The email mentioned some of the pros and cons of living aboard their boat. Although she says they enjoy it, there is some boredom and frustration that comes with this lifestyle. Additionally she mentioned that whatever you think cruising will cost, you have to double it. She also mentioned a saying “Cruisers look out for one another” that is not always accurate according to her experience. Well, I hope to learn from her experience and others in hopes to prevent or at least have the appropriate expectations.She mentioned that there are some frustrations with customs and immigration officials and the issue of not being able to get what they needed. I am sure living life on land has similar frustrations. They are just different and on land I suspect that there are more frustrations. I guess boredom can get old, but I am so busy, I would welcome a little boredom. I also think that by learning from this experience that one might be able to do things and equip your catamaran with things that will prevent or at least reduce the
amount of boredom.Perhaps if you knew ahead of time that you would likely run into customs issues, that it wouldn’t be so bad. If you knew it would take a while and you were mentally prepared it wouldn’t be so bad. If you are in a hurry, then customs could be frustrating. If you don’t have the necessary items to clear customs it could be a challenge. If you researched ahead of time what you would need to get through customs, perhaps the experience wouldn’t be so bad.
A natural thing that happens with me is when I hear some negatives that will impact my dream; I begin to formulate theories as to why these things won’t be an issue for me. Being better prepared is a valid theory. Buying a newer boat would perhaps be less frustrating. Installing a satellite dish, game console, and lots of books might prevent boredom. I have to be careful here though. After all this wouldn’t be the 1st time I have theorized and been wrong. This is not the 1st time I have been blinded by love. In this case it is the love for a dream. It is easy to make excuses for a negative, because you don’t want to admit that there are negatives. It will take some time before reality sets in and love ceases to be blinding.
One of the reasons I have chosen a Sailboat over a power boat is that in theory this should be a less expensive option, but is it really less expensive long term? How much fuel can you save sailing vs the cost of owning a power boat? How much does it cost to replace the sails? Does it make up for the fuel savings? I am still concerned about ongoing costs and maintenance needed to keep a Catamaran. I know that when it comes time to take out a Sail boat VS a large Yacht, I will be much more excited to take out the Sailboat because there is almost no fuel costs to take out the sailboat. If you take out a power boat, you know that every mile will cost you. On the other hand, could put a price per mile on a sailboat after including maintenance? Although I am 99% sure what I want to do, when it comes down to it, I have to be 100% sure that a catamaran sailboat is the way to go for me. As you can see I still have some convincing to do and reader comments like the one above do cause one to pause just a bit.
I am confident I will be purchasing used. The price needs to be right. I have some ideas of what I will be looking for. I have to justify jumping into this dream of owning a cruising catamaran. Since boats don’t generally appreciate in value (Here is an interesting post on resale value of Catamarans) I need to make sure I can turn around and sell it if needed for a fair price. I need to make sure that if things don’t work out that I can still get out of the relationship unscathed. I want to keep it simple, however my needs are complicated. The more luxuries I have the more items that will eventually need repair or replacement. Will it cost more to live on a boat or on land? Which is more fun? Which is less frustrating taking all into account?
In the end I might just have to try it to answer some of these questions. After all, the best way to learn is to learn it the hard way. I am notorious for learning the hard way. This is most likely why I do so much research. Unfortunately one can never research enough so it seems. At some point you make a decision and hope that your research paid off. If I could buy a cat now, I would probably do it, but the fact remains, that I have a lot of time to research. I find my self doing a ton of reading. Every little bit helps to educate me and helps me to cope with my strong desire to achieve this dream.
The cat pictured above is a Kynsa 440. I just came across this cat today and thought I should share it.
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