While it's true that it is at least feasible to sail the
route envisaged, the
boat chosen would be happier if it could
motor or even motor-sail
parts of it.
In the post-apocalyptic world you envision, how long ago had the apocalypse occurred?
If it was relatively recently, like less than a year or two, fuels left in
tanks and other vessels might be able to be salvaged. Perhaps a previous 'escapee'
boat ran aground somewhere a bit
remote, broken down but still with full
tanks, that your characters could chance upon and thus acquire sufficent
fuel? Hostile shoreline, hard to access, bucket chain required (of jerry jugs), tide rising makng it trickier.....
With
electric power also being necessary, stripping other wrecked or abandoned
boats of their
solar set-ups might provide the 53' Skookum with some additional
power - for water-making,
electric light, nav systems,
depth sounders etc, but could also be part of the overall plan for eventual resettlement - where lots more electric power might be required.
No doubt you will also have contemplated the notion of 'biofuel' which is certainly possible for a big older-style
diesel engine. Perhaps a cargo of canola
oil is found along the way? Perhaps an abandoned truck in a layby near the harbor? Or an abandoned truck in warehouse, that has a cargo of drums of Canola
oil destined for a feedlot or grocery chain?
Diesels can start on
diesel fuel, then be switched over to run on straight vegetable oil once warm. There needs to be separate tanks for both fuels, and the veggie oil tank needs to have hot-water pipes run through it to keep the veggie oil liquid (especially in northern climes) and hence why the diesel needs to start and warm up before switching over. Potential 'disaster scenario' plot line is the
engine konking out due to the veggie oil fuel gelling and blocking the injectors. Much frantic action to drop
anchor before running aground. More frantic
cleaning of the injectors and switching back to diesel. Cause of gelling fuel could be a hot
water pipe leaking, which doesn't affect the engine as it takes
raw water for
cooling, which goes to the veggie oil tank AFTER
cooling the engine. Side sub-plot of major panic that the
bilge is suddenly also filling with
water - leaking from the heat exchange system in the veggie oil tank.
I mean, if you are going to 'provide' your characters with the fuel they need, why not give them some 'fuel-related disaster' to deal with also..??
While someone else suggested it, I certainly wouldn't want to have to tow a 53' Skookum with a couple of people in a
dinghy..! When James Cook and George
Vancouver needed to haul their old sailing ships, they had whaleboats with 3 or 4 banks of oars, specifically designed for rowing, and multiple
boats on each vessel, so potentially three boats with three banks of oars required to tow a 75-100 foot wooden sailing boat. Any
wind on the nose and it was a no-go.
If you haven't already read John Wyndham's famous post-apocalyptic novel, 'The Day Of The Triffids', it's well worth a read, especially for the scavenging trips and his detailing of what deteriorated over what time frames, as this was VERY well-researched. For example, in the final 'haven' they construct, at first they only need a Land Rover to get into the nearby towns for supplies, but as the roads disintegrate over the years, they end up salvaging a half-track to get around. He also records what supplies were available after certain periods of time. He was still able to find and use bunkers of diesel fuel several years after the apocalypse.