I'm tired of this BULLSH*T New England weather...

[Tom Monroe]

hey texastom ...

A few more years in the midwest and I'm off for somewhere ... so, you've triggered a couple of questions.How much of a pain is it to live and own a boat in the Houston area when hurricane whatsit comes through?What kind of cruising do you have going north and south along the coast from there, and what's the water quality? And, I guess, how's the sailing? Is it pretty shoal and kicking up short-period steep-faced waves?Is 4 1/2 ft two much draft?How crowded is the sailing?How pricy are the marinas?And anything else you care to add that I'm too naive to ask. Thanks !!!!!Tom MonroeCarlyle Lake(which is too *^&%^ small)

 

[LeeC - Hunter 240]

I love NC

I have always lived in NC, so I'm obviously biased. My first 34 years I lived in Raleigh, the next 12 in Greensboro, and the last 16 in Morehead City. Eastern NC is a great place to live. The climate is moderate compared to New England and/or Florida -- not so hot (have you been to Florida in July or August), and not so cold (we have snow occaisionally, but it doesn't hang around forever). Employment opportunities however are not great. Oriental is a great sailing community, but it is truly a small community in a rural area. New Bern is larger. Both are reasonably close to Marine Corp Air Station Cherry Point. If you can get on there, you would do well. Also, Kerr Lake is not too far away, and if you like snow skiing, its available at the other end of the state most of the winter. Good luck with you decision.

 

[jmcclain]

Houston Sailing is Great!

Hey Tom,We like to keep the secret about Houston/Clear Lake but I suppose that we have room for one or two more folks. Clear Lake on Galveston Bay is a great sailing community. This is the second largest fleet of sailing craft in the country, second only to San Diego. Lots of great marinas and lots of slips of all kinds to choose from. A 40' slip will run from $180 to $300 a month, plus electricity. Good protection from storms. Never a problem finding a slip and most are rented on month to month basis.Too much to tell you about here. Contact me at jmcclain@southshorelabs.com if you would like to know more.

 

[higgs]

The weather could be your fault

I think it pretty obvious God is punishing the US for putting GW in for another 4 years. Why else would Florida, who was the pivotal state the first time, get hit with 4 hurricanes in one summer? Prepare yourself for a few more years of lousy sailing weather. I sure am glad I don't live in Ohio.

 

[Rick Webb]

Florida Was BLESSED BY the Storms

It drove yankees back home and detered more from coming. Hope we get six storms this year.

 

[Uwe]

NE enough

In 25 years in VT i have never had shit weather like this so late in the year.I finaly got the boat in last Saturday sunny but 20knot winds. Since then RAIN RAIN more RAIN. I think I want my refund from the marina and just park it in my back yard. It will float eventualy. Anyone interested in some soggy NE land.

 

[Gregg18047]

Blessed by the storms, huh?

Wonder if those who lost boats, homes, and more look at it like that. Too bad you weren't blessed by those storms from 1861-1865. War's over, Rick.

 

[Bill18593]

NE weather?

I saw a report last night on the Weather Channel. Looked pretty nice along the coast. Wind 30 - 40 and gusting, seas running around 14 - 18, some snow in the air... It is May afterall. So what's to complain about. Here around St. Louis its terrible. Too much sun, temps in the 70s, wind 10 - 15. Been this way for weeks with no break. Just can't stand it anymore.I won't even bring up baseball. Its just too depressing a season in St. Louis. But I guess you live with what you get.

 

[Rick Webb]

We Are Losing More Than Houses and Things

We are losing our "Home" and a way of life. Too much of it is due to these developers greed. We actually welcome people who want to come down here and be a part of our way of life, it is all those who want to come down here to change and profit from what is truly heaven on earth. WE know anything built by man is temporary in the short and long term sense. It can be destroyed and washed away by wind and rain. It has nothing to do with the War of Northern Agression, that is a differntcritter altogether.

 

[Dan McGuire]

Typical Dems

higgsJust like the dems (no cap is intentional) to take one fact and try to stretch it into something significant. If you will take a look, most of the midwest, who voted for Bush have good weather. The Northeast, who voted for that other guy, have bad weather.

 

[Phil Herring]

Weather, guys. Weather.

nm

 

[Rick Webb]

Oh, and If You Don't Like My; Our Attitude...

Don't move down here and we'll both be happy

 

[Scott]

5 minutes is almost up!

Paul Akers promised it would change in 5 minutes ... I think he said that on Tuesday. Tomorrow is supposed to be sunny and warm! Finally! At least one advantage of being inland is that we've been sailing this spring while the coast has been getting closed out.Rick, did you know that the high point in Florida is lower in elevation than the high point of every other state? Even tiny Delaware has a bigger hill than Florida. Don't worry, I'll move to Florida when they open their first ski resort - snow ski that is. I'll qualify that ... it has to be an outdoor ski resort. You never know what a developer can do indoors with air conditioning.

 

[Carl Dupre]

Let's Think About This......

Yeah, this spring has really sucked. But it's not like this every year; well, at least not THIS bad! And there are a lot of other aspects to weather; how about counting hurricane hits. I would wager that NC's hurricane hit statistics are quite a bit higher than NE's. And then there are destinations. Block Island, Cuttyhunk, Hadley Harbor, Martha's Vineyard, Nantucket, P'town, the East end of Long Island, and the unending coast of Maine. Where are you going to go in NC?In NE the season is a bit shorter, and spring can suck (like this year), but the sailing we think is still unbeatable.Yeah, I guess we are die-hard New Englander's!Carl and Jule Dupres/v Syzygy

 

[David]

From the Horse's Mouth

Since most folks don't want to respond to the original question, I'll throw in my two cents as a native North Carolinian. I've kept my boat in Oriental for four years - mostly day sailing. The weather is good enough to sail year-round if you don't mind bundling up a little. It rarely snows in Oriental (or New Bern), but when it does, it's usually gone the next day. The water on the Neuse River can be choppy, and some folks don't like that, but it's whatever you're used to. Oriental is right on the ICW, so there is lots of transient traffic up and down, especially spring and fall. New Bern is farther up the river, so there are probably fewer sailors there. As for deep draft, you could have problems in some areas. I have never run aground here (knock on wood), but I draw only 4'2". You just have to be careful, and gain local knowledge. There are lots of good places to sail to, but it's a good half-day's sail to the big water - farther from New Bern (add about 3 hours). Slips are readily available, and there are more being built. I pay about $3K per year, including electricity and water.As for employment: Probably not much in Oriental, New Bern has a better chance. I live in the Raleigh area, and there's probably ample opportunity there. Downside is it's a 2.5 hour drive to Oriental.Weather is anybody's guess. It gets pretty hot in the Summer, and the wind can be very light. Hurricanes can be troublesome, but Oriental has lots of protected creeks to hole up in. Not sure about New Bern.Good luck with your decision.

 

[texastom]

Response to Tom Monroe

Hey Tom,Looks Jon answered some of your questions. Here's the deal, if you are looking for pristine blue water, beautiful gunkholing, nice ports in quaint little villages you're out of luck. Our water is ususally brown, the landscape is flat, Galeveston is about as quaint as you get. BUT the winds are usually good, 4.5' of draft is fine, nice fun loving crowd(we like beer, BQ and seafood), lots of day sailors, cruisers and racers, plenty of room to sail, professional sports teams (although we're not talking about the Astros)and yes we have hockey when they play and best of all it all happens year round. It is a different mind set down here. I moved here 25 years ago from N.C. and have no desire to go back. We like Midwesterns because they know how to have a good time so pack your bags.

 

[Rick Webb]

Scott, Your Right it is Britton Hill in Lakewood

345' making it the lowest highest peak in the U. S. . It is not far from where we live.BTW I may be one of the folks reading this who has been to Lake Hopatcong.

 

[Scott]

It's a swirly wind lake

I know that you've mentioned your trips to Picatinny Arsenal, nearby. Let me know next time you come this way. We're right in the center of the "Highlands" region, as recently established by the State of New Jersey to eliminate virtually all new construction, for the protection of drinking water.Last Sunday , I had to laugh, the fleet of HO Scows rounded the upwind mark, flew their chutes for the downwind run, and before getting half way to the mark, had to set sails for a close haul. I've heard that visitors hate that home field advantage that the LHYC enjoys when the winds start swirling.

 

[Rick A]

Weather

"Everyone complains about the weather but no one does anything about it" Mark Twain