Very green

[lmgaddis]

Hello! We live in Idaho and are lucky enough to not have work mid Nov to the end of Feb. We are currently looking at boats with a dream of keeping it in Mexico and sailing all winter. We also realize we have a lot to learn. We have sailed small boats in the past. Any insight is appreciated. Thank you all. Matt and Lisa

[rls8r]

Welcome Matt & Lisa -

Can you please tell us a little more about yourselves? What sort of boat are you looking for? What type of sailing do you anticipate doing? What are your skill levels in handling boats, navigation, etc.? What is your ideal of a "small boat"? How large a boat do you think that the two of you can handle - or will there be more than the two of you? What do you plan to do with the boat in the non-winter months? Are you looking to purchase a boat, share a boat, charter a boat? Have you ever spent more than a day or two on a boat? Do you plan to leave Mexico, and if so - are you familiar with checking into and out of countries? Are you looking for tips directly from us (like places to go, anchorages, marinas, etc.) - or to references and sailing guides? Things like that ... give us a hint.

You may also want to consider coming up with a list of topics or things for which you'd like insights - and then creating separate posts - one for each of those topics - in order for us to focus our insight-giving.

[Not a spy]

Originally Posted by lmgaddis

Hello! We live in Idaho and are lucky enough to not have work mid Nov to the end of Feb. We are currently looking at boats with a dream of keeping it in Mexico and sailing all winter. We also realize we have a lot to learn. We have sailed small boats in the past. Any insight is appreciated. Thank you all. Matt and Lisa

Cruising Maya just put their Alberg up for sale which is in Mexico. Super nice boat: www.cruisingmaya.com/general-5

It might be a little early in your journey to buy a boat but check it out. They have a great youtube channel with their adventures in the PNW, Alaska, and the trip down the coast.

[Fortytwo]

Read the books from the sailor Nigel Calder then read the books from Lin and Larry Pardey… Then you can get into the Dave Gerr an Brion Toss and… etc… there are more authors, but read the ones that are recommended buy people that are sailors with experience. Then watch the YouTube channels of people either sailing a boat similar to what you would like to buy or people that are sailing in the environment/area you intend on sailing… and take YouTube with a grain of salt... it is YouTube… Then take some ASA classes. Information is king and a more informed choice will work better.

[dlj]

Originally Posted by lmgaddis

Hello! We live in Idaho and are lucky enough to not have work mid Nov to the end of Feb. We are currently looking at boats with a dream of keeping it in Mexico and sailing all winter. We also realize we have a lot to learn. We have sailed small boats in the past. Any insight is appreciated. Thank you all. Matt and Lisa

The Sea of Cortez is quite nice to have a boat and sail during those months. You sign Matt and Lisa, is it just for the two of you? Lots of other questions asked already would help a lot if answered.

So you will have about 3 and a half months so I am assuming you will want to stay on the boat for that time period. I would look for the smallest boat you both could feel comfortable staying on for that length of time. No one can answer what that size is except for you. With additional.input from you we could give more direction.


I'm a proponent of getting the smallest boat possible that you can be comfortable in. They are easier to handle, easier to learn with, and are less expensive to buy and maintain.

With more input from you, more output from here....

dj

[lmgaddis]

Thank you all for the warm welcome! rls8r had some great questions I'd like to try and answer. Firstly, a little bit about us and our background. We are both 49 years old. My husband has been a commercial pilot and has been for about 22 years. I am a stay at home wife. My husband, Matt, has a background in engineering and is quite handy. I am quite handy as well. In my spare time I enjoy fabricating and welding in our home shop. We commute to our job location in the summer where we stay in a camper through the week so we are used to tight quarters. We have had a dream of sailing for about 25 years now. We did own an 18' Hobie Cat for several years. In recent years, as we see this dream realistically becoming a reality; we spend our time reading books and watching many youtube channels. The other day I worked on tying different knots and learning the applications of each. We are a driven couple. We are a healthy couple. We enjoy most days, not every day, weight lifting.

We are looking for a mono haul cruiser, turn-key, 40-45 foot to be comfortable. Our dream boat is an Island Packet. We love the older boats because they are heavier and better built. Ideally, a 25,000 lb or heavier. Maybe a Beneteau? To tick all the boxes: must have a sugar scoop, as we like to freedive and spearfish. Generator. Solar. Water maker. 2 heads, 2 cabins. Center console, as we will have a dog with us. We would like to avoid a loan. We have found boats in the $130k range that is doable. We would like to dry dock it when not in use. We have airplanes so we understand maintenance and expense.

Sailing on this boat would just be my husband and I and one dog. We would like the space for family or friends to come and visit. We would like to keep the boat in the Sea of Cortez and stay in the Sea of Cortez anchoring from cove to cove till we become comfortable. We have frequented the Baja for many years and it has become our happy place. Since we do live in Idaho and sailing clubs aren't an option; we are looking at buying a boat and hiring an instructor.

Thank you Fortytwo for list of books. We will add those to our list of books to read.

I appreciate any feedback. This is just an intro for now. If I have any questions or anything I will post under the appropriate topic.

Thanks again, Matt and Lisa

[Adelie]

Welcome to CruisersForum!

I would suggest updating your profile with your general location and your boat make & model or “Looking” in the "Boat" category. This info shows up under your UserName in every post in the web view. Many questions are boat and/or location dependent and having these tidbits under your UserName saves answering those questions repeatedly. If you need help setting up your profile then click on this link: https://www.cruisersforum.com/forums...ml#post3308797

I would happily help more if the link above is not enough.

[fxykty]

Do a Google search for ‘commuter sailing’ - there’s a number of communities of part-time cruisers. Here’s one: https://commutercruiser.com/