G'day - on the prowl for the right cat

[RedPhoenix]

Water. Like many on the forum, it's in my blood.

I'm a navy brat - both parents, and have been been working my way up through various watercraft my whole life. Sabots, hobiecats, surf skis, kayaks, single-person-trimarans, tinnies, plate fishing boats.. even though my professional life is driving a desk, just about everything else revolves around water.

Sailing, kayaking, fishing, spearfishing. The Mrs and I live on a small island, and even when we go away on holidays, our destination of choice tends to be other small islands - usually camping. If I can't stare at the water on my morning walk, the day just doesn't start out right. I sleep better when the water is lapping somewhere nearby. The minister for war and finance is the same.

So it should come as no particular surprise, that the next phase involves a bit of cruising. Sometime in the next 4 years or so, we're likely to spot the right second-hand cat, and pounce. No particular hurry - nest isn't empty yet; I can be reasonably patient. Reloading yachthub less than 20 times a day is 'patient', right?

The current options in my sights are a lightwave 38 or a Seawind 1160 (possibly the lite), but they're just the cats that fit the brief & price-range by default - Schionnings, Easys, Leopards, Graingers.. we're reasonably flexible at this point in time, and will evaluate each as they come up on their merits. Coastal cruising, with possibly the occasional short passage east once we have a few miles under our belts.

Figured I'd say G'day. I'm a linux geek and love to tinker, so anticipate a few Pi/OpenCPN posts in the future most likely. I have hundreds and hundreds of hours up on tiny vessels (under 6m) - alpine lakes, miles offshore, long distance trips, etc.. but not a hell of a lot on stuff that's larger, so I suspect there will be a bucketload of reading and a few questions specific to large boat handling and maintenance.