Local Florida cruising what's my next boat?

[Al B]

I am driving myself nuts on my next purchase
Always having some sort of boat ( have a 21 ft walk around cuddy ) fishing boat, that needs engine work

Since Wife & myself are retired we were discussing getting a larger cruiser Spending time together on the water .
Many trips too view boats , driving 100 - 150 plus miles, eating out, sleeping out.
Boat looked nothing like pictures . After close fights, getting angry with myself falling for traps.
We became very untrusting of brokers, & sellers . Sort of put it on hold .
In my local travels stumbled across a 2004 30 ft Regal Commodore cruiser
Boat was in very good shape. Came on a trailer
twin gas engines.
Cabin is beautiful , rose wood appointments, cold air
Becoming boaters , loving marina life , voyages on boat.
Regal is a weekender , not enough room . Aft cabin tight , bathroom tight
Twin gas engines burn fuel that stops the average person from making any voyages.
Regal packed twin engines, generator , so tight into engine room that almost impossible too preform any work
Telling wife would it be nice too load boat, dogs and both of us travel too keys or some romantic place cruising a month or longer .
I have a trailer for Regal .
Too much boat too trailer like a do my smaller boat.
Regal empty is 8000 lbs. You know there will be some water & fuel so lets figure 8500 lbs towing
9.6 beam . I have a older ford gas job 350 but not fun trailering . TOO BIG
Travel on the water is the adventure not loading boat on trailer and travel route 95 and head south too Keys.
SO HERE IS MY QUESTION
I wanted a sail . - Of coarse budget . Nothing higher then 75 thousand .
I am not selling my home living aboard and buying a 200 thousand boat .
I like going home
Regal hopefully will sell for 55 thousand

Another issue is my age I am a very healthy 69 . Wife is not healthy
and can not assist with sails or anything physical
I don't have time left in my life too make mistakes
What boat should I look for ? In Sail
I have spent a week on a Bennetau over 40 footer.
Been on
30 ft Tartan
30 ft Catalina

Also in my thoughts is a Trawler ???
Sport Fisherman has room , many are diesels burn fuel, not designed for long trips
All roads lead back too a sail boat . BUT which MFG ? within budget
Must have comforts of home and similar cabin appointments like the Regal
What mfg should I zero in on
I keep my regal at Cape Canaveral and my plan is too stay in general area.
At my marina is a Hunter 38 I always eye ball when passing by but never saw owner. Boat just sits

Wanting too sell Regal and adding some funds for turn key vessel

So thoughts

That's

[pesarsten]

You should reach out to folks that have trawlers for their input. Reasonable amount of room and comfort items, fairly shallow draft, and pleasantly low fuel consumption. While I love my sailboat, it's definitely more effort to sail than motor, I find it worth the effort but others swear by their trawlers.

Sport fishers will have fuel burn at around 1 gal per mile, that is a heartstopper for me.

[a64pilot]

Second the trawler notion, your background is power, easier to stay with what you know.
Big Sport fisher type I met burned 120 GPH at 26 kts or about 4.5 gallons to the mile.
Now that was way out there on the spectrum, big huge boat that selling your house wouldn't give you the down payment, it is way out there, but illustrates the point.
I think a nice trawler will give you 3 to 4 mpg at around 7 or 8 kts roughly? Maybe better.
Truth is if on a schedule sailboats motor more often than we like.

[HopCar]

Make it easy on your self. Take a look at trawlers. You're at an age when many sailors are making the move to trawlers because they are less physical to operate. Two people can be quite comfortable on a thirty foot trawler. For coastal cruising, a single diesel with a bow thruster, generator and air conditioner for Florida. Put on an anchor windlass that you can work from the helm and it's pretty easy to single hand. Your wife can just enjoy the ride. Trawler Forum

[ParadiseParrot]

There are many nice single engine trawlers that fit your need. Trawlers give good internal volume for living for the money are inexpensive to run and require little physical effort. Frankly the pounding you get on a long trip in a planing boat ruin's the day. 4 foot draft or less will make you the king of the gulf coast , the keys and the east coast ICW. what more could you wish for in a Florida cruiser

[Cadence]

Given your age the wife's health and your intentions, I will chime in with the trawler recommendations. That's a displacement hull not one of those planning hulls mislabeled a trawler.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Al B

I am driving myself nuts on my next purchase
Always having some sort of boat ( have a 21 ft walk around cuddy ) fishing boat, that needs engine work

Since Wife & myself are retired we were discussing getting a larger cruiser Spending time together on the water .
Many trips too view boats , driving 100 - 150 plus miles, eating out, sleeping out.
Boat looked nothing like pictures . After close fights, getting angry with myself falling for traps.
We became very untrusting of brokers, & sellers . Sort of put it on hold .
In my local travels stumbled across a 2004 30 ft Regal Commodore cruiser
Boat was in very good shape. Came on a trailer
twin gas engines.
Cabin is beautiful , rose wood appointments, cold air
Becoming boaters , loving marina life , voyages on boat.
Regal is a weekender , not enough room . Aft cabin tight , bathroom tight
Twin gas engines burn fuel that stops the average person from making any voyages.
Regal packed twin engines, generator , so tight into engine room that almost impossible too preform any work
Telling wife would it be nice too load boat, dogs and both of us travel too keys or some romantic place cruising a month or longer .
I have a trailer for Regal .
Too much boat too trailer like a do my smaller boat.
Regal empty is 8000 lbs. You know there will be some water & fuel so lets figure 8500 lbs towing
9.6 beam . I have a older ford gas job 350 but not fun trailering . TOO BIG
Travel on the water is the adventure not loading boat on trailer and travel route 95 and head south too Keys.
SO HERE IS MY QUESTION
I wanted a sail . - Of coarse budget . Nothing higher then 75 thousand .
I am not selling my home living aboard and buying a 200 thousand boat .
I like going home
Regal hopefully will sell for 55 thousand

Another issue is my age I am a very healthy 69 . Wife is not healthy
and can not assist with sails or anything physical
I don't have time left in my life too make mistakes
What boat should I look for ? In Sail
I have spent a week on a Bennetau over 40 footer.
Been on
30 ft Tartan
30 ft Catalina

Also in my thoughts is a Trawler ???
Sport Fisherman has room , many are diesels burn fuel, not designed for long trips
All roads lead back too a sail boat . BUT which MFG ? within budget
Must have comforts of home and similar cabin appointments like the Regal
What mfg should I zero in on
I keep my regal at Cape Canaveral and my plan is too stay in general area.
At my marina is a Hunter 38 I always eye ball when passing by but never saw owner. Boat just sits

Wanting too sell Regal and adding some funds for turn key vessel

So thoughts

That's

Rereading your post after suggesting a trawler. Possibly a motor sailor would suit your needs. It sounds as though you just want to enjoy the water together,

[jeremiason]

I think the real issue is do you want to go boating, comfortably, with your wife.

If she is having movement problems, purchasing a sailboat will just make it hard for her to get on and off and certainly will be an issue when under way (keeled over). Not to mention that sailboats tend to have stairs into the cabin and hard to access berths.

You can find a nice 30'-36' Trawler in your price range. It will travel at the same speed as the sailboat and with a diesel engine will not break the bank on fuel.

The nice thing with a Trawler is that she will be able to get on and off the boat and move around a lot easier than a Sailboat.

Good luck!

[Boatlegs]

Look at a Rosborough RF-246 - Trailerable Trawler. Simple, easy shallow draft for FL west coast but can cruise Bahamas and more in it. There are several in FL depending on where you are in FL can ask an owner to show you one. I have one and love it! Many owners formerly sailed, including me.

[tkeithlu]

The only things you'll give up by going with a small displacement hull trawler are some range and some seaworthiness. You'll gain space, comfort, a better energy budget (air conditioning!) ease of access for your wife now and yourself in a few years. The cost of travel is not really more. Be sure that it is a diesel. As long as you are coastal - your biggest off-shore being the Carrabelle-Clearwater no ICW run, the limits on seaworthiness (these designs trade seaworthiness for interior space and often windows) are not a problem. You can choose your days/weather to be off shore when it's fun and anchor in shelter or find a marina at night. You don't need the range, or really want it - I doubt that your wife wants to go watch and watch with you overnight.

[Bay Breeze]

Why not charter? Select a boat that would fit y'all's abilities and a destination, then you and the Mrs. could step on board, have fun, and then leave the clean-up and maintenance to someone else. (Buy a skiff for the day use?)

[tomfl]

Not only do I really enjoy sailing but when I am on a motorboat the noise and vibration from the motor gives a headache and the stench of the exhaust makes me nauseous. If I was forced to get a motor boat it would probably be one of the PDQ power cats. A google search will turn up plenty of details.

[Al B]

Cadence hit it .
The need too be on the water .
We use the Regal every week.
We live 65 miles from our home too marina.
When we come we generally sleep aboard few days Our marina is a family business.
In/out customers have the ability too sleep aboard their boats at floating or stationery slips. Customers can stay aboard using electric 8 days a month without additional charges for electric. All part of the features this marina offers.
Marina offers live aboard.
When we sleep aboard we enjoy marina life
When we take boat out we Cruise close , dropping line off shore, most times hanging at marina, talking too folks, eating out then back too boat too sleep .
Nothing finer then coffee on deck early morning on boat.
Our marina is like a small country club with pool , club house, general store
Marina offers in/out in building. Larger boats outdoor yard
They also have in water and live aboard in water
Since Regal has twin IO. we have boat pulled when we want too go home

With all the Regals short comings it has cold air that we sleep with winter blankets in 100 degree heat.
We want too travel , and not break the bank .
All roads lead too trawler.
That's for the input and kind words .