Live-aboard or Survive-aboard

[bobconnie]

+1 for Capt Phil, Many of the fishing and service boats Ive ran over the last 50 + yrs had a little paint that could have been better ! But there were never any fish guts or scales left on board before we made the dock LOL as ive said before I don't like bright work, I will paint it everytime!! but my boat will Always be clean, and my dogs will never make a mess anywhere but where they should LOL

[Capt Phil]

Thanks for the compliment, bobconnie... pride of ownership has a lot to do with it whether commercial or boating for enjoyment. You have seen and lived both, I'm sure.
Living aboard we always tried to keep out boat bristol but because we cruised regularly even if it was just for an afternoon with friends, we could leave the dock, fully provisioned for a month without planning for weeks in advance. This meant full tanks of water, fuel, propane and frozen or dried foods to live comfortably and healthy all the times so when ever the spirit moved us, we were gone.
A couple of years ago, I ran across an old wooden seineboat I ran for Nelson Brothers Fisheries back in late 50's. It was tied up to the govt dock in Egmont, BC and looked just like I remembered her. She was probably 40 years old when I ran her but someone had obviously bought her under the Canadian Federal govt program to retire the west coast fleet years ago. They had kept her in great shape and it was a delight to recall that part of my life again... probably held together with paint!!
What breaks my heart is to see these pieces of maritime history broken up or left to rot away when someone just moves aboard to live until it sinks under them. Cheers, Capt Phil

[bobconnie]

Ya I know what ya mean!! about 15 yrs ago I saw The Banner In westport, she was as big a mess that it could be!! I almost cried, all the Old storys rolled into my mind about being young a full of you know what and trollin from SF to Alaska for salmon, and tuna !! Ahh those were the Hay Days as they say !! Anyway theres never a reason for my boat to be dirty !! busted maybe LOL but never dirty or not ready to go to sea !!! Hang Capn theres better sail ahead !!!

[impi]

Originally Posted by zeta

I have never lived on a boat, though I have spent weekends and up to a week cruising. I visited Rockport, TX yesterday to do a little boat browsing and it was disappointing to say the least. A good number of livaboards, but most did not seem to be living--just surviving. Most of the vessels were let's just say, less than ship shape. I hope this is not the norm as I plan in the very near future to go cruising full-time. Now I am not a snob by any means as a bed and roof will do me fine; however, it seemed that the life these folks were living would be less than satisfying, at least to me, but who am I to judge?
Questions:
Is it easier/harder or no difference keeping a boat shipshape cruising or locked to the dock?
Seems all the cruising boats I ran across were in very decent shape. I thought it may be only $$$$, but I kept all my boats in great shape with very little funds, but a lot of elbow grease.
So it leads me to believe the "thrill is gone", is this common?

It took me two years to prepare our 'NEW' boat for cruising.

I hate to say it, but I was the 'laughing stock' of 'chair stool sailors' at the club for putting so much effort into our boat at the dock and to the extent that some were betting we would never leave.

One night our boat was still at the dock and the next morning we were gone ... without so much as a good bye or 'so long' (except family and closest friends) ... slipped out into the deep blue silently to live our dream of cruising the world.

Apparently there was huge commotion between the 'chair stool sailors' at the club about this but here we are totally self sufficient for water and power and geared to make maintenance as easy as possible (eg. electric oil sump pumps to suck out oil, Diesel transfer pumps to polish diesel and dispense from cans anywhere on the boat etc. etc).

Maintenance is easy for us whilst cruising only because we set it up before departing. Some we know, departed prior to being ready and have had to spend months in dock yards hauling out boats and having expensive repairs done in foreign environments ... eating into their much needed cash flow.

For sure ... there is a balance between spending time preparing on the dock near home verses repairing and maintaining whilst under way.

That's our opinion for what it's worth ... would do it the same next time around!

[Capt Phil]

+1, impi... you got it right! Capt Phil

[impi]

Originally Posted by Capt Phil

+1, impi... you got it right! Capt Phil

I listened to the 'old salty dogs' ... thanks Cap!

[99CaptainZ]

You can probably tell a lot about a person by how their boat looks. How do I make my boat look nasty in a good way? Just kidding! Is it wrong to want to paint flames on the side? Like on a hot rod? What about bumper stickers? Is that frowned upon? I'm just kidding. I feel that there is a certain responsibility amongst the marine community to keep things looking presentable. Of course things look rough in the midst of remodeling and repairs, but otherwise every boat owner should do their best to keep their boat looking good and more importantly, properly maintained. Prior proper planning prevents poor performance. I doubt I would be in a hurry to get on an old wreck of a boat. I want my boat to be a welcome site. It's about pride, and that is something not evenly distributed amongst people.

[slowshoes]

After reading through the posts, it seems like there’s plenty of looking down your noses and making judgements going on. The boats that are trashed are rightly looked down on, but apparently so are the boats that are in pristine shape (they must never sail) or boats that have owners that just enjoy being aboard, whether to relax or entertain. (again, they never sail). I could care less if someone never sails their boat and frankly, the “ we’re cruisers, we use our boat” mantra gets old. But I do care if a boat gets trashed or, more commonly, is put in the water and simply forgotten about.

The boats that are actually being used by folks, whether for sailing or just simply being aboard enjoying living the waterfront lifestyle, are the boats that are being looked after. I want boat neighbors that aren’t lazy and actually take some pride in their boats. It makes no difference to me if their boat happens to be a Hunter, Catalina, workboat, etc or whether they sail ten times a week, are crossing oceans, or never leave the dock. Just give a **** - don’t be a pig. It’s not hard, and if it gets too hard, do yourself and your neighbors a favor and sell the boat.

[zeehag]

some of those boats the snotty yotty looks down on--those looking a lil rough--MAY JUST WELL BE BEING REFIT AS FOLKS LIVE ON THEM.
judge not lest thee be judged.
remember--your NEW boat WILL look like crap once ye start doing work ---REAL work--not just varnishing and touch ups. underneath all that touch up bs is structure and necessary equipment for existence.
my boat is undergoing structural repairs f great import--as the previous owners failed to do these, at the time, minor repairs--is major now. doesnt matter how many previous owners your boat had--sturcture is more important than brightwork.

so--do not judge souls on the basis of looks--remember to not judge a book by its cover---lol--you guys just FAILED.

[wolfenzee]

It has taken me 5 years to prep my boat for cruising, living on board, doing the stuff myself, PNW winters (long down time) and two consecutive years of cold wet spring/summer/falls (It's almost August and it has only gotten above 70 a couple of times....low 50s at night).

[itdave5]

Originally Posted by rebel heart

My boat can look like a dream or a nightmare depending on what we're doing. Pulling the rig apart to make repairs takes months and leaves things looking like hell, but it's much better than just painting over rot which might "look" better but is a horrible thing to do.

Interestingly enough I finally got to a phase in my boating life (took five years of living aboard and coastal cruising) where I realized that anyone walking past my boat generally has no clue what they the hell they're talking about so regarding their opinion in the slightest is pointless.

If you want to admire the wafer thin hull of a Hunter and look disdainfully on Hans Christian with some peeling varnish, be my guest. You're probably not looking at marks of crevice corrosion on the chain plates so when we're both out there getting the crap kicked out of us, one will have a mast in the air when it's all said and done. I dropped $600 on new stem fittings while you spent it on matching canvas.

In the merchant fleet there's a saying that "working boats aren't pretty boats".

Well said that man!!
someone just recently said that our boat looked more like a fishing boat than a yacht. I told him I was flattered to here it and thanked him very much. He walked away with a slightly confused look on his face.

[zeehag]

wolfenzee--should have done what i am doing and repair along the way----is less painful on the wallet.......

no one will ever confuse my boat for a snotty yott..is a work in progress.

[itdave5]

well said we are in port Gruissan in the south of France, a really nice place, waiting for gearbox spares before heading off for Elba and then on to Corsica ( where Napoleon was born).
wouldn't have it any other way.

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by LadyDeMize

My fiancé and I moved onto our 26' Laguna Windrose to cut loving expenses $750 rent + $200 utilities + $300 food to $221 slip + $47 storage + $150 cell phone + $300 food.
The marina has free shore power....................................

I couldn't let this continue to pass by! I'm all for cutting down those pesky loving expenses!

[wolfenzee]

survive aboard: compromise, not having what you think you do need but don 't and things you do need but are used to getting automatically.
live aboard: you have adjusted your life style and/or boat so you are refreshed at what you really don't need and your subsequent self-sufficiency.