Permarafting

[wildshore]

Okay, this is rather a long setup. Some years ago I published a novel called "The Ganymeade Protocol". In it the protagonists lived aboard a permanent raft of boats in the Caribbean. Imagine my pleasure and surprise when I ran across this (

Sustainable Living at Freedom Cove Float House - YouTube

) a family living on a series of floats developed largely as a small village afloat. Soooooooo, my question is this: Anyone interested in developing a similar setup, perhaps in the Chesapeake, with each vessel contributing a float to the common floating community? just curious

[atoll]

i'd love to and have all the skills,just need the green card,wanna get married?

one i built earlier in the photo

[boatman61]

I can think of nicer year round places than the Chesapeake..

[tropicalescape]

I have seen photos of marinas in Oregon or Washington or somewhere like that and they had so many house type boats rafted together that it looked a lot like your floating village..I agree ,anywhere but the CBbay! Cool idea ...

[The Garbone]

All fun and good til the first Hurricane rolls through.

[bobconnie]

When I was young, and fishing Alaska, and Canada, there were a lot of these setups in a lot of inland bays and inlets. Some from fishing some from logging, some just for living! In fact 15 yrs ago when we were looking for waterfront property to buy, there was a couple of places like this for sale in BC Canada !! We ended up down here but these places were online from a Realtor on Van Island. just sayin

[wildshore]

Gary wrote: All fun and good til the first Hurricane rolls through.
__________________

And one eventually would, Gary, like it would on all of us. When that happens you just pay attention, break the raft, and move the pieces to safer harbor if need be.

[wildshore]

it strikes me that this would have several advantages. Unlike being in a marina, the floats could contain small shops or restaurants, so the raft could be it's own commercial interest. A number of folks moored there would mean that you could go ashore without worrying that your things would be left abandoned and unprotected. You could also, by divvying up responsibilities, develop a float for water recovery, one for power generation, etc etc etc.

Just musing here folks, and Im not at all sure what the legalities of this sort of thing might be (though if all were licensed as vessels it is, after all, just an anchorage), but it seems methinks to have some possibilities.

[Ryan H]

Around here of you anchor more than an hour or two the 'marine police division' comes by to yell at you about town ordinances and then threatens to impound and sell your boat to someone 'worth more'. Happened to me three times last fall in the New England area. I doubt the angry little powers that be would like a permanent raft up idea but you may luck out and find someone in charge with a little less roid rage that what we're stuck with around here.

[delmarrey]

Start your own WaterWorld? Good luck! Most town ships wouldn't allow it, not for very long anyway. It would be best to apply for permits before even attempting such adventure. That way the local cops can't run you off. IAW's Get your foot in the door before it gets slammed in your face.

In my younger years I wanted to build an underwater house but I couldn't find a place with clear enough water that would allow it w/o going out side of the USA.

H2OME undersea residence

[Hudson Force]

Imaginations inspire a more ideal community, but floating villages are common in history. The Aberdeen Village in Hong Kong has been present for about 500 years and Lake Maracaibo in Venezuela has a large population on floating clusters. During the 1800's and the early 1900's there were some notorious and often lawless communities on the Mississippi and there's the remnants of "Stiltsville" (though not floating) south of Key Biscayne in Miami. It seems to me that the ideal sustaining community would be challenged by the need for regulation and the rebellion against regulation and conflict with existing regulation. Besides, I think most cruisers and sailors strive for independance and would rather be out on their own. Actually, I feel a sense of community with the other cruisers I encounter while underway or at anchor without a dsire to raft together with them.

[brazenarticle]

A little floating community sounds like a great idea. According to "The Big Oyster" New York City's waterfront was lined with a floating village of shops, offices and homes up to the 1930's.
There is an experimental greenhouse on barges up the Hudson River too - "live aboard-able" but without residents
Science Barge « Groundwork Hudson Valley Groundwork Hudson Valley
I recall Maryland passed some laws in response to a developer trying to sell float homes near Annapolis, guess we'll have to settle for occasional raft ups till the apocalypse comes.