Contemplating making the switch to sail...

[capta]

As a professional captain who has spent his career on everything from teaching sailing on dinghies to being the master of a small cruise ship (including some years operating SF and dive boats in the Keys), DON'T DO IT!
No longer will you be able to sit behind the helm in a comfortable pilothouse going directly to where you want to go, in air conditioned comfort. That 6 miles to your destination upwind could take you several hours of zigzagging back and forth against the wind and current, in a cockpit mostly unprotected from the elements, on a sailing boat.
On a more serious note, go for it. 100g's is quite enough in today's market, especially if you are shopping in the places where folks find the dream of sailing not to be as expected. Unless you are a primadonna captain, you've got a good handle on the maintenance and repair aspect of boating and that won't be significantly different from what you're used to on the vessels you've been operating.
I wouldn't waste my time on sailing lessons, if I were you. You've got the boat handling thing down, so all you've got to do is get your boat to open water and experiment. A book like Royce's Sailing Illustrated will show you pretty much all you need to know about the sailing bit, right down to heaving to and spinnaker handling and really, it's not rocket science.
Maybe hire a sailing captain for a day to show you a few things you don't understand or are having trouble with after a bit of time.
Good luck and PM me if I can be of any help.

 

[ITMaster]

Boat clubs like Freedom and others, Timeshare Fractional Ownership are some options in addition to charter. Look around where you live and see if there is a sailing club and join it. Also, find out if there are any regularly schedule sailboat racing groups around you and get hooked up with them. Go racing and you learn to sail and really quick. IF, IF, you buy something around there, I would make damn sure it is something small and something with very little draft.

I draw 4' 10" on my boat which is considered a shoal draft rig. I left Key Largo and was crunched for time, so I ran up 5 mile channel and cut through to Arsenic Reef in lieu of taking the extra two days to run all the way down to Key West and then north. Charts cite those waters as being 7 foot mean low. I read anywhere from 0.5 to 0.00 on my depth gauge from about 10 in the morning until about 4 or 5 O'clock that afternoon when I was able to plot a course north bound for a couple miles west of Marco Island.

You don't want to be learning how to sail when you are in those kind of waters since you will have enough going on already to not have to be wondering about running aground. I know also how tricky Hawk Channel is, same thing about depth. Not a lot of water in those parts Captain.

Good luck and fair winds, Tom

 

[homeby5]

Thanks again guys.

As I mentioned. I hung out with two sailing buddies of mine (i had forgot one was a sailing instructor and the other a former sailboat owner) the other night. One really tried to discourage me because in his opinion it's a lot of hard work and something I might not be up to given I had a stroke. My stroke left me with nerve damage to my legs. But the good news is after months (years) of therapy, I feel I can get around ok. Sure...I'm not stable like I used to be and can't jump up, down and off things around a boat but I can still captain a boat. I'm wobbly when the deck is rolling but I can stand as long as I can grab something in tippy seas. I'm pretty stubborn and motivated when it comes to things I "cannot" do anymore.

Anyway, my buddy recommended that I pay $500 and join the sailing club in Key Largo. Then volunteer to go out as an extra crewman when needed and learn the roped from there. It sounded like sage advice that would allow me to see how far I can go with this dream.

 

[Scott T-Bird]

I'm going to suggest reading a few books. Not how-to sailing books, but books that tell stories of experience. Try the entire Quest series of books by David Beaupre and Get Real, Get Gone by Rick Page. The last one will be very specific about the boat you should be looking for. You can heed his advise, or not, but it will give you the rationale for any decision you choose to make in selecting a boat and making necessary preparations. He also suggests that you don't have to start out in the location of your current home. You may choose to relocate to another location to kick-off your adventure. You may want to choose between the Atlantic or the Pacific instead of dreaming about both.
The sailing part of it will be learned easily. Does the $500 include access to multiple boats for your own use? It may be a waste of money if it is just a social club and it leads only to crewing on somebody's boat.

 

[capta]

I'm wobbly when the deck is rolling but I can stand as long as I can grab something in tippy seas. I'm pretty stubborn and motivated when it comes to things I "cannot" do anymore.

I knew a fellow in the VI in the early 80's who had lost his legs in Nam. He decked over the cockpit and customized his boat below so he could get around easily. He proved that legs are overrated on a sailing boat!

 

[Gunni]

Since you will have a crew of one, you need to consider getting her trained up. The quickest way to end this dream is to scare the bejeebus out of her and end up a single-handed sailor with a lonely wife back on the dirt. I am a big proponent of keeping the complicated science of sailing FUN. I have had good luck sending folks to one of the all-inclusive resorts where sail instruction is included. The Bitter End Yacht Club on Virgin Gorda works well, classroom and on the water in the protected North Sound. Get it off-season now and combine learning with excellent hospitality.

 

[MrBill_FLL]

Agree on the valiant 40, but your purchase should be a year away. figure out if you can handle it and want that...

suggestions:
-learn on a small boat, you need the feel of the wind and being overpowered, sunfish, laser, or small ~14' sloop. keylargo sailing club should be able to assist there. also check out the other sailing clubs (coconut grove/biscayne/mami yacth club).
also consider http://www.arcmiami.com/ (rentals).

buying a small 22-25' is not a bad idea either. OTOH the low cabin height might be tough. once you get into a 27-30' range is much more livable. (catalina 27 - catalina 30). then again, bigger boat bigger bills...

I would also suggest you consider a trawler. -probably not that much more money to run, when you consider a sailboats running rigging / standing rigging, and replacement sails. (they add up and not cheap), + the work of sailing vs diesel costs, and relative comfort.... But I'm not sure which trawlers are 'blue water'

 

[homeby5]

You know....a trawler would probably be a good alternative. At least then I wouldn't have to learn much. Also, it would probably be less work for me and the wife. I honestly had no idea that they had the range I need. Again, I would like to reach some far off places in the Atlantic and the Pacific in the course of a year or so and I assume that a trawler under 40' can do that?

 

[MrBill_FLL]

this is a site I've been lurking on for a while....
The real blue water boats (steel) are out of my price range, but island hoppers are under 100k
http://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/

 

[JamesG161]

Sailing friends are easier to find than you think. Cruising friends for more than a few days is bit more difficult. There is where you learn to appreciate sailing.
One of our members @Monty VM has logged more than 25,000 miles in his boat (same year and model as mine).
I asked him the biggest seas he had weathered.... 20 foot
How did she handle, ask I? He, without hesitation... "Great!"
"Will she put the rails in the water?".... NO!
Did you ever fear the standing rigging breaking? .... No!
Did you worry about open water?... my impression... be prepared...

My point...
Go to clubs, marinas, hang out with sailors, watch a regatta, mix with them, buy beers....
Most are friendly ready to tell you of high sea adventures and tips.
Looks at boat after boat, see what they are outfitted with and general aging.

I met a retired couple , mid 70's, that finished 35 years of charting their sailboat.
I asked what was the worst storm you ever encountered and how many?
One...
3 days long of miserable days, since the storm caught them from behind and move on their course. Not much sleep, ate only granola bars, 2 hour watches, since going below was almost impossible.

But that was it... nothing more and they sailed from Bermuda to Aruba and all islands between.

@homeby5 your learning curve is mainly behind you from your history on the water.
Jim...

PS: @capta and @All U Get have lived the dream and many more here. I love their tales.

 

[homeby5]

My concern is that trawlers may be too expensive for what I am planning to do. The fuel alone would be a bunch of money. Aren't sailboats less expensive, compared to a comparative trawler big enough to make a long distance crossing?

 

[Gunni]

The reason motorboaters are so odd is they spend every boating hour being vibrated in a fiberglass tub by a stinkin' diesel. Spending days on passage may send you round the bend!

 

[homeby5]

U got that right. I've owned 2 diesel boats and my wife absolutely hates the smell....
Let me ask...what about sailboats that also can motor if needed? Are these practical for long distance voyages and what are the pros and cons?

 

[Gunni]

Yes, the Schucker motorsailer. I toured one with an Albin owner who had a hankering to dabble in sailing. You might like it, and the price on these old birds are good. Have no idea as to build quality. Likely overbuilt.

 

[jssailem]

I think they can, but I'm jaded.
I bought one a CAL35 Cruiser.
Sounds like your asking about a pilot house sailboat. They come in many flavors, from ones that are trawlers with a sail - to - boats that are sail boats with a pilot house.
Mine is closer to the later. Open Salon (for a sailboat) Large windows (which may be troublesome in a severe storm) and Cockpit steering. Here is what she looked like the day I bought her.

The fixed ports give lots of light and up here in the Pacific NW with fog and overcast, that is an advantage. Not sure it would be as good in the Caribbean. She has a 40HP Perkins and motors at 6.2 knts all day. 1,000 plus miles on 2, 85 gallon diesel tanks. She does equally well at sail in 10knts of breeze.
It is one way to go. Look at Pilot house sail boats.

 

[Gunni]

Didn't know about the Cal35 Cruiser. See it is a variant on the Cal 35

 

[jssailem]

Yes Gunni. Built 1973-1974. 120 recorded to be built. Mine is in a varied state of restoration.

 

[MrBill_FLL]

re: trawlers cost, from what I read, its not that much more $, compared to sail, for island hopping. (and what I read is many cruisers motor a LOT).

(please correct me as needed
I figure a 40' sloop , will need a head and main sail every 5 years, at about $5-7k, (maybe 2 head sails), running rigging say $3k every 5 years, standing rigging every 10ys, @ $10k. running: displacement single screw trawlers average around 2gph @ 7 knts. semi displacement run around 5 gph at 12 knts. up to maybe 15 gph at 18knts.

For island hopping, its probably lot closer in costs then if you want to go to so pacific. a pilot house sailboat or a 'deck salon' sailboat might be best option.

 

[Gunni]

Yes Gunni. Built 1973-1974. 120 recorded to be built. Mine is in a varied state of restoration.

John, that is a sweet looking boat. Like an expanded version of the venerable Albin Vega, a boat that has traveled the earth.

 

[Biobob Catalina 27]

Enjoy whatever you get to “play” with.
You already probably know navigation and basic rules, the only thing it seems you are missing is the actual sailing part.
I am 67 now, and when I was late teens, I had the opportunity to “play” sail in 14’ and 16’ open sail boats at the youth camps. Really wanted to get a boat after that, but God had other plans for me.
Now 45 years later, with having had the opportunity to get a private pilot license, (then ran out of money,) I had the basics of knowing that a sail is just a wing turned vertical. Now it was time to have the boat I wanted forever, and I obtained a Catalina 27 in excellent shape (PO was a maintenance engineer).
I was blessed three ways. The PO sailed me to our new location in reefed down WELL heeled wind that showed me that the boat would take much more than I would likely give it, the friend I met who was a long time sailor let me actually SAIL the boat without trying to “teach” me, and I actually was able to combine reading with past experience to become at least an adequate sailor.
The one comment I will confirm as true, learning in a boat that can actually tip over makes you learn to respond to what the wind and water give you, and when you get into a larger boat, the fact that it would take an awful lot more than I will give the boat to really get into trouble is both comforting and exhilarating.
My wife was at first “scared” of the boat with weather helm or when heeled over, but my friend during a strong wind let go everything, did his “crazy dance”, and let the boat prove that it would take care of itself. Now she enjoys (most of) what I put her through.
Again, follow the above advice in learning and choosing your boat, and enjoy!
Bob