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climbski2
Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
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Topic Author's Reply - Nov 24, 2015 - 06:33pm PT
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I certainly did not wish to insult sailing. When I was talking about speed it was not for excitement or because I think it's "cool" or whatever. I just simply want to reduce my exposure to big unsheltered waters to as short a duration as possible in such a small craft.
Gotta admit those West Wight Potters that were mentioned a while back look like a really good budget way to explore the Bahamas. I would have to buy a truck and lots of gas to transport it to Florida after learning how to use it here. None of the knowledge needed to determine if I would be buying a good used one and what I would need for it if not perfect.. and again..no sailing experience and that is a pretty small sailboat. I suppose most of that is excuse though.. except budget unfortunately.
Sadly for now I'll have to make an Inflatable work. I have a lot of days in whitewater and other freshwater on rafts and inflatables. Owned a few so I know what to look for in used craft of these types. I have very limited experience in the ocean however so I will do a lot of putting around over here on the west coast between Sacramento and then the Bay or Coast. Get myself and it dialed before driving it over to Florida packed on the roof of my car.
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Here is another fast trimaran you might like. Has managed 50+kt? over shorter distances I think it said.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Here is an example of what could happen if I tried to drive a sailboat. I'm guessing you might have seen something like this a few times in those decades of sailing you've done Guido.. I don't want to be "that guy"
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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climbski2
Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
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Topic Author's Reply - May 25, 2017 - 08:56pm PT
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Bit of an update. Major changes in my life.
Ended up just doing several weeks sea kayak camping around Puerto Rico's various islands. Fantastic time.
The Idea of using a Motorized Inflatable was much more expensive to do right than I expected the more I started to put it together. The reality was that it got near the price range of sailboats and a decent Cruising sailboat is a far superior experience than camping off a dinghy. Other issues are a lack of decent downlow camping spots in the Carribean. The place is often crowded.
Still...I did get a fair bit of Caribbean camping in and learned a lot. Had some incredible times in amazing places.
A comfortable camp in the tropics is tricky..bugs are like Alaska. Rats are like marmots and camp squirrels..might chew a hole in your Kayak. Wind is your friend ..
Also got a day of sailing, helping out on a 37' Beneteau. Took a lot of the mystery away and I realized it was something I certainly could do.
Long story short in a couple weeks I move to south Florida to purchase a decent older cruising sailboat and spend some time fixing it up before heading down to the Caribbean ...and then..we will see.
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climbski2
Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
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Topic Author's Reply - May 25, 2017 - 09:21pm PT
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An inflatable Innova. It fit as a carryon for the flight over.
Not any fishing..Except I did get to try a shot at spearfishing. Bumped into a cool guy who let me take a shot while I was out snorkeling one day. Wished I had my weightbelt but I still got a little one.. they seem bigger until you get them in hand lol.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
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Q- Ball
Mountain climber
but to scared to climb them anymore
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May 26, 2017 - 07:11am PT
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Glad you had a fun time! I have run 18 foot skiffs many times from Fort Lauderdale to the East end of Grand Bahama. You just have to hope the weather holds or it is a wet and bumpy ride. And yes it was for fishing not running drugs!
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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May 26, 2017 - 07:29am PT
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Done some ocean kayakin myself. :)
Wish I had pics of us dealing with 16' waves off Vancouver Island.
Woulda been kinda hard takin' pics though. ;-)
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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May 26, 2017 - 07:47am PT
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^^^^ NOICE! You look so relaxed! HaHaHa! You been hangin' with Cosmic? :-)
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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May 26, 2017 - 08:33am PT
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Swells? I'm talkin' about breaking waves 250 metres off a sheer rock face. As we punched through the breaking crests our boats were airborne! WOOT!
(another-it's-better-to-be-lucky-story)
You should read In The Wake Of The Jomon by Jon Turk. There's a story in there that makes mine look a cake walk!
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climbski2
Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
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Topic Author's Reply - May 26, 2017 - 04:52pm PT
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Sounds pretty gnarly Reiley.. BTW way earlier in this thread there is a picture of an Albin Vega 27 you owned. Seem to be pretty popular single handed cruisers. I Have a long list of candidate boat models that albin is on there of course...hoping to find something at a bargain price but in good cruising shape once I get to Florida.. seems like the right place to find what I am looking for. Hurricane season might help.
I don't have any gnarley stories from the Tropics and I'm planning to keep it that way..
Sure is beautiful though and I can't seem to get enough of that underwater world.
I have been told by quite a few folks that there are no truly healthy reefs left in the world. Certainly the stuff my father (whom you have met Tad!) enjoyed 50 years ago is nothing like it was.. But I think I have found some stuff that is still fairly good. It does not seem likely that they will survive much longer.. so now is the time to see them and get as much documentation as possible.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Found an awesome rocky creek with hundreds of waterfalls in the rainforest.
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climbski2
Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 12, 2017 - 02:22pm PT
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Well I pulled the trigger today. Purchased a 1978 Morgan Out Island 33. S/V Attitude
She is a tank and fully functional. Has an aftermarket very nice tall rig.
Hoping to have her in Culebra Puerto Rico by New Years.
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JimT
climber
Munich
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Aug 15, 2017 - 10:49am PT
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Brave man, thatīll keep you poor! I cruised and lived aboard a 38 footer in the Med and Black Sea for 7 years before I moved to Germany.
Nowadys itīs a bit of canoeing and the occasional coastal trip, we (my brother, one of my sons and myself) are just back from 2 weeks on the north coast of France coastal trekking with my 16ft boat.
camping up on islands and unsucessfully fishing
Kinda rocky and the tides are a real problem running up to 9 knots and a height of 8m or so.
Itīs either like this
or like this depending on the time of day
and plenty of stuff to run into
and some neat looking bouldering
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micronut
Trad climber
Fresno/Clovis, ca
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Aug 15, 2017 - 12:30pm PT
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Dude nice work! Congrats on the first part of the dream coming together. Now go get er wet and report back!
Scott
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Reilly
Mountain climber
The Other Monrovia- CA
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Aug 15, 2017 - 01:51pm PT
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Good choice! Morgans are nice and pretty fast for a cruiser IIRC.
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climbski2
Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 15, 2017 - 08:17pm PT
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Jim..awesome! Looks like some good times. Poor..well that's nothing new.
Reilly..Depends on the Morgan. In this case mine has a reputation for being a bit fat and slow. But tough! roomy comfortable. She is expedition style (guided) vs alpine style. Not my perfect Ideal sailboat..but then again that boat does not and probably cannot exist.
Besides I have 1 whole day of sailing experience and ...holy sh#t.. wtf am I doing... :) fun massive learning curve.. on a side note it's hurricane season. potential tactical calculus .. and I still have not driven her out of the marina.
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G_Gnome
Trad climber
Cali
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Aug 16, 2017 - 08:32am PT
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Actually a J 120 is just about the perfect boat. But they don't fit in most peoples budgets.
If you need sailing lessons let me know and I'll come down for a week as soon as hurricane season ends. I race a Santa Cruz 37 all the time. I get to be the one up on the pointy end.
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climbski2
Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 16, 2017 - 07:05pm PT
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G Gnome ty for the offer might take you up on it. Heading out for a sail tomorrow with the former owner. I'm more scared of the marina than I am the open ocean.(assuming good weather anyway) Gotta learn to drive. and need to buy some flares for cg compliance.
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G_Gnome
Trad climber
Cali
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Aug 17, 2017 - 09:05am PT
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Best advice I can offer is: Once you start to feel confident that you can always get sails up and down and tack and gybe, start going out in bigger and bigger weather. Always avoid being upwind of things and being pushed into them. Also, if you see 25 or 30 knots coming toward you where you could sail downwind home when it hits, get out there before it does and learn to go downhill well. Bring a friend if it gets nasty and never be reluctant to turn the motor on to get out of nasty situations.
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climbski2
Mountain climber
Anchorage AK, Reno NV
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 19, 2017 - 02:38pm PT
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Thanks gnome. Right now I think of my boat as a trawler with sails. sacrilege to some and eventually I'll become more pure as I build my sailing skilz.
Last Thursday
Took her out for the first time. Had the previous owner along to give me tips getting out of the Marina. Really good guy. So my first unexpected experience is some idiot lobster hunting in the channel along the houses on the way out.. I'm putting along as slow as i can wondering if he is ever going to notice me. Guy has his diving float/flag too.. I'm thinking to myself.. how the f*#k do I maintain 300 foot distance in a maybe 50 foot wide channel. cant reverse.. prop walk is f-ing nutz.. Does a diving flag really legally shut down a marina? Wishing I had bought that airhorn this morning when I replaced my out of date flares. ..so I whistled as hard as I could.. dude finally noticed and ducked under some boat. ..
Other fun.,. I started the engine before I found the water circulation through hull. Figured I would just see if I had it figured out with the electrical system switches...then shut them off withing a few seconds.. no harm.... uhm...damn engine wouldn't shut of when I turned the key or hit various switches...... I'm starting to freak after a minute... no secondary outside water circulation circuit. finally I found the fuel cutoff pull. gdamn old diesels...!!!! scared the living sh#t out of me like I have rarely been scared..thought I was going to burn up my engine...
fun stuff
other things learned.. propwalk is your friend..it's like having a stern thruster in one direction.
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Hubbard
climber
San Diego
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Aug 19, 2017 - 03:40pm PT
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An inflatable like a Zodiac mark 2 is a fine idea. Two motors is good. Have a rudimentary mast for slow sailing if all else fails.
Keep yourself tied to the boat with rope. Rig the boat so you can escape the sun. Bring lots of fresh water in several containers. Don't put it all in one big container, same for your petrol.
Fishing gear, a compass, binoculars, a mirror, first aid kit, tools and spare parts to work on the motor, an anchor, a wet-suit, a good hat and food and you are good to go for a leg and see what happens.
Loading the boat is an art. Inflatables can be punctured but they won't sink. chafing is a common cause of puncture. Bring a repair kit.
I was lucky to spend a lot of time as a kid on this setup. No cell phone, no GPS. We would motor to offshore Islands ten to fifteen miles out and always managed to survive somehow. There were a few epics of course, like the time...
Just rolled this thread a little slower and see you have a boat choice already made. The inflatable is still a good idea as a backup on board.
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