Land lubber with a plan

[Steve Bean]

For learning to sail, I recommend the smallest dinghy you can find. You'll be much more in touch with the wind and water than in something bigger. On a bigger boat you can do a couple of things wrong and still sail along. In a little boat doing those things wrong will have you swimming!

[Tobie.lepine]

Originally Posted by Ann T. Cate

Hi, Tobie,

I, too have a spinal fusion, long time ago, it was done. What I wanted to say to you is that you can expect improvements, slowly, for up to 5 yrs. Nerves sometimes do regenerate and re-route, judging from what happened with my recovery. So, I think it will help long term to continue with prophylactic physiotherapy. Talk to a trainer at a local gym, who has shifted to that from being a physical therapist, they are the most interested in helping you attain and retain strength and flexibility, within your limits.

Next, while you're still fit, start sailing somehow, in a little dinghy, so that you can train your body and mind as to what to expect on the water, something you can keep on a trailer and take to different lakes, keeping the investment small, till you see if you think it all is fun, sailing is a lot of sitting, and your back may not tolerate that, you need to find that out..

You have a grandiose plan, if you're serious about circumnavigating the North American continent, and, you write that you have many of the skills you need already, so the objectives should be attainable, if your interest continues.

If you stick to inland waterways, maybe the trawler would be a better concept for you, you know, you could carry a small sailing/rowing dinghy for a yacht tender, if you wanted. But if you're going to try to do the passage across from Canada to Alaska, you really need a "blue water" capable boat, and that will drive up your costs, so it will be important to find out whether sailing is a viable plan, or if you need a "blue water" motor vessel.

"Life gets in the way of our plans".

Good luck to you,

Ann

Thank-you ann for those kind words.

Alaska as a destination would defeat the purpose of a frost-bitten canadian boy trying to go south. Haha. Agreed that the gulf of Alaska and Bering sea are a different beast. The Northwest passage needs a purposefully designed boat to deal with the ice, cold weather and absolute isolation. I dont think i will ever be lucky enough or rich enough to go that route. But if i really want to visit the arctic, i would choose a C172 and avoid the arctic ocean.

My plan consist of hitting the gulf of mexico through inland first and slowly migrate south hugging the coast down to panama. Maybe cross and touch the pacific or keep going down to Venezuela still hugging the coast.

That is dream draft version 1.0 of my plan.

After 5 years on the boat or when the budget runs out, i would probably sell the boat where it is. That could include locations no further north than Vancouver and no further south than Venezuela/Brazil.

Coast hugging is really part of my plan. I really enjoy the sights and the view of "where the water meets the land". It is always better viewed from the blue side. Seeing blue as far as the eye can see for a week is only a method of getting to "where the water meets the land" and not necessarily my goal as a cruiser.

Opinions about those Albin 27's? That would be plenty of space for me, affordable, economic cruiser, solid platform to customise for extended periods on the Hook. (Watermaker, house bank with inverter, solar power, tiny generator)

I can live in there for years...

And trailer hit back home from vancouver if i need.



Landlubber still dreaming

[Tobie.lepine]

Originally Posted by laika

My take is don't spend more time than you have to planning. You've already got the skills to tackle most onboard systems. That really is the hard part. Get out there and do it, preferably in someone else's boat first.

How would you suggest i do that? I am more than willing to go crew anyone's boat for free and pay my share but most would consider me a liability due to my inexperience and disability.

Originally Posted by laika

Good luck and best wishes. Early 30s here, currently spending half the year aboard and in the process of getting a little bush/seaplane. Awfully lucky to have boats and planes to fart around on at any age, much less as youngens.

Little bush/seaplane sounds interesting! I have built a chinook plus 2 and in the process of building a second one on full lotus floats. They have the payload of your average J3Cub and the full lotus floats are very forgiving. Under canadian rules one is registered basic ultralight the other advanced ultralight.
Although this is not for this forum, the FAA and Transport Canada are quite cooperative when it comes to light aircrafts. There was this Norwegian guy (if my memory serves me well) that had one of those polaris flying boat on his cruiser. The thread discussed about international use of that type of light sport airplane (LSA). With a class C transponder, and proper paperwork, there is no issue for a faa licenced private pilot to fly internationally, the issue is acceptance in foreing countries for non-certified aircrafts.

That said, the sight of my cruiser anchored next to paradise island, seen from 1200ASL in my open air flying dinghy is my biggest fantasy-filled "if i win the lottery" dream

Btw, i have a nice airplane for sale. Total cost to build 34,000$ asking price 16,500$

Will sell the other one on floats for 20,000$ or ill keep it.

(Airplane discussion closed)

Landlubber

Like an airplane in the sky, it is by far better to be on land,dreaming about being at sea, than being at sea, dreaming of being on land.

[laika]

Originally Posted by Tobie.lepine

How would you suggest i do that? I am more than willing to go crew anyone's boat for free and pay my share but most would consider me a liability due to my inexperience and disability.

Going out on the friend's sailboat should be a great first step. You mentioned your balance isn't great and you can't sit for long periods, but you also mentioned you're willing to put up with a fair deal of discomfort. Hard to armchair from where I sit.

Here are some thoughts tho as we seem pretty like-minded..

Biggest lesson I learned personally was that I'd spent too much time planning things out, researching xyz and then spending too much time making sure everything was just so. Once in the islands, I was happy I'd made a lot of the changes, but it took some wind out of the sails at first as I'd gotten into the habit of predicating my own happiness too much on the well-being of the boat. Sh!ts gonna break, there are going to be some serious compromises you have to make, and things are gonna get messy often. I had to learn to not worry about it. It's just a boat.. A means to an end, tho an awesome one for sure.

Good rig/sails, a watermaker, serviceable water tanks, good galley, berths, and good fishing gear (and a reliable engine from time to time)..that's what's become important to us. Also the ability to make friends with locals, especially local fisherman. Local fisherman, at least in the few places I've been so far, can get you whatever your heart desires

Little bush/seaplane sounds interesting! I have built a chinook plus 2 and in the process of building a second one on full lotus floats. They have the payload of your average J3Cub and the full lotus floats are very forgiving. Under canadian rules one is registered basic ultralight the other advanced ultralight.

I bow down to your 2 home-builds!! I'm going in on a little experimental kit plane called the sportsman. It's a four-place with foldable wings that can fit on a trailer and can be swapped out pretty painlessly between a taildragger, a trike and a float. Expensive enough to place me out of the housing market for at least a couple more years

[Tobie.lepine]

If you really want to fly a 4 seater around. I would honestly point you to a certified airplane if you plan international travel. Your mid 70's 172 will cost you less than half for similar capabilities. There are various issues kit manufacturer will not tell you. For example when registered as amateur-built aircraft you still have to have some chores done or certified by a mechanic. One of those is hydraulics. That includes brakes and amphib gear. As amateur built you can go from wheels to floats but from floats back to wheels has to be signed off. You will also need a float rating. A ppl is required if you wish to carry more than 1 passenger or fly outside the US or canada.

A well designed land plane usually makes for a poor float plane despite the usual arguments. If i would mortgage my house to build a floatplane that can carry 4 people and their baggage, I'd look at the murphy moose.

Having spent time building aircrafts, i can tell you that the figures given by any manufacturer as to build times are never realistic ...you can spend 2000 hours building a rag and tube airplane.

Look at kits half built, real aviator, just like real sailors, are a dying breed. Lots of well done work stuck on the hands of a widow, sold for half the kit price.
Btw, winds should be light from the north tomorrow, 5kt. If the ceiling is low enough, ill bring my old girl up for a flight.


Back to boats, still reading up on the albin 27.
Nice boat, can handle 4' chop. Some trawlers are interesting.




Landlubber

[Tobie.lepine]

Originally Posted by tkeithlu

It's not tons. Our very heavy (60,000 pound dry, 44 ft, 15 ft beam) trawler, much bigger than you need, gets two nautical miles to the gallon. I'll leave it for others to tell you what they get with lighter boats and smaller engines. Mine isn't even up to modern efficiency standards - it's a Navy surplus 4-53 Detroit Diesel, weighs 1100 pounds and produces 140 HP. Think about four miles to the gallon, 2 gallons an hour, 7-8 knots, and do the calculation on where you want to go. Remember that you are going to places, not simply sailing into the sunset, and add up the runs. I wish fuel was my biggest boat expense, but $2/ft/night in a marina, $88, costs more than the 60 mile or so run getting there in daylight. Even in my boat that's thirty gallons, and thirty gallons doesn't cost $88 at this moment. And guess what - the motor sailer is motoring part of the time. Wind sounds free, and will get you places without spending on fuel, but it isn't free. I'm sorry if I've offended the hard core sailers in the forum, who have my greatest respect, but Tobie isn't talking about crossing the Pacific.

You are a great inspiration on my research on diesel trawlers. Where can i find your blog? Or at least stories of your diesel adventures? Do you have pictures of your boat?

I guess this whole dream of "larguer les amares" as we would say in french can be real after all.

Ive picked up a spanish translation app. Yet to start using it but i always wanted a spanish immersion to learn it as a 3rd language. Yet another reason to go south.

I can easily spend an hour every day looking at google maps to see the US inland canals and waterways i read about. Yet to dig a single navigation chart. I also look at bays and inlets to duck into and anchor EVERYWHERE in the gulf....

4 days ago i had never heard of the tom-tenn. A diesel trawler comes to mind to really enjoy the waterways. I do appreciate the way man has harnessed water and carved its way trough mainland. I get fascinated by locks and canals carved by man. Panama is obvously a destination of choice for me. I need to go through the locks and catch a bass in gatun lake at least once in my lifetime. My idea of hitting the pacific might be to cross the locks, anchor in a bay a few miles north and cross back a few weeks later.

Still dont know, but as an old wise man once told me; Tobie, it is not about the destination, it's about the journey.


Landlubber still reading/dreaming

Can i just wake up ... 2020 on a boat. Haha