I'm Thinking about it...

[Tropical2019]

So, I am thinking of heading to the east coast of Florida in a couple of years with the wife, when the youngest is done with school, and buying a sailboat and cruising the Bahamas for a year. I am in sales and the wife is a nurse so we can take a break and come back for jobs when we are done with our adventure.



I lived in the Freeport as a kid on a Gulfstar 44 and have never forgotten it. Now, I want to go back again and live that lifestyle. I have not sailed in many a year and plan to take a course in Florida when we find a boat that is right for us and then do a shakedown by running south to the Keys and back up toward Miami or Lauderdale before crossing over to be sure the boat is ready and me as well.



As for things to bring, and yes, I like to plan way ahead, should we drive down and bring things with us for the boat or just bring clothes and buy new items for the boat when we find it? I figure we will get an AirBnB place and spend a month or so looking for the right boat for us.

Have I lost my mind?



Any thoughts or ideas on my " scheme " would be great.



Thanks all,


Ken

[skipmac]

Hi Ken,


Depends on what kind of things you're thinking about. If you have a good set of mechanics hand tools then certainly keep them. Electrical and plumbing also. Power tools, maybe depends again.


Otherwise maybe some kitchen items. If you have a good set of SS cookware and it's somewhat compact (can you stack it together?), plates (some like real plates, others like unbreakable plastic stuff), glasses (ditto), flatware, maybe a blender, toaster (my wife can't live without a toaster), French press for coffee.



Beyond that I can't think of much else.

[Tropical2019]

Thank you for your reply. It will be some time before we can be able to afford an adventure like this. However, I am trying to get some general idea on what I may be facing in " real life " with regards to this. I suppose lots of conversation about needs and wants will be in order. I am new to the thought of doing what my parents did and you folks are very knowledgeable and that is why I decided to post instead of reading.

Thank you again for taking time to reply to someone new here.

Ken

[Stu Jackson]

[QUOTE=Tropical2019;2988775]>>>>>>>>>>>>
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I suppose lots of conversation about needs and wants will be in order.

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Ken,


Welcome.


By saying just that ^^^ you are waaaaay ahead of many! Congratulations.


While you're "waiting" (haha) try finding a couple of good books, like Calder's Cruising Handbook, which discuss all the issues you'll be facing, as well as discussing boats.


You could also do a search here on "tools" and "galley" and read for quite some time.


Happy planning, good luck.

[Nicholson58]

I think you may be optimistic regarding one month to find it. It’s likely to take a bit longer. This decision should not be on a schedule any more than a sail plan.

[Tropical2019]

Hello, everyone! I am going to look for the Cruising Handbook by Calder. Yes, a month could be luck. I have read articles about folks almost giving up from being tired of looking at boats or getting multiple surveys done.


I posted in another area as well and mentioned about a 1000.00 a month budget and I gave everyone a good laugh with that amount of money! Is it reasonable to find a boat that is ready to go for 55k or less that I 38-40 feet? I now think that 2000 a month is our target for expenses and fun and have another 10k set aside for emergencies. Is this realistic for cruising the Bahamas and maybe head down to the turks or bvi? Then we will come back to Florida to sell the boat and head back to NY and go back to work with, hopefully, fond memories and an intact marriage!


I read through all of these forums on this site on a regular basis as well as using google to sift through for ideas and good old youtube. All of your feedback is really appreciated on here as a direct line to experienced sailors living the lifestyle I hope to be able to live in the near future.


Cheers!