Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with sailing

There is nothing half so much worth doing as mucking about in boats.

wilful — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 17:36:24 -0800

Would a catamaran or a dinghy be better? I want to get a small (14' approx) boat to sail. Cheap, easy to tow, limited maintenance, not high performance or complex, suitable for an adult and one or two children, or two bigger kids.

Fundamentally, should I go a cat (like a hobie 14, or a maricat), or a dinghy such as a Mirror or 125? I'll probably mostly sail on lakes with pretty choppy, intermittent winds, only a bit of bay sailing.

I think a dinghy would probably be better, in terms of stability and load carrying.

I'd ask for recommendations for specific makes, but chances are the boats you know aren't available in Australia, unless they're internationally well-known, and also my current awareness of makes and models is low.

A tall ship, and a star to sail her by...

PROD_TPSL — Sat, 28 Nov 2009 14:34:28 -0800

So... I'm going to sail around the world in the most dangerous race... The thunderbolt struck me today. I have always wanted to learn to sail. Come Hell or high water, I will be entering the the 2018 Around Alone / VELUX 5 Oceans Race. I've got nine years to acquire an Open 60 Yacht, Learn to sail, and become the greatest sailor to ever live. Oh, and I may just have to become a brilliant naval architect to design and build said yacht. Sailing MeFites, Your words of wisdom and your advise please. Any good books that you recommend? Any ideas on acquiring a racing yacht? Any one willing to take a young pup under arm?

Bareboat Sailboat Fun

DuckGirl — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 08:13:25 -0800

Looking for advice on a Christmas week sailing trip My fiancé and I are interested in a bareboat sailing trip during the week between Christmas and New Year’s. I have done some research online about destinations, and while many sound appealing, it seems like we might be able to do this most inexpensively if we focus on the Florida Keys area. We will be traveling from the Boston area and would be most comfortable on a 30-36 foot boat (fiancé owns and has much experience with his own 30-foot boat). My question to MeFites is this – have you charted a bareboat trip in Florida? Can you recommend a specific company/person to contact so I am not anonymously reaching out via google searches? If I am wrong in my assumption that Florida will be less expensive, tell me where we can go instead and find a great deal. I am trying to keep our total cost for airfare and the boat at less than $3500.

Am I gunshy after "Balloon Boy" or are there legitimate reasons to question whether Jessica Watson is really sailing around the globe?

kellygreen — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 17:56:36 -0800

Am I just gun-shy after the "Balloon Boy" hoax or are there legitimate reasons to question whether Jessica Watson is really sailing around the world? What evidence can you find to support the theory that this is another hoax and what evidence can you find that refutes that theory? Over the past week I have been captivated by the Jessica Watson story. Ms. Watson is an Australian teenager attempting to become the youngest person to circumnavigate the globe on her sailboat, unassisted. I read her blog each day and I even purchased a world map so I could follow along on her journey. Things were going smoothly with my new hobby until she posted this blog entry about finding a bunch of squid on deck that morning. I was puzzled as to why she posted a "stock" photo of herself instead of pictures of the squid and began to wonder whether something was amiss.

My skepticism grew when I then read this article which noted that Ms. Watson has decided not to release her precise position information lest she be chased down by the media. I also learned that Ms. Watson plans on sailing nonstop and will not be stopping for media photos in port. This is unusual as young sailors typically make stops in ports when circumnavigating the globe: Zac Sunderland made loads of stops and Michael Perham took a Christmas break. The sailors give interviews at port and pose for media photos as they travel to foreign lands.

I want to continue to believe this terrific story and cheer on Ms. Watson, but I also want to be a savvy media consumer. How do you answer either one or both of my two questions?

Career Change to sailor: Insert cliche navigational pun here

DetonatedManiac — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 19:09:42 -0800

Career Filter: My goal is to spend a few years (maybe more) living at sea as professional crew on a ship/yacht/tall ship. How do I get there quickly but responsibly? What training? What is the job market like? What jobs to look for? Help!? I am 24. I have limited nautical experience (but that is already changing). I am currently a college educated office worker and I live about 3 hours from the coast.

My goal: transition as quickly as is prudent to working full time on a vessel that travels the oceans and will give me useful sailing experience (navigation, weather, fixing engines, maintenance, diving, etc) and interesting life travels.

I am flexible, but NO military, and nothing uber dangerous. I'd prefer to be on a sail vessel of some sort.

Also, as far as money, when I live aboard I hear I can keep expenses low (no car, no rent/mortgage, meals provided, off shore=lower taxes???) so even with an initially lower salary I can save up just as much money over time. Is this reasonable?

MY PLAN RIGHT NOW:

I figured that the best starting path would be a deckhand on a yacht (or super-yacht?). It's manual labor and it gets me good experience, and seems like it would be somewhat entry level. Maybe I could work up the ranks over time?

But to get there what do I need? Can I just move to Ft. Lauderdale FL and start looking? I figure not; so what training program/certifications are appropriate? What are captains looking for in deck hands? or should I do something else like live aboard the Alvei for a few months first?

Any other thoughts?

Anyone with real world experience on a super-yacht, or working/living at sea in any capacity appreciated.

If Indiana Jones were a sailor, what hat would he wear?

DetonatedManiac — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 19:16:23 -0800

HatFilter: I'm looking for a functional, stylish hat for sailing (worried mostly about sun not foul weather protection). Bonus points for a unique, "adventure" flavor like Indiana Jones. Hat Notes:
-Function comes before style: comfortable and good sun protection with out getting in the way are key.
-Something with a unique look. If possible a quasi formal, rugged "adventure" look a la Indiana Jones's Fedora.
-It does not need to be an according-to-Ahab traditional, "salty" hat, but it should look at home and function well on the water (and maybe an exotic tropical port of call, if I am ever so lucky).
-At the same time, something that will not look too out of place. I occasionally sail with a swimsuit, an old tee-shirt and sunglasses so too "formal" may look strange. Basically-Unique but not outlandish.
-I intend to wear it sailing in fresh and salt water (should it matter)
-Cost is a factor, I don't want to spend a fortune for it, but if the hat is well made and the last hat I ever need I am willing to spring for a bit. (at the same time, I expect this hat will get really beaten up, or possibly lost at sea... ahh compromises)

Thanks Hive Mind!

PS- I do already own a nice fur felt "Indiana Jones" Fedora. I would wear it but it feels like it would be too heavy for actual extended use in the heat... plus I am afraid to lose it or get it wet. Indy got his drenched and beaten up many times, but I don't have 12 identical replacements and a film crew to make mine look ready for action in the next frame should something happen :)

Having fun sailing for couples

hazyjane — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 06:38:17 -0800

How to have a great time on a learn-to-sail course? I'm going with a fairly new boyfriend who I really like but don't know terribly well yet. We'll be sharing a cabin in a fairly small sailing boat for a week in cramped conditions and very hot weather. We'll be doing some night sailing with trips into port every other day or so. How can we make sure we have as much fun as possible without ending up wanting to wring each others necks from the heat and the lack of space? Any tips on keeping cool? On fun things to do? On keeping things flowing well between the two of us in these conditions? I'm thinking of bringing a book of questions for couples, and a map of the night sky for stargazing. Any more ideas or suggestions? Thanks very much!

Sailing in the Mediterranean?

paulramshaw — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 02:15:53 -0800

Sailing in the Mediterranean? Hi.

My partner and I are considering buying a trawler style boat with the intention of exploring the Mediterranean. Ideally we'd spend any where from a couple of nights to a week at each port/marina depending how much we liked a particular place.

My question is
a) Is this doable, ie do marinas off short term berths
and
b) If so how do people book them?
and
c) If so does anyone know what the average berthing costs would be for say Andalucia, Almalfi coast, Greece, etc.

Landlubber to Cruiser in 3 easy steps

DetonatedManiac — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 11:07:07 -0800

Long term goal, become a permanent solo sailboat cruiser. Immediate goal: I just want to learn to sail and maintain a sailboat proficiently. Advice? 1)Long term, as I said, I want the freedom of a permanent (or long term) mostly solo cruising lifestyle... and also the chance to fish, snorkel, scuba dive, travel the world, see new places... and so on.

2) As a dream that sounds well and good, but the reality is that I am a mid 20 something with limited sailing and sea going experience (almost none).

So lets change #2 now, in a financially responsible manner and without disrupting my current lifestyle, and then see if a few years from now #1 still sounds so appealing.

Advice on the larger goal is welcome (How to finance a boat, where to buy a boat, skills to learn so as to maintain income while sailing around the world, how to learn boat maintenance/diesel motor repair, certifications and other trainings to get, books to read etc)

But right now I am primarily focused on the fundamentals of learning to sail ANY sailboat, and eventually, an ocean worthy vessel, by myself

I do live near a very large man-made lake but the US Coast Guard Aux does not have any classes for ANYTHING, let alone sailing, scheduled near me for the remainder of this year. There are some classes for non-sail boats on the coast (about 3-5 hours away depending), but maybe there are some more preliminary steps I could take? A boating club?

Basically: What is going to responsibly and affordably get me the taste of manning my own vessel, being out on the water by myself and the skills and experience needed to build upon so I can discover if this is something I want to pursue further.

I just want Pu get some Sound advice.

Netzapper — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 21:49:22 -0800

Where (literally) on Puget Sound should my wife teach me how to sail our 16ft Hobie Cat? My wife is going to teach me how to sail. She's an old hand, but has never sailed this class of vessel before. I'm from Missouri, and have had success (and catastrophe) with canoes.

We live in Kitsap County.

We specifically want to sail on the Sound. We know of the lakes, but they hold no allure. They're also far away, whereas the Sound surrounds us. The Seattle catamaran clubs we've found online all seem dead in the water.

We have equipped ourselves appropriately for sailing in cold water (wet suits, PFDs, etc.). We're legal to sail in the Sound--according to the licensing lady I'm legal to sail my tiny boat to Japan if I'm sufficiently stupid. We have a righting system in place. Clearly we intend to stay out of shipping lanes and away from naval installations. We have charts.

Clearly at some point, we can venture tentatively outside protected waters. But, gee, it'd be nice to learn how to sail with a little bit of shelter.

But where do people sail smaller boats on the Sound? Where do you like to sail? There are a million bays and inlets and coves. Which ones have trailer access? Where are currents light? What appetizing bay, as seen from a map, really conceals a deadly current guaranteed to pull you into the ferry boat?

Seattle sailors, cough up your secrets. Please?

What to do with old boat winches?

zap rowsdower — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 10:03:54 -0800

Sailors, artists, and sailor-artists, help! I have three winches that I'd like to do something artistic with. I recently put new self-tailing winches on my sailboat. I have the old black winches- a #10 and two #40s, similar to this- leftover. They don't have a practical nautical application anymore (can't sell them), but I feel like there should be something cool I can do with them around the house to give it a salty flair. They're pretty heavy, but they could conceivably be mounted on the wall. Thoughts?

Ahoy ye Sailors!

elendil71 — Thu, 28 May 2009 17:16:48 -0800

Ahoy Ye sailors! Asking for a small piece of fiction I'm writing. How long would it take to sail (modern boats/yachts) from Los Angeles to San Francisco, and then from SF to Hawaii? Any personal experiences, details, or links to such adventures welcome.

Unidentified Dutch ships in a pen-and-wash drawing

RedReplicant — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 10:43:08 -0800

Unidentified Dutch pen-and-ink drawing: anyone familiar with this type of ship? Here is a link to the drawing in question.

I think those are 17th century ships. Previous guess is 1630. It's in iron gall ink and wash with some wonderful details; from the arrangement of the sails I thought they might be Bootschips or East Indiamen. Any thoughts would be appreciated as I'm not an expert on marine paintings!

Sailing rite of passage

mjewkes — Sun, 18 Jan 2009 14:16:04 -0800

I need to prove myself a man. Help me plan a sailing rite-of-passage/adventure. I would like to have a sailing adventure this summer. This is 1/4 for fun/travel, 1/4 for sailing experience, and 1/2 as a personal rite-of-passage.

My main criterion is that I want to feel challenged, tested, and (hopefully), accomplished by the completion of the trip. To that end, I would like to travel somewhere by boat, not pleasure cruise about a pleasant area.

I have extensive small boat sailing experience, have done a couple of two week live-aboard cruises, but have no blue water sailing experience. I've been studying the blue-book through the winter, and have a reasonable amount of theoretical knowledge.

I am open to crewing with an experienced yachtsman, buying a small coastal sloop (there is some family interest in acquiring a yacht), running a coast, and selling it near the end, or (pay) crewing on a larger-length boat delivery.

I have roughly from May-September, a fair sized travel budget (though not enough to say, buy a ticket on the Picton Castle), and am currently on the east coast of North America, though I can travel. I imagine this being more solitary than group-trip, but am flexible in that regard.

Does anyone have any advice or experience they could offer to help me plan this? Is this idea complete bunk?

Lake sailing near San Diego?

mamessner — Sun, 23 Nov 2008 09:44:56 -0800

Anywhere to rent a sailboat on a lake near San Diego? I know all about the bay and ocean sailing rentals, but I'd like to go sailing like I did back home in Wisconsin - Go to a park, rent a little boat for cheap, have a picnic on shore, maybe BBQ a bit... Are there any county or state parks nearby where you can rent a sailboat on the cheap and go lake sailing?

Small boat sailing in Chicago in the fall?

Jackson — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 09:56:39 -0800

Is mid-September through the end of October a good time for small boat (16'-22') sailing in Lake Michigan at Chicago? Wind speeds, air and water temperature, rain, etc.?

How can I get out on the water in Portland, Oregon?

Post-it Goat — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 12:11:46 -0800

How can I get out on the water in Portland, Oregon? When I visited Boston a friend took me out sailing on the Charles river. They had some sort of community program where you could take lessons and then take out boats you were certified for. It was a lot of fun, so I'm wondering if there's anything similar, not too expensive, in Portland. Rowing might be interesting too, or just some way to boat around without actually owning a boat. I have lots of experience listening to Sloop John B, if that helps?

Cut That Out Sonny or I'll Make You Walk the Plank

Xurando — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 18:18:50 -0800

Novel Research Filter III: What's it like to travel long distance on a yacht with kids? In my book some children will make a trans-pacific crossing on a yacht with their parents. I'd like to know how children handle long distance sea travel. How do parents keep kids occupied. What kind of mischief can kids get into on a yacht. I'm not talking about Semester at Sea but rather family vagabonding in a boat.

Cheap rowboat?

LSK — Sun, 20 Apr 2008 17:41:27 -0800

Where can I get a cheap rowboat? I'm looking for a rowboat. Inflatable is fine; I just want something that a friend and I can have fun with on long summer days after having discovered a place to set off from. Budget is around $100, and one of us can't swim.

Help me find a good sailing simulator

alasdefuego — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 10:22:08 -0800

Can you help me find a good sailing simulator that includes ocean racing?

How do you attack a sailing ship with a fast rowing-boat?

TheophileEscargot — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 02:22:59 -0800

How do you attack a sailing ship with a fast rowing-boat? I've just finished "The Pirate Wars" by Peter Earle. He says that one tactic used by navies against pirates was to use fast rowing boats (cutters or barges) to pursue the pirates through the shallows, often in long chases.

Pirates also sometimes used canoes to attack merchant shipping, in presumably the same way.

Unlike the Mediterranean pirate galleys with a cannon in the prow, these boats seem to have been armed only with muskets. Nor did they have the element of surprise as with a cutting-out expedition.

Why didn't they get blown to pieces with cannon-fire before they could board?

How do you go about storming a ship from a boat anyway?

Do I get half the fo'c'sle and most of the poop deck?

HE Amb. T. S. L. DuVal — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 12:41:31 -0800

Is fractional boat ownership all it's cracked up to be? If you have first- or second-hand experience with it, would you recommend it? Specifically, I'm wondering if it is truly cost-effective vs. outright ownership and chartering. Assume one sails once or twice a month on average. The OCSC outfit in Berkeley touts their program for buying a yacht that they maintain and charter for the owner. SailTime does essentially the same thing all over the country and beyond. These programs are similar to timeshares, except that they suggest that the owner actually makes money off of the arrangement. SailTime goes so far as to guarantee it. (Ok, they only guarantee that you'll cover your costs, but still.) Which leaves me wondering; if it's so profitable, why don't they just do it for themselves? Is it possibly a good investment or only a way to sail cheaply?

Looking for a kid's book that has sailing and cooking

yggdrasil — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 16:23:43 -0800

Bookfilter: looking for a book I read as a kid involving a sick kid and sailing. The wrinkle? I read it in German, so I don't even know if this book exists in English. Obviously, there's The plot involves parents of a deathly ill kid. The Docs tell them there's nothing they can do, it's only a matter of time, X months at most. So they buy a sail boat and start sailing together. (I don't remember if it's around the Med or around the world.) They keep fearing that the kid won't wake up again, but so far, so good. X months later, the kid is still going strong. Turns out the sea air is exactly what the doctor (should have) ordered. So then they sell the boat and buy a restaurant on an island somewhere.

I don't even remember if this is a kid or young-adult book. I probably read it 12-15 years ago.

Oh, yeah, and just to make it interesting, the book was in German, not English.

Any ideas?

Who Do I Have To Pay To Get Some Kids On A Boat?

peacecorn — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 07:47:27 -0800

Where can I find a reputable charity that takes underprivileged kids sailing? In an effort to express my gratitude to a long-time client, I'm looking to make a donation in his name to a charity that takes underprivileged (or disabled or cancer) kids sailing. Have any suggestions? The charity must be:

a) Secular
b) US-based

And the ideal charity should be:

a) East coast
b) Pennsylvania or New Jersey-based

Any ideas?

Bareboat sailing in the Caribbean.

Jackson — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 18:01:15 -0800

Advice on bareboat sailing in the Caribbean. Four of us intend to spend a week sailing in the Caribbean in early February. Our group knowledge of the Caribbean is very limited. One of the group is a master sailor, so we should be able to rent a bareboat of our liking anywhere they're available. But with so many islands and so many boat rental places, it's hard to know how to decide on an itinerary. Suggestions?