Boating Tips Archives

June 20, 2017October 10, 2017

Getting to Know Our Boat Part 2

Getting to know our boat, Kokomo – Part 2

Last Sunday was cloudy and damp in Seattle, but we still wanted to spend the day on the boat and do some housework. Better to do that on a cloudy day and enjoy it on a sunny day we figured. We left Mac at home, so we could move about easier and get things done.

When we arrived, we noticed we had another new yacht visiting. This time it was the S/V Georgia from George Town. This photo doesn’t do it justice. We found out from our neighbor that it is 159′ long and now is a charter vessel. The mast could be seen from miles away!

Time for Chores

Scott and I had different chores – he replaced all of the spark plugs and I cleaned the interior carpets. I also brought our Dyson Vacuum Cleaner from home, which made a huge difference both inside the cabin and in the cockpit. Something about walking around 17 year old carpet that someone else walked around, was creeping me out. At least I feel better now! We ended up ordering a vinyl anti-fatigue mat for the galley too, to help make it better and we also bought a portable vacuum cleaner to keep on the boat – too much dog hair! LOL

Working on the engines was a tight fit, but Scott did a great job! And he only broke one spark plug while changing out all 16 plugs.

Next on the list, was (doing something with the dingy motor)….as you can see, I’m not sure what he was doing. LOL I can’t say he was mounting it, as it was already mounted….but it had something to do with drilling a hole thru the bracket and putting in a screw. Unfortunately his drill bit wore out.

We have yet to put the dingy down and take it for a run – but we promise to do that this weekend!

Next on the list – the anchor chain

Now we need to figure out how long our anchor chain is and spray paint it in 20′ lengths. I was a bit freaked out running the electric winch as it was so noisy. I kept going down to the cabin to see how much was left. In the end, we had almost 240′ of chain and looking at the chain, it appears the previous owner rarely used it. We also noticed that our winch is missing the manual handle, should it break down, so that’s on the “buy list”.

Scott fired up the engines and our Furuno radar – we’ve been told to do that every time we go onboard. Especially the radar as it can get “stuck”. After a few hours work, we called it a day. Walking down the dock, we ran into this fella, a Blue Heron.

If I saw him outside my stern entrance it would have scared me to death. He was so stealth like.

Scott & I are staying on the boat this upcoming weekend and entertaining friends each day. Our goal is to take it out on our own and also with friends. Time to jump out of the nest I guess! We still don’t have a slip neighbor, so who knows, we may get it all to ourselves this summer. Stay tuned! #KokomoSeattle

June 4, 2017October 10, 2017

Getting To Know Our New Boat

Getting to know our Bayliner boat, Kokomo

Getting to know our new boat, Kokomo

It’s been two full weeks now that we have owned the boat and we headed back to Elliott Bay Marina to spend Saturday and Saturday night on it. We wanted to utilize this time to figure out all the ins and outs of the boat and also take my brother in law out on the sound with us for tips and practice.

The first thing Scott and Kurt did, was open up the engine hatch and check everything out on our two Mercruiser 250HP 5.7ltr engines. We had just had the oil changed this week by Monkey Fist Marine in the marina and all looked great there. They said it really needed it badly. Remember, the previous owner hadn’t ran the boat in almost two years!

Kurt wanted to look at the spark plugs and instantly that one cracked. So off I went to West Marine to get a bunch of spark plugs and some other stuff, including self-repair tape for the “just in case” incidents. They replaced a few that they had removed and Scott will do the rest of them when in a few weeks.

Off to Blake Island

Then we headed out to the sound, so Kurt could listen to the engines and make sure everything sounded great. To be honest, I got freaked out last weekend when the engines would make different sounds as we moved across the sound, so I wanted Kurt (who used to be a Chief Engineer for the Ferries) to listen to them.

As we pulled out of Elliott Bay, a bizarre wave came at us – it was absolutely HUGE and we took a 6′ nose dive. There were no ferries, no freighters and no cruise ships. It was unexplainable! Let’s say it freaked all of us out. Kurt wanted to head to Blake Island across the sound. It was a bit choppy with NNW at 8 mph, but he wasn’t worried at all.

About 1/4 of the way of the trip, we were going full throttle when we heard and felt a huge “thug”! What the hell was that?!! Yep, we hit a log and thank God, it was not a big one. We were all okay, but now I was a bit white knuckled between the white caps and the log. The key to the trip, was we were finding out that the “sounds” we were hearing was that there was cavitation (see below) in the engines as we were going up and over the waves.

Soon, we planed the boat and found the perfect RPM and we made it to Blake Island State Park in about 40 minutes.

They have 30 minute docks and overnight moorage. We pulled up to the 30 minute dock and walked around a little bit. We checked out Tillicum Village and then we had lunch on the boat. Of course, I had to get my photo with my Cougar flag (I do this in every new city).

Soon, the park ranger came knocking on our door – we had stayed too long. By now the winds had shifted slightly and as we returned back, we had to close up all of the cockpit, as we were getting sprayed everywhere.

What is Cavitation?

The aeration (bubbling) and boiling effect of water caused by creation of a low pressure area. Generally caused by a solid shape (propeller blade) passing through the water, in such a position and speed, that a low pressure area is formed due to the inability to move through the water in nonresistant manner. An example is, a propeller blade that has a rough edge would not cut efficiently through the water, thus creating a low pressure area. If the pressure drops below the vapor pressure, a cavitation bubble will form in that region. These bubbles will collapse when they reach the higher pressure region of the blade. This causes a rapid change in pressure and can result in physical erosion. You may notice burns (erosion) at some area on the face of the blade.

We finally got back to the marina!

By the time we got back to Elliott Bay, the winds were fairly strong from the north, at about 12 mph. We headed to the fuel dock and twice, the winds pushed us off of the dock. The staff at the fuel dock was super helpful and on the third approach we nailed it. It didn’t help that a 70′ yacht was sharing the same fuel dock! LOL

I’m always a bit nervous doing the “S Turn” back to our slip between 3 yachts, especially in the wind, but Scott did an amazing job. We still don’t have a slip mate yet on our starboard side and so we have a bit of “room” when docking. This time, the northerly winds pushed us right into our side of the dock and he did great! We wouldn’t have even hit them if they were there. LOL Mac was happy the ride was over too. It was a bit too bumpy for him! As you can see by the photo of the cabin – things went flying! Lesson learned – secure everything!

We then spent the next two hours cleaning all of the salt water off of the boat! It was a mess! We couldn’t see a thing out of any of the windows!

Relaxing after a fun day

The best thing we love about boating, is relaxing after a fun day, in the sun with gorgeous surroundings! This weekend, we had a new yacht neighbor join us “Invader”. It is one of the largest yachts in North America at 164′ and it is owned by a media mogul.

Super Yacht, Invader

Scott & I ended the day grilling steaks on our new Magma Gas Grill – it works perfect for us! We just made a simple blue cheese salad to pair with it. Mac surely was tuckered out too.

Another thing we learned about the boat this weekend, is how fast we go thru water. I was prepping dinner, when I heard the water pump – we were nearly bone dry! We have an antibacterial hose, Teknor Apex Zero-G Hose that we use to fill the water tanks directly from our dock.

After dinner, we strolled to the west end of the marina to take in the sunset – Elliott Bay Marina really is a beautiful place.

Unfortunately, for the month of June we won’t get to spend much time on the boat, as we have trips or commitments. We will try and squeeze in a night towards the end of the month – but will definitely use it a lot in July and August. Until then……..

#KokomoSeattle

June 2, 2017April 5, 2018

Memorial Day Weekend – Our Official Weekend on the Boat

Our official first weekend on our boat, Kokomo!

Memorial day weekend was our first full weekend on the boat. Scott and I certainly lucked out getting the boat before Memorial Day weekend and then spending the entire holiday at the marina (Elliott Bay Marina). The weather was warm and sunny – 85 degrees, which is hot for Seattle.

We headed to the marina after work on Friday and surprisingly, got there within 45 minutes. Probably because everyone else was leaving Seattle, while we were coming in. We had two huge carts to load up and as we got to the boat, we met our neighbor Doug (who owns the 75′ yacht at the end of our dock) and his 13 yo yellow lab Zoe. The yacht is his first boat – his fiancé, Jules, is a long time boater and each of them can dock their yacht by themselves. Needless to say, we are still nervous when we leave and enter the marina as we round the corner of their yacht!

Friday, we washed down the boat, inside and out. It’s amazing how dirty a boat can get, even sitting at the marina. We finally finished around 7:30p and we could relax, eat dinner and enjoy the views! The views are so gorgeous, that it’s impossible not to take photos one after another.

Even Mac finally relaxed on Friday with his woobie. It’s a very long walk from the parking lot to our dock, so for this 14 yo boy, it’s exhausting.

Keeping busy at the marina

Saturday morning, we headed to Wild Salmon Market at Fisherman’s Terminal to get fresh fish, shrimp and crab. It’s a 5 minute drive and we love how close we are to really fresh fish!

Later, my sister Susan and her husband Kurt came down to help us learn how to dock the boat. We don’t have a slip neighbor yet, so that made it easier. We left the entrance of the marina and practiced coming in and out and me jumping onto the dock. Then we went to the fuel dock to pump out the holding tank – it was much easier than I expected. The gross part is it was pretty full and we hardly have used it. Yuck. After about an hour of this, we had enough (LOL) and it was time to go to lunch! The view of Mount Rainier is gorgeous from the restaurant.

Scott and I finished the afternoon cleaning more of the boat, then showering at the marina (they have really nice facilities at Elliott Bay) and prepping for dinner. We were having our neighbors, Dave & Kathy and Scott’s brother Jeff and his wife Michele down for dinner. Finally, we were entertaining guests on OUR boat after a 5 year dream. We bought a Magma Gas Grill and it worked great! We did have to buy a mounting bracket that expands in the fishing pole hole (not sure if that’s what it’s called).

Entertaining on the water in Seattle

Once again the views were picture perfect for our guests! Seattle is such a gorgeous city, especially during the summer.

Unfortunately, soon after these photos were taken the toilet got clogged by toilet paper and was unusable. That called the night short and everyone went home. Since it is a 1/4 mile walk to the marina facilities, Scott and I used a bucket for the rest of the night. LOL That’s what we did when we went fishing as kids, so it was no big deal to me. But the question was, can it be unclogged? We tried a weird plunger we found on board – no luck. So first thing on Sunday morning, Scott got the idea to take off the hose that connects to the head and see if the clog was there. Sure enough it was. There is a baffle at the end of that hose to prevent anything from coming back into the pipe and it is ridiculously narrow. He pulled out all of the toilet paper out and Voila! it works. Our first fix (of many to come I’m sure).

NEW RULE: Nothing goes in the toilet except pee.

Originally, Dave and Kathy were going to stay the night on the boat and go out boating with us on Sunday afternoon. They came back down Sunday morning and off we went on our first boating outing with guests. (Scary!!!) As we headed out of Elliott Bay, the Olympic Mountains were right in front of us and beautiful! We went north to Shilshole Marina in Ballard and then west over towards Bainbridge Island. Surprisingly, the sound was very calm.

From there, we went south and then over to West Seattle and Alki Beach. I was driving the boat then when I spotted about 5 fins in the water. Everyone thought I was crazy until they saw them too. They came and went, but since they were small we think they were porpoises.

After about an hour and half on the sound, it was time to head back to Elliott Bay Marina. We had a nice lunch with Dave and Kathy. After they left, we decided to go thru all of the storage lockers and also look at the engine. I should have taken a photo of all of the cleaning supplies the previous owner had on the boat. I ended up taking most of them home, but he must have had over 20 bottles! We also dug thru the locker on the swim platform and found an extra anchor, 3 lines, 2 gas cans, more cleaning supplies and other stuff. One thing we did find was an outdoor shower with hot and cold water! Who knew?

We walked over to G Dock to get ice and that’s where some of the largest yachts are moored. It is amazing HOW CLOSE they are to each other!!

We did have a very scary moment with Mac. As he was getting on the boat from the deck, he fell in the water and he was almost crushed between the boat and the dock! We quickly got him out and on board, but needless to say we were all shaken up! He does have a life jacket, but it was almost 90 degrees and he wasn’t wearing it since he had just walked down to the park for potty. Just another reminder to be very very careful when getting on board.

Later in the afternoon an Azimut 116′ yacht “Sin or Swim” pulled up and docked parallel to the dock sideways!

Sunday night was a great night for us to relax, barbecue burgers on the grill and just take in all of the scenery. It’s really why we have chosen to be boaters and enjoy this lifestyle.

Memorial Day

Our good friends Nick and Michelle who have gone on this journey with us from the beginning, came down Monday morning for a quick trip around Elliott Bay. Unfortunately it was cold and cloudy, which was a bit of a damper. We knew the sun was coming out, just later. It was great to have them go out with us to help us practice more. Right now, I’m not comfortable going out on our own, especially if we do end up with a slip neighbor. I can’t be in two places at once and it’s more important that I be able to jump on the dock to tie us up. But having another person on the bow to help push us off should we go towards another boat, is important too.

We ended the day with lunch at Maggie Bluffs, with a bloody mary and a good time with good friends! Oh, and more cleaning of course!

Scott and I are heading back down to the boat this Saturday to practice with Kurt and Susan again. We’ll stay just one night. Unfortunately our schedules in June don’t allow us much time on the boat, but we are wide open in July and August, so we are looking forward to many fun days. #KokomoSeattle

May 25, 2017January 10, 2018

We are Finally Boat Owners!

We have bought our first boat!

We have finally bought our first boat. After my last post, we put an offer on a 31′ Bayliner Ciera 2000 cabin cruiser in the beginning of April. I owned one before and Bayliner boats are very prominent here in the northwest. We had looked at many boats, but we kept coming back to this one.

The boat was located in the Des Moines Yacht Club on the hard and was in mint condition. The owner kept heaters in the cabin, cockpit and engine room. He didn’t accept our initial offer, but we settled half way in between. Now the fun begins as we try to schedule the survey and mechanical inspection. The challenge here was both the weather windows and the seller’s schedule, as he travels every week.

Survey

Finally, we scheduled the survey with Terry Larson of Northwest Marine Surveyors and sea trials for the second week of May! Yes, a whole month after our offer. This was one of the frustrating things about this process, as we were at the mercy of the owner. Even our broker, Eddie from NW Yachts said this was one of the more difficult deals in regards to scheduling he had dealt with. The boat was surveyed on the hard for a few hours, then the seller put it in the water so we could go to sea trials that same day. We went out on the sound with the seller, surveyor and our broker.

Sea trials went great. It was a fairly windy day and I as you can see by the photo, there were lots of boats lined up on the dock. When we returned I started asking the seller what all came with the boat, so we could prepare and purchase anything needed. First I asked about the life jackets. He had them, but they were up in the shed at the house. (??!!) I was just out on the sound, are you kidding me? He had no distress kit, no first aid kit and the fire extinguishers were from 2000, the year the boat was built!

The survey only found some minor issues, that were not major nor deal breakers. We then scheduled the mechanical inspection for a few days later. The seller had upgraded almost everything on the boat, including the engines, the cooling systems, the electronics – in fact, he went a bit overboard our broker said. Even the electronic winch and davit system for the dingy he put in was a huge investment and a bit overkill for the boat. But we’ll take it. Now we needed to schedule the closing….not as easy as you would think.

Boating Supplies

I wanted to be prepared for when we finally took possession. Knowing that he was leaving only the bare necessities on the boat, we went shopping. First to Fishery Supplies in Seattle to buy all of our boating items: PFD’s (we bought two inflatable ones for us), distress kit, first aid kit, boat cleaner, rags and much more. Then we went to get stuff for the galley: dishes, glasses, utensils, etc. I also stocked our toiletries. The idea is that we want to be able go down to the boat and enjoy it without having to pack anything (besides clothes and food).

Back to the boat – the seller hardly used it in two years. We are going to drop it in saltwater for the summer and I wanted it cleaned, buffed and waxed. The seller refused to do that, so we paid someone to come out while it was on the hard and take care of it. We finally went to closing on May 17th. It was a bit surreal to be finally signing the papers! When you buy a boat, it is much like buying a house. You sign at a title company and the funds go into escrow.

We signed with VanNess Vessel Title on Wednesday the 17th and we wanted to take possession on Saturday, May 20th. If we didn’t, the seller was going to be out of town starting on Monday, May 22nd for two weeks! The catch for us was, the seller wanted the funds in his account before he would hand over the keys, but he couldn’t sign until Friday the 19th. In the end, it all worked out!! Thank God.

Taking possession of the boat – finally!

Our broker Eddie moved the boat to a guest slip at the Des Moines Marina and we met him on Friday evening.

While we were so excited, we were also extremely anxious and nervous. Remember, I hadn’t operated a boat in 18 years and Scott has never. And this is a twin engine boat, which can be easier or harder depending on your experience. Eddie spent about 45 minutes with us on the boat and took Scott to the fuel dock. I wish I had thought of taking video of all of this, but my phone was on the boat and I was on the dock. During that time, he showed him how to dock it (who can learn in 5 minutes?) and then he backed it up into the slip. From there we drove both of our cars to Elliott Bay Marina in Seattle, so we could leave my car there (so we had a way to get home after we got to the marina) and also load up our dock box with some supplies. (It was a long night!!)

The trip from Des Moines to Seattle

Needless to say, we couldn’t wait to get up the next day and have the fun begin!! Our good friend Randy, drove us and Mac to the Des Moines Marina, where we loaded all of our gear and got things put away. After about an hour, the winds really picked up and we knew we had to get going. My sister Susan and brother in law, Kurt were meeting us at our dock at Elliott Bay, so we could throw them the lines in case we needed help docking. The trip would take about an hour. I had no problem pushing the boat off the dock as the winds were coming from the north and all I had to do was untie the lines and we were off. And we were nervous as hell.

The trip was easy and fun. It was a gorgeous day, in fact, fighter jets from Whidbey Is were doing maneuvers over head. When approached downtown Seattle the views were stunning and we were glad we were mooring in Seattle, at least for the summer. Elliott Bay Marina is on the northwest side of Elliott Bay.

Scott and I had picked out our slip a month earlier. We had walked the docks and picked one that (at the time had no neighbors) and was close to the entrance. We picked M95.

Arriving to Elliott Bay – Uh ho!

As we entered the marina, we soon realized that we were not on the west side of M dock, which was right in front of us. We figured, we would simply pull into the marina and head down our dock lane. But not so. Turns out we were on the other side of the M dock which required Scott to turn a sharp right and then a sharp left to dock. The catch is we had to maneuver between two huge yachts and it was very windy. The image below doesn’t do it justice, as it has two small boats inside, but when we went through, there were two 65′ yachts on both sides.

Luckily, we made it just fine, but our hearts were racing like mad. We wanted to dock this boat and get off (LOL). So I threw Kurt the lines from about 10′ away and told him to pull us in. We were ready to relax, have a beer and enjoy some sun!

Sleeping the first night on the boat

Even Mac did very well. He had troubles at first getting on and off, but soon that was a piece of cake. He wasn’t to sure of going down the stairs to the cabin, but food finally encouraged him. We slept that night on the boat peacefully and woke up to a gorgeous morning.

That morning, we explored the marina. We knew it had two restaurants and then we found the fuel dock and marina store. The store is much bigger than we expected. They even have a great wine selection!

We are staying the entire Memorial Day weekend on the boat, Friday – Monday. My sister and her husband are coming down on Saturday morning to spend a few hours with us. He will help us practice docking, entering the marina and other maneuvers so we can be comfortable using it on our own. The weather is forecasted to be warm and sunny, so it should be a fantastic weekend. This is what we have been waiting for all these years! #KokomoSeattle

January 30, 2017November 7, 2017

It’s a New Year with a Plan…..Finally!

Boat Buying Plan!

We finally have a boat buying plan! As we mentioned in our last blog after our trip to Annapolis in October, our boat plans changed slightly. We basically have always had two plans that we put together years ago:

Live on a catamaran and sail the Caribbean and Pacific when we retire. That plan is still on!
In order to save money, sell our home, our belongings and live on a boat in the PNW – that is now on hold.

We put the liveaboard idea on hold and have decided to make sure that both of us are comfortable spending lots of time on the water together. I have boating experience, but Scott does not. So we have decided to buy a weekend cabin cruiser this spring.

Okay, so now we have somewhat of a plan and off to the Seattle Boat Show we went this weekend. Buying a boat, is very much (in a weird way) like having kids and planning for it. For example, you need to have a spot to moor the boat, even before you buy one. It’s not like buying a house. There are certain steps you have to take, but we are still not sure of the order.

Boat Buying Process

Budget / Loan- well, we have a budget in mind, but if we decide to finance part of the boat, then it’s the bank that will determine what they will lend based on the age and make of the boat. Typically, lenders don’t “pre-approve” you, but instead, you find a boat and then go get the loan. (Odd.)
Moorage – you have to find a marina to store your boat once you buy it. We checked with 5 different marinas at the show and all but 2 of them had a wait list. Luckily, one marina said they would take care of us with no issues and to concentrate on finding the boat, rather the marina. That’s a nice option. Ideally, we want to be in Everett as it is closer to our family’s place on Camano Island. But they have an 8 month wait.
Boat – basically we are looking at two different styles, depending on what we think we will enjoy the most. We’ll look at the two styles later in this blog.
Training. It’s been over 17 years since I owned a boat and Scott has no experience. With that said, we can’t just go buy a boat and start driving it! We met with both the US Coast Guard and the US Power Squadrons yesterday. The USCG will do a training safety seminar in one day, for about $30/pp. But that doesn’t show you how to maneuver your boat, dock it, learn currents/wind, etc. USPS will do a very detailed training, along with a hands on training prior to buying your boat. This will be the route we take.
Timing – of course we want to be on the water come June 1st…..prime boating season. This means there will be no deals on boats and mooring will be at a premium. We’d like to do it sooner, but it won’t make sense based on our upcoming schedule.

What kind of boat?

So back to the boat. For the past six years we have traveled to boat shows all over including Miami and Annapolis. We have been set on a path looking for a liveaboard, which is not a weekend cabin cruiser. Talk about changing things up! The two styles we are looking at are:

Older Motoryacht 32′-38′ (1990-1999). Here we have a few options to consider. There are plenty of Bayliner MY out there (and yes, the Bayliner haters are going to make comments) and the fact remains that we won’t be crossing any oceans in this vessel and for the money you get a lot of boat that’s comfortable. Carver is another boat we are considering. The nice thing about the motoryacht style, is the salon is cozy and perfect for our dreary weather. It is also upstairs, so you can enjoy the view versus being down below at the water level. We plan on boating even when it’s not nice out. Our plan is to spend as many weekends we can on the boat, even if it’s in the marina, to get a feel for liveaboard life. The boat below is a 1997 Carver 320 Voyager.

The one thing to consider with a boat like this, is there is not a lot of space to sit on the stern for entertainment. There is up on the fly bridge….but you have to haul your “stuff” up there, like your glass of wine, cheese and crackers. 😉

“Weekenders” – these boats are great for enjoying with groups of people and spending most of your time outdoors. The downstairs cabin is simply for sleeping and cooking. These are not necessarily less expensive than a motoryacht. We looked at a 38′ SeaRay and it was over $100k! Below is a 1997 Sea Ray 330 Sundancer.

Lots of outdoor seating for everyone!

As you can see, we have to make a decision as to what type of boat will work best for us. Then go out and find it over the next four months! In the meantime, we’ll get our training done so we are ready!

I will be sure to share with you our step by step process in making this all work, so that other new boaters have a good resource.

Stay tuned……as the next blog, we could be new boat owners! Cheers, Scott & Ally

October 19, 2016October 10, 2017

Annapolis Boat Show & What’s Next?

Annapolis Power Boat Show 2016

Scott and I spent most of the summer looking at different marinas looking for those that take liveaboards. Just about all of them had 1-2 year waiting lists, with the exception of a couple. But that can change at any moment.

All of our friends and family keep asking us if we really want to live on a boat? Well, let’s go back to where this all started. It was about six years ago when we were at the Seattle Boat Show and we fell in love with the Lagoon Catamaran (since then, we have found others we love more). But we came up with the grand idea, of retiring on a catamaran in the Caribbean and sailing around the world. Why not? We don’t have kids, we don’t want a big mortgage and what a better way to retire?

Then came the next two questions. How can we afford a catamaran and what if we don’t like it? I grew up on boats and in my 30’s had a nice cruiser. However, Scott has not spent any long term time on a vessel. I then started reading lots of sailing books, including my first book A Sail of Two Idiots: 100+ Lessons and Laughs from a Non-Sailor Who Quit the Rat Race, Took the Helm, and Sailed to a New Life in the Caribbean , a story about a couple in Arizona that sell their home and buy a catamaran in Florida (sight unseen) with NO SAILING experience at all. If you like to read, this is a must read for sure!

What a great idea! We could sell our house now (instead of 10 years from now), use the money to buy an old power boat in Seattle to live on and cut our living expenses by two thirds. So began the journey of selling our business, selling our extra stuff and planning on the sale of our home. That was until this year, 2016 when we found out marinas are hard to find. Then we wondered……Do you sell your dream home for a boat and marina you don’t have yet? The other issue is we don’t want to give up any of our proceeds for a real estate agent, as we want to use as much of the house equity to buy a boat.

As we sat on our deck this summer enjoying the sunset and cocktails, we came up with another (crazy) idea. We knew our next door neighbor would soon be putting their house on the market, so what if we put a sign out next to it that said “For Sale By Owner”? Well, that day came and sure enough, Scott put the sign out (just two weeks ago). Now what? Sure enough, realtors started calling us every hour and we told them, bring us a buyer and we’ll talk.

Just as all of this happened, we headed out the door to the US Power Boat Show in Annapolis. We had been to the US Sailing Show there three years ago, so we were looking forward to another fun visit. Our purpose was twofold. Look for types of boats we could live on and also tour the history of Annapolis. We lucked out with beautiful weather! This show is different than others. They have live music, bars on every corner, many floating docks and seminars.

This show ended up being a bit different than we had hoped for. It has lots of runabouts and weekenders. Then it had lots of mega yachts…..not much in between. With that said, we did fall in love with three boats (if we won the lottery!).

A Trawler?

First up was a 49′ trawler from North Pacific Yachts. Here’s the funny thing…..we don’t like trawlers, but we liked this one!!!

How about a Yacht now?

So onto the next yacht, this one was the 58′ Prestige 550 Flybridge….Gorgeous!!

A Power Cat!

Lastly, we fell in love with a power catamaran! The 44′ Aquila (say Tequila….with an “A”). While it was only 44′ it felt larger and roomier than the 60′ power cat we went on from Horizon.

The inside galley, opens up to the outside with this awesome bar.

Lots of storage space in the guest stateroom

Realistically, these boats are just a lottery dream purchase! We did take a water taxi to some used boats that might fit our goals. The journey was fun too!

A salesman had recommended we look at Vikings (not convertibles) for a liveaboard. We haven’t seen many of them in the Seattle area, but luckily there was one at the used dock we could preview. This was was a Viking 44′ 1988 for $130,000. Honestly, this is a great liveaboard – too bad it’s in MD, not Seattle.

This boat was very roomy and updated for a 1988!

The galley was surprisingly big! Even the sink is regular size!

The master stateroom had plenty of storage and features of a standard bedroom. The closet was big enough to hang a ball gown!

The master head had tons of counter space! And more storage space in the spare stateroom.

We did look at a Carver, but we didn’t like the smell of it. LOL. We were in Annapolis for four full days and only did the show for two. They had great booths and vendor tents, including wine/beer tastings.

A tour of Annapolis History

Then we spent the other two days, exploring this very old city. Most of the founders arrived in the late 1600’s and early 1700’s. Main street and the side streets still have the same cobblestone roads and homes. We toured William Paca’s house, who was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. We also toured the Naval Academy and the Maryland State House. If you haven’t toured Annapolis, I highly recommend it for the history lesson.

What’s next for Scott & Ally?

During our trip, we talked at length about where our plan is going. Are we comfortable giving up all of our belongings, our home and the comforts of a home simply to see if we like living on a boat and saving money? What if our home appreciates more and more over the next ten years….would we be better off in the long term keeping it? Then came another idea! What if we buy a used “weekender” boat that we can enjoy with our golden retriever Mac in the Puget Sound and see how Scott enjoys spending the weekends on it? While it may not save us money on a monthly basis short term, it could save us a lot long term. So now begins the hunt for a smaller, used “weekender”. Funny how we got here. 😉

Stay tuned for the January boat show……I’m sure there will be lots to look at then! Cheers,

Scott and Ally

Save

September 15, 2016October 19, 2017

Can you look at boats for sale just as you do cars?

Boat Shopping

Is boat shopping the same as car shopping? When we need a new car, we typically go to the dealer and check out cars that are on their lots. Often, we will test drive a few to get a feel for the car. Most people are just “window shopping” when looking at cars, to figure out what they want to buy. But can you do that with a boat? We wondered the same thing. While most boat brokers don’t have lots, they do have listings of boats. However, those boats can be located anywhere, including other states.

We figured, why not contact a few brokers about boats we would like to see and find out, if they would show it to us. The first one we checked out was a very old boat located at Fisherman’s Terminal in Ballard. It was huge, about 68 feet and while it had some new renovations, it also needed some major TLC. That broker was happy to meet us and show us around.

It was listed for $99,000 and it had a huge laundry room, big salon, decent galley and lots of storage. Unfortunately, they had ripped out the ceiling in the master stateroom looking for a leak (did they find it?) and had let the front state rooms and head go….literally. It was a major fixer upper. But anyone that wanted to give it some time and money, would end up with a gorgeous vessel. I wish I would have taken photos of the inside, to show you what it was like.

Boat shopping a few weeks later…..

A few weeks later, we decided to hang out down at Lake Union and there were a few boats that were listed with local brokers there. It was a Saturday, so “hey, maybe they will give us a tour?”. The first guy, wasn’t too interested and neither was the second one. One broker, said “hey, the boat is open, help yourself”. So we checked out another fairly old boat.

This one was a 1981 Defever 49 foot for $165,000. Still over our price range, but it gave us a good idea of what an older boat would look like. Remember, we would be living on this boat, so we need a boat that will allow both of us to work from home, so we need “office space”. This one seemed perfect at first glance.

It had great seating on the back end that was either covered or uncovered. Enough to sit back and enjoy the view.

We like that this salon had a very “homey” feel to it. And the galley was good size too.

Up on the bridge it had another table area, that could definitely be used for an office and the view isn’t too bad either!!

Even the heads were good size. The master had a half tub in it (but who would take a bath on a boat?).

So did we fall in love with it? Not at all! Why? Well, the stairs (which I should have taken a photo of), were literally only 5″ wide and were spiral. Can you imagine going down the stairs at sea or after a few drinks? It was a death trap for sure. But gorgeous vessel for it’s age.

Okay, that boat is out, what next?

We eventually wandered back towards the parking lot and I mentioned that there was one more I’d like to see. The broker, Mike Manning from Crows Nest just happened to be there and he was so nice! We asked if we could see a boat that was definitely not in our price range for kicks and giggles and he was happy to show us around. This was a 2007 58′ Navigator Pilothouse for just a mere $575,000.

But compared to the older boats, the interior is very modern and updated. It too, had a seating area up on the bridge that could be used as an office.

What we learned from our field trip down to lake union, is there are brokers that are happy to show you boats if they are available. Mike from Crow’s Nest Yachts was so incredibly helpful, that when the time comes, we’ll be sure to reach out to him for assistance.

This weekend, we are going to the Lake Union Boats Alfloat show and I’m sure we’ll see a few more (out of our price range!). But it helps us to figure out features we are looking for (storage, etc). Then next month we are heading back to Annapolis, MD and this time we are going to the US Power Boat Show. We are super excited as we loved the US Sailing Boat Show a few years ago! Stay tuned! Scott & Ally

August 11, 2016November 30, 2017

Live Aboard Marinas

Finding Live Aboard Marinas

Live aboard marinas is a hot topic for boaters and one that a “non-boater” would not think about perhaps. Scott & I attended the Seattle Boat Show earlier this year. We met with numerous marinas in the Puget Sound area, only to find out, they either do not allow liveaboards or there is over a one year wait list!

That’s the same scenario of needing to find daycare before you are pregnant. If our whole plan is to move out of our house and onto a boat, how in the world can you do that immediately when you buy your boat? Answer is you don’t, unless you get on a wait list. And those aren’t free. After meeting with several marinas, we found out that the wait list fees run anywhere fro $25-$150. Again, you don’t even own a boat yet! Crazy. So we figured this past spring of 2016, we would visit a couple marinas and find out what they had to offer.

Foss Harbor Marina

First was the Foss Harbor Marina in Tacoma. We met the manager during the boat show and he was extremely friendly and helpful. In fact, one of his residents was there and couldn’t say enough great things about the marina.

The parking was very limited for guests and we happened to park right in front of the office and “general store”. At the store/marina you can rent kayaks and SUPs. They gave us a key and a quick verbal tour for us to go check out. The store was well stocked, including good WINE and it was priced just like a regular wine shop! (Bonus!) Next to the store was the community center (no you can’t have a wedding here, but it’s perfect to watch t.v.) that had a large t.v., coffee maker, games and books, perfect for a small gathering (i.e. football game).

The restrooms were secured and each offered two showers and sinks, toilets and mirrors. Nothing fancy, but would certainly work great. The docks have a secured entrance, which is great. From there, we walked down to the docks and they are floating docks. So the main plankway can be either very steep or not so much depending on the tide. Most marinas these days offer floating docks, otherwise your dock could be 5′ below your boat! (LOL)

The marina was small and intimidate, which we like. It also has a great view of Mt. Rainier and it’s own fuel dock. The prices at the fuel dock were actually very reasonable.

If you worked in Downtown Tacoma, this would be a great commute!!

The mooring prices were fairly standard for marinas and they had a 3 month wait list and their fee was $25 (I believe)….it was very nominal. Definitely a marina we would consider. The only cons we had, were limited guest parking and not walking distance to restaurants/bars.

Port of Everett Marina

A few weeks later we visited the Port of Everett Marina. If you don’t know about this one, it is the largest public marina on the west coast in the U.S.

Yes, this place was massive. In fact, we ate lunch at one side (the left) and had to drive to the office (the right). Definitely not walking distance. They had plenty of space for 50′-65′ boats and the marina offers not only regular amenities such as showers and parking, but many restaurants and bars within walking distance. It did not have any type of convenience store. It is located at the northern end of Puget Sound, so as you can see by the photo it has great access to our northern islands and is also very well protected.

Here’s our view from lunch on the south side of the marina

The downside, was not only the commute distance (yuck!), but the cost of the mooring. With everything said and done, the cost was about $17 per foot and the docks for the larger boats are quite a bit away from everything – except the large fishing boats that were being worked on. You wouldn’t want to be taking a nap – just sayin. But we did like the proximity to restaurants the sound. They had a 3-8 month wait list and I believe their fee was about $125.

Since we have no idea what in the world we are doing yet, no wait lists or fees now. We have a few more to look at, but our options are very slim. Odd for such a large boating industry in the Puget Sound.

Learn how we finally found our perfect marina slip. Scott & Ally

June 4, 2015September 19, 2017

The Dream and Where Did it Come From?

Sailing the Caribbean

Sailing the Caribbean is our dream. Many might ask, what’s with the dream of exploring the world on water and why? Where did it come from? Honestly, that dream has been with me for many many years (probably longer than Scott). First of all, I grew up on boats. While they were only fishing and water skiing boats, we spent our summers on the water. It doesn’t matter what you are doing, being on the water just brings a sense of peace and adventure.

Back in the 80’s and 90’s my mom and I would vacation in Hawaii and one year we were lucky to sail on the America II Sailboat. The America II was a 1987 America’s Cup Challenger. This prestigious yacht was custom designed and built, at the cost of $10 million, for the sole purpose of competing in world-class racing. After completing her transpacific race she was retired from racing to do sailing tours out of Lahaina Harbor on Maui. Because it was a racing boat, it was bare bones….barely had a head (bathroom).

We sailed it to Molokini and that was the trip that hooked me. The serenity of flying over blue waters with dolphins next to us and then arriving to a location where sea turtles and tropical fish surrounded you is so unreal. I wanted to turn the boat around and go back when we got home!

Later in my adult life, I owned a 27′ “weekender” and spent many weekends up at the San Juan Islands. I remember exploring the islands one day and decided to go north and out of the blue, a pod of Orca whales surrounded our boat. They literally were just feet off of our anchor platform. I took a ton of photos (but this one is not mine). It was one of the coolest experiences I have had.

Scott and I were married in 2003 and we spent our honeymoon in Antigua. We booked two sailing excursions on that trip and soon he was hooked too! We took a catamaran snorkeling trip and then finished it on a sunset sailing cruise. What a honeymoon to remember!

Back to Antigua & Jamaica

We decided after that trip, that we would always include the water on our future trips to the Caribbean. And any chance we had to be on the water, we took advantage of it. It’s the best therapy you can find! We returned to Antigua in 2010 and took those same two trips again.

The following year, during our visit to Sandals Whitehouse Jamaica we had one of the most memorable trips on a Catamaran as we visited Floyd’s Pelican Bar….a bar on a sandbar!

On another visit to Jamaica we took another sailing trip and just our luck, the skies turned dark and stormy. It was still a very cool experience and the S/V was huge! It had 2 Cummins engines and it had a capacity of 100ppl!

Looking for Water

No matter what the situation is, we still love being on the water and forgetting all about the rest of the world. It’s not always a bed of roses, in fact, more often than not it’s work. Scott and I are willing to take that challenge and explore. For now, it might only be a boat show or a day on a family’s boat, but we’re still on the water! We hope to buy a boat in the next few years!

I guess in the end, the water has more meaning to us than we know and everyday it’s a new experience and a new memory. The photo above of my mom, she had so much fun….it was about a year before she died. We also chose to sprinkle Maggie’s ashes (our golden retriever) in Port Susan at Camano Island. It was one of the most spiritual and memorable experience regarding a death…..very peaceful.

When days get me down, I just look back on the journeys we had and remind myself that new ones on the water are just around the corner. Cheers, Ally