind the high jack.

Again, thanks for the input.

Dale

[gallatin1988]

FWIW ... I went to Grenada to look at a boat at the beginning of Feb. before the Covid-19 lock downs started. Since then I've been irregular contact with the owner who is refitting his new boat down there. I have since thought very seriously about buying that boat. The best I can think for the moment would be to buy the boat and leave on the hard (where it is now) until next year sometime while realizing there's no guarantee that I'll even be able to get it then.

At the moment I see no reasonable way to the boat the US before the beginning of next year. These island very limited health care systems. It would take very little to overwhelm them.

If you want to buy a boat down there fine. Just don't expect to be able to get it to the US or Canada unless you're willing to basically sail non-stop to your final destination then spend 2 weeks in quarantine at the beginning and end of the trip. Or wait until next year. If even then.

Just my $.02