Best Feature(s) for Living / Cruising Aboard?

[MarkJ]

Originally Posted by jackiepitts

Ed,

My daughter will be 18 when we leave to go cruising and I am wondering how many others are out there in her age group or early 20's cruising.
Jackie

None/very few.

I don't want to hijack this thread, so go search for others of start a post as its interesting question

[jackiepitts]

I actually was asking Ed the question I should have sent a private message.
On this subject I think a freezer is a great thing to have on a cruising boat...the bigger the better
Regards,
J

[quidam]

I like to cruise places out of season, or where there are'nt any crowds, and that usually equates to cooler weather. A wood stove is the first thing I make room for.

Just picture; your anchored in a secluded cove, snow is slowly coming down, the smell of wood smoke in the air, and your sitting down below next to the wood stove with a pot of stew simmering on top.............................or your in the islands about to be boarded and you need a place to burn your uh........trash.

[superA]

Originally Posted by quidam

I like to cruise places out of season, or where there are'nt any crowds, and that usually equates to cooler weather. A wood stove is the first thing I make room for.

Just picture; your anchored in a secluded cove, snow is slowly coming down, the smell of wood smoke in the air, and your sitting down below next to the wood stove with a pot of stew simmering on top.............................or your in the islands about to be boarded and you need a place to burn your uh........trash.

I like the way you think man.

[pefjr]

You miss what you don't have, but if you have too much its not cruising. If you like camping out you will love cruising.

[tomdawkins]

You can't have an offshore cruiser with comfort?? it's hard to achieve and might involve deeper pockets. We bought a big old Transpac 49 and put a huge effort into making her the perfect home for our young family we did not have an unlimited budget but the end result was a rugged offshore cruiser with a very comfortable home, even a workshop and classroom for school.
You just need to think through your priorities not everyone else.
Have a look at our boat
http://www.yachtrosy.com

[Sea Wolf]

Wow, good question. We're on our second cruising boat and I'd have to say I agree with the good mattress declarations first. Our berth is somewhere between a double and queen so there's plenty of room. We went with 4" of hard foam and 3" of memory foam on top and are quite happy with it. Second on my list is a decent oven. We now have a 3 burner/oven and it makes life so much easier!

We put solar panels everywhere (we have a big catamaran so there's lots of places to install panels) and a huge bank of batteries, so we have quiet energy. It's great and can run everything, including refrigeration, without our having tie up or run the engines to recharge. Have never run out of energy. Another necessity is lots of good, dry storage space to keep everything neat and orderly. I have a splendide washer/dryer. Certainly can't run it all the time, but that dryer part surely comes in handy when we've been in some nasty wet weather. We put in an IVD built in vacuum, which turned out to be a neat addition. Now I don't have to worry about where to stow a normal vacuum. Although we have AC and heat, we prefer not to use it, but when it gets really hot or really cold, we do.

If I think of anything else, I'll drop back in.

Loree
Aboard SeaWolf

[sneuman]

storage, storage, storage ...

and a boat that won't be compromised for sailing when it's fully loaded.

[Sea Wolf]

Amen to storage, storage, storage. There simply can't be enough storage space for all the things you think you need. And when you've finally gotten everything on board and the waterline has disappeared, go back through the storage areas with a more intelligent eye and off load everything that has to do with your dirt dweller existence. We gave our stuff to the kids to hold onto. And after a year of sailing, go back through your storage areas and get rid of all the moldy stuff that you haven't touched in the year you've been cruising (been there done that). Then you can start filling up your storage areas with the right stuff.

Loree
Aboard SeaWolf

[markpj23]

Add a reliable anchor windlass to the list. Unless of course you enjoy hauling 40 - 60lbs hand-over-hand

Can be manual. The key is that a manual windlass is much easier to use than a broken electric windlass with a winch handle ....

But then again, a working electric windlass is far better than a manual one jumper-wired to the house bank....

[zeehag]

solar panels!!!!! wind genny!!!! honda back up genny!!!! watermaker!!!!(is a drag always trying to haul jugs at 6 gal ea!) comfortable bed that is easy to lift to find any compromise in hull integrity....SHELVES in the cabinetry!!!!!!! drawers also---overhead grab rails..windlass..functional engine and electricity!! lee cloths, propane for cooking.....i will use the weber kettle --small one---doesnnt matter--or a propane bbq, as long as flame doesnt go out with each whisper of breeze.....OVEN, for baking during storm activity,opening ports--and i like boats that are tanks.....like my formosa--or wetsnail----something with the ability to get me to where i wanna go with as little hull flex as possible.....small cockpit for ease in emptying ou twater from being pooped by waves---it will happen--just a matter of time.......

optional: fridge--ice is available even for a price most places.....

[shawnkillam]

Thanks everyone.
We are at Miami strictly sail looking for a boat that exemplifies all these characteristics.
sk

[Martinini]

zeehag's list is perfect Watermaker at top of my list.

[Jim Cate]

Ann Cate here, with a few additions to "zeehag's" excellent list:
1) sea berths that are parallel to the centerline of the boat, for comfort at sea on passages
2) add a forward looking depth sounder: the first time it keeps you off a reef it pays for itself many times over
3) above decks:
a) winches sized appropriately for the least physically powerful person on your anticipated crew [most people can maintain strength as they age, but increasing it is hard work, though not impossible]
b) clear enough side decks to be able to run forward if need be
c) cutter rig with in-line capshrouds, not swept back and runners
[when it's gnarly, it's nice to be able to get rid of the genoa or jib and go to a smaller sail on the inner stay; smaller sails also are easier for the weakest crewmember to handle.]
and a comment: We bought an electric windlass after many years of using a manual one. We saw a lot of back injuries from
hand-over-handing chain and anchors, and honestly, if you're
willing to go back and get it, if your electric windlass fails, you
can slip your anchor and chain, AFTER buoying and labeling it with the boat's name on the float, and come back for it when the weather has changed again [however, we've only to slip our anchor twice that I can think of right now--in over 20 yrs. cruising].

Signed: Ann Cate, s/v Insatiable II, lying Qld., Australia

[zeehag]

exactly---had i mentioned a forestaysail for my ketch??? is most important asimportant as is the cutter's forestaysail.....same reasoning.....