|
Living Aboard |
|||
|
Page 1 Page 2
Page 3
Page 4
Page 5
|
The Cruising Life What Is It When most people think of living aboard, it's as a cruiser, not tied to a dock. Cruising though, is many different things to many different people. For some, it's circumnavigating. For others, it may be crossing the "Pond". While for others it may be going north and south with the seasons. In the main though, it's when you don't have a tie to a certain area of land. But even in this, there are some who live aboard half the year, and on land the other half. So let's just say, if you're in motion, you're cruising. Planning Ahead Probably the biggest part of cruising, is planning ahead. Whether it be navigation, provisioning, or most any part of the journey. It all starts with deciding where you're going. Both day to day, and port to port. Once you determine your next port of call, you can start planning a tentative day to day schedule. I say tentative, because it has to be flexible. There are simply too many variables over which you have no control, to expect to keep to your schedule every day. Weather, tides and unexpected events can all affect how well you can follow your schedule. And often times, you won't know until it's time to raise the anchor, just what you'll have to deal with on any particular day. So be flexible, and always have a Plan B ..... and C and D.... Remember that's it's only an outline, not set in stone (I usually plan on starting early and stopping mid-afternoon). And don't forget to set a watch schedule. Some people keep rigid ones, when sailing with crew, I try to leave some flexibility in, based on conditions and personnel. Once you know where you're going, and about how long it will take, you can start thinking about supplies. Enough for what you have planned, and a bit more for what you can't plan. Will there be places you can stop enroute? Are your tanks large enough to last till you can refill them? Will you have enough food, and the fuel to cook it? Thinking it through, before you leave makes the cruise that much more enjoyable. It's bad enough to have to deal with the unexpected, without creating problems for yourself by poor planning. Preparation is always the key to not just a successful cruise, but in most things we do. Take the time, do it right! |
Under Weigh Now that you've done your planning, brought aboard your supplies and made everything fast, it's time to weigh anchor. We won't deal with the specifics of navigating your course here. Rather, we'll look at some of the things you need to keep in mind while you are. Hopefully, Plan A is all you need, but weather can change, things can break, or you may run aground or some other time consuming problem, like missing a bridge opening may arise. One of my first mistakes, when starting out, was to keep pushing on in bad weather. Passing by a good and sheltered anchorage because it seemed too early in the day to stop. It's NEVER too early to stop, if conditions warrant it. There's no prize for doing X amount of miles a day, but there can be grief. So don't hesitate to stop early. After all, you already allowed for that in your planning, right? Don't hesitate to take advantage of pleasant surprises or acting on a whim, just because they might mess up your schedule. After all, you're out here to enjoy yourself, not meet deadlines. Should you come across, say, an unknown cove with a nice beach that would make a great stop for the night, go ahead. Even if it is only 4 hours since you started out and you've got 6 more hours of daylight to use. Use your schedule, but don't be a slave to it. Setting the Hook As I mentioned earlier, I often stop by mid-afternoon. Especially if using a popular anchorage. I usually get my pick of where to drop the anchor and have plenty of time to relax before fixing dinner. Again, let me stress, it's all about enjoying yourself. Once you're sure the hook is set, dinner is over and cleaned up, it's time to think about tomorrow. Check the weather report, your route and what you should encounter, and how the crew is holding up. Planning ahead is not just for the start of the trip, but for everyday as well. Remember, if you don't have time to do it right in the first place, when will you have time to do it right later? Plan ahead, but be flexible .... and ready to plan some more. Before long it will become second nature and help make every voyage as smooth and easy as is in your power. |
Remember , Cruising is what you define it to be. You don't have to do
this or that to be a cruiser, nor go here or there.
It's not about where you go, whether near or far, it's about how many smiles you find along the way. |