Finally Ready !

[Spinderella95]

Hi all!
We're new to the forum, but hope it will become a second home for cruising information and friends! A little information about us:

Joe is active-duty career Navy, currently stationed in Everett, Wa...where we have decided to make our final home when he retires in 2 years. I am a medical professional and work at a local hospital. We are both originally from the East coast - Joe from Maine, and me from Florida....so we've both been around water and boats all our lives (apart from his obvious job experience ) We went to a convention in Banff, Canada 3 yrs ago, saw the Rocky Mountains for the first time, and knew we needed to move to the opposite coast!! We're both scuba divers, and I actually got as far as beginning instructor training before we ended up leaving Florida in one of our transfers. My undergrad degree is in Marine Biology....needless to say, the pull of the ocean is strong in both of us and we are finally in a position physically, and financially, to get a boat.

I know there are quite a lot of true "sailors" on this forum, so I hope you all won't be too offended that we are looking at 28-32ish (maybe bigger??) foot cruisers. Having been on many boats over the years, I had quite a list of "must haves" as a woman (ie: a HEAD!), especially up here on the Puget Sound where I'm sure a lot of our cruising may end up being in some cold, rainy, but beautiful, weather. Other than that, I am a boating "noob", so I'm doing what I always do...research, research, research....while hoping some opportunities for some actual open water experience comes along.

At this point, we're scouring yachtworld.com, boattrader.com, etc. and trying to learn what's out there in our price range. We've figured out that a very comfortable budget for us will put us in the pre-1995 range, and frankly, I'm fine with that. I think I will enjoy getting a boat that will require at least a little resto and input from us....I want it to feel like "our" boat. We are also into muscle cars....so we're used to pouring money into toys we love, lol.

We're very lucky because we live directly above (on a bluff) the largest public marina on the West coast (so they advertise), and have another large drymoorage marina just minutes away. I sit on my front porch and watch the boats come and go, and can't WAIT until I'm on one of them!

Karyn

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Karyn & Joe.

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by Spinderella95

.............I know there are quite a lot of true "sailors" on this forum, so I hope you all won't be too offended that we are looking at 28-32ish (maybe bigger??) foot cruisers............I think I will enjoy getting a boat that will require at least a little resto and input from us........Karyn

I don't think you find that there is a class distinction of boaters on the Cruisers Forum. Welcome, and we're looking forward to hear of your purchase, restoration and adventures.

[Unicorn Dreams]

Welcome Aboard Cruisers Forum Haryn and Joe

[SkiprJohn]

Aloha and welcome aboard!
Good to have you here and thanks for your service and Karyn's support. Quite a few Navy retireds here on the forum.
You might want to pin down whether you want a traditional older style cruising sailboat or a new modern production one and what price range you'd like. I think up to 35 or 36 is a good choice and there are a lot for sale there in PNW.
Good luck.
kind regards,

[rgscpat]

Welcome! With your background and experiences, you should be able to get a realistic feel of what you'll want much quicker than folks who are new to the sea. Time on the water, with a variety of boats, with a variety of mentors, would be great.