# Hello, I'm new to this forum and need advice



## jmw (Oct 21, 2008)

Hi all,

I sail on the Chesapake Bay. After years of being a "passenger" on sail boats, two years ago, I broke free and started actually learning how to sail. You guessed it, I'm a woman. I have sailed and been crew on larger sail boats with others in the BVIs, in the Med, and the Florida Keys. I also sail with others as crew on little sailboats without auxilliary engine in Baltimore Harbor. This past sailing season I started single-handing a 19 ft. pocket cruiser with a venerable 4.5 HP outboard but have only done day sails. My plan this coming sailing season is to do solo weekend and long weekend trips on the Bay. This coming sailing season,I also want to spend more time cruising and hanging out on a boat, so I am thinking it would be good find a boat that would be more comfortable, but still easy to sail by myself. My goal is to liveaboard, at least part of the year. I'm thinking a boat in the size range of 25 to 35 ft might be manageable. I need advice from people who liveaboard or spend a lot of time on their boats. I also will need TONS of advice on maintaining boat systems- especially outboards and engines.


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## Bene505 (Jul 31, 2008)

jmw,

Welcome. You came to the right place to ask questions, as I have been doing for months now. I owned a Victory 21 and sailed out of Annapolis for many years. After many years away from sailing, I bought a boat that could fit the whole family. We sail it around Long Island, CT, RI and am planning a trip to Nantucket this summer.

Try the search at the top of the screen to see if anything's been covered before. I think there's lots of threads on "which boat". Much of the decision has to do with the details of what you are looking for.

Also, there are many members in your area, and I'm sure that if you offer to bring a bottle of wine or two, they'd tell you first-hand about their cruising adventures and what they've learned.

Please post pictures of your current boat and places you've been.

Regards


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## badsanta (Oct 16, 2006)

If you have the time and would like lots of time on different boats. Check out SOS "singles on sail boats". They are very active around annapolis and the metro area. They offer some good training and have day and overnight sails weekday and weekend at almost no cost. Sign up for the spring training day and start sailing. I would also suggest classes. Annapolis school of seamanship offers some good sysytems classes. You may want to do some navigation classes also. Winter time is here and this is the time for indoor classes. There are many in the area that would welcome you aboard as it gets warmer. there is alot of info here.


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## jmw (Oct 21, 2008)

Thanks for you good advice! I am always happy to bring a bottle of wine or two to hear about cruising experiences! I will have to find a photo of my 19 footer. Right now it's on a trailer in the yard. I have a slip in the Middle River area. I've sailed with others to Rock Hall, Fairlee Creek, Tolchester, Chestertown, and Tangier Island. On charters (as crew), I've sailed the BVIs, Italy (Palermo to the Aeolians), and the Florida Keys and while on the Keys trip, did a passage offshore back to Miami. I have some pics from some of those trips.


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## jmw (Oct 21, 2008)

*Thanks for the advice*

I will check it out- Thanks



badsanta said:


> If you have the time and would like lots of time on different boats. Check out SOS "singles on sail boats". They are very active around annapolis and the metro area. They offer some good training and have day and overnight sails weekday and weekend at almost no cost. Sign up for the spring training day and start sailing. I would also suggest classes. Annapolis school of seamanship offers some good sysytems classes. You may want to do some navigation classes also. Winter time is here and this is the time for indoor classes. There are many in the area that would welcome you aboard as it gets warmer. there is alot of info here.


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## Cruisingdad (Jul 21, 2006)

Welcome aboard. 

We lived aboard with kiddo, wife, and 2 dogs. Moving back to S Fl soon to do it again. I will write more for you as you hav esome specific questions. 

In the meantime, I will move this thread to Buying a boat (Will wait a bit to make sure you know where it is going). That way you will get a better reply to your post.

Again, welcome aboard. You can also check out hersailnet forum for more of the female advice.

- CD


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## chucklesR (Sep 17, 2007)

JMW,
Welcome to sailnet.
We (my wife is MMR here on sailnet) cruise out of the Magothy river, if you ever see us on our Gemini Catamaran (_Patience Two_) feel free to swing by for a raft up and a Rum or two. We've sailed in much the same areas you have and spend most every other weekend somewhere on the eastern shore, mostly north of us at Fairlee, Still Pond or beyond.

There are a lot of options for slightly bigger boats that make good liveaboards, but I'd strongly recommend you go with one that has a diesel engine as the aux power over outboards. Diesel fuel is inherently safer, and you can generate power for your batteries.
The Annapolis area caters to sailors and there are lots of schools you can go to (including Anne Arundel Community College to save money) and take courses in diesel maintenance and repair, and other marine systems. I'd recommend buying pretty much anything Nigel Calder has published on boat system repair as the first step, reading through them to get an idea of the terms and such, then hanging out on the pier and talking to the old duffers who always hang out there. Most of the old salts are always glad to talk to a female, especially one with a little grease under her nails and a few rope burns on her hands.

If you ever want to crew on a friday night (come summer time of course) on a catamaran, give me or MMR a holler via PM - you'll have to have 10 posts to send a PM. We host the family friendly, low intensity cruiser style races for our Yacht Club *www.YCCSC.org* fridays on the Magothy river.


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## Keldee (Jun 23, 2008)

welcome to sailnet.
I disagree about a diesel engine being safer.A gas engine is very safe if the basic safety rules are followed.Everyone thinks nothing of using propane on a boat for cooking and everyone (well almost) has gasoline on their boats to power the outboard.
If you are planning to cruise in the Islands gas is easier to aquire than diesel there is always a gas station in most small communities.
A comfortable boat for cruising that is very sturdy is the Tartan 27 .My husband and I lived in one for 2 years plus a small dog.
Hope this helps you somewhat
Ellinor


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## deniseO30 (Nov 27, 2006)

jmw said:


> Hi all,
> 
> I You guessed it, I'm a woman. My goal is to live aboard, at least part of the year. I'm thinking a boat in the size range of 25 to 35 ft might be manageable. I need advice from people who live aboard or spend a lot of time on their boats. I also will need TONS of advice on maintaining boat systems- especially outboards and engines.


Hey welcome Aboard! Because your a woman most guys will want to make sure you get or have their approval when you sail, dock and handle your boat, will almost never let or ask you to handle their's, ( boat that is!) Here on sail-net it's not much of an issue and the guys really are gentlemen! (Yes, I said that here!) 
Anyway, I was inspired to buy a boat after many years of going out on windjammers in Maine. Since I've always loved boats I finally found myself able to buy one a few years back. Everyone said "get a smaller boat first" eh.. I did, wish I didn't! Hated walking reaching over the rail to the outboard, pulling the damn rope to start, getting trashed by even a dingy wake going by. Well, I sold the Hunter 23 and now have a Oday 30. The last couple of years we (my son and I) spent a few weeks on the Bay and got a real taste of "living aboard" I love it! Sailing alone is my dream but it gets boring real fast. I don't get much time now to get on the bay now because it takes at least one long day and evening to get there from here. (Bristol pa on the tidal Delaware) I do dream of a 35-42 for my ultimate live aboard, and I've no problem thinking I can handle it. I may be weird but I truely feel a larger boat is easier to handle.

For the most part single handing (the experts will chime in I'm sure) is using your mind and logic instead of pure muscle. Knowing my limitations up to certain wind conditions is very important also. But, I'm not going out in 30 knot winds because I need to prove something. I don't think to my knowledge any man on earth has really conquered the sea yet. have they? But they will try (giggles)

Oh, be sure to check out the "her sailnet" section too!


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## jmw (Oct 21, 2008)

Well, it's been a while since I wrote in. I had the same issue as you did and as much as I liked my 19 ft. Montego, she was too limiting and not so comfortable when there was any chop. In the interim, I bought a 30 ft. custom built boat (Bluewater Marine) vintage 1967 (supposedly a Bill Tripp design) but upgraded and loved by the former owner. I spent the end of the 2009 and all of the 2010 sailing season getting to know her and her systems. She's a good Bay boat/coastal cruiser with the systems that make it possible to do overnight sailing. She's not fast but is a relatively easy boat to sail and single-hand. I've single-handed her in light airs, but this season I've had no problem finding crew which is fine, too. Except for 4 shrouds of standing rigging which I had local riggers replace, she was in fine condition. I currently keep her in the Middle River area. I'm learning as I go, especially the systems. It helps to find new friends who know more than I do and have them sail with me and be able to ask them for advice and help. I am still thinking liveaboard but not necessarily with this boat. My idea about living aboard is not to circumnavigate or anything like that but would be to cruise the Chesapeake Bay for a while and then gradually make my way down into the Caribbean. I am reading other folks adventures and am planning some longer trips next sailing season. For example, I'd like to sail down to Solomons and to Tangier Island. I am still doing passages on other boats to get other boat experience : besides doing 4-day and 2-day Bay trips on other boats, I've also been able to do a "training passage" up the coast of Central America (Panama to Isla Mujeres) to get more overnight experience in more open water. I'm doing a winter cruise this December in the Grenadines on a 40 ft. catamaran with some members of Downtown Sailing Center, and so on. I'm just starting to think about what boat would want to sail in blue water. Needless to say, I'm always happy to crew for someone else who might need crew: it gives me much-needed experience. I'm partial to monohulls: Calibers, some Beneteaus, and the Fast Passage 39 comes to mind because of the thin water in parts of the Bay and the Caribbean.


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## Faster (Sep 13, 2005)

Hey jmw... thanks for updating the board.. sounds like you've had a good couple of years.
Welcome back!


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