# Another wannabe sailor



## FiftycalJake (Oct 17, 2012)

hey there,
i just want to say hi to the community here! i grew up in Florida around the gulf and hope to move back sometime soon. i have had a great interest in living on a sailboat recently which has brought me to this forum(first forum i've joined). i look forward to getting some sound advice on living aboard a boat as well as some bad advice-hehe. i hope my concerns and questions get good comments. i also hope i can meet some new friends here that will help me along my way to being a decent sailor. 
i dont have much experience in sailing but i'm willing and able to learn. i am still looking for a boat and i'm not sure what i should get. i know i want something 30+ feet so i have room to stretch. any suggestions would be awesome. i know i want to sail to the bahamas and possibly out of the country(all to be determined) when i get my new home. so if you see me on i'm probly reading posts and advice from others but convo is always welcome! 

c-ya around the forums-----FiftycalJake


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## SHNOOL (Jun 7, 2007)

First off, GREAT to have you here.... secondly we'd be happy to help you in your search, in order for us to help you, we'll need more information...

Start first by researching some other peoples quests here for liveaboard boats. 
SailNet Community - Search Results

Then ask away!


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## bobperry (Apr 29, 2011)

I was a wannabe sailor 52 years ago Jake.
Now I'm just an old sailor.


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## SHNOOL (Jun 7, 2007)

Jake - Bob's a good reason to ask your questions here! Legends live here (I ain't one of them).


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## DonScribner (Jan 9, 2011)

Jake,

If you haven't sailed before and have a middle income budget, consider a large trailer sailer. A 25 footer can keep you and a friend for long weekends and close-quarter weeks but at a fraction of the cost. if you like it, move up. If you don't, Craigslist. A trailerable 25 will run between $5k & $10k, depending on what your are looking for. Launch and retrieval is no big deal once you get used to it. And all the mooring/slip fees and marina costs are gone. Then, if you find that you actually do bleed sea water and enjoy standing in a cold rain, peeling off Ben Franklins, sell and buy a big boy. 

Don


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## FiftycalJake (Oct 17, 2012)

well honestly i dont have much sailing experience at all. i do however know that i dont want a boat on a trailer. i want to go all in and if i cant take the boat out to sail till i know how to at least i can live on it. i would like to know what is to small to live on? i would be more likely to get a rough boat and fix it up while living on it so i would know the ins and outs of it. im not rich but i do have enough o get a fixer upper. with that said i figure it will be about a year maybe 2 before i take the plunge.


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## bobperry (Apr 29, 2011)

Years ago my engineer and his wife lived about a small 26'er for two years. I could not have done that. Maybe. The size you need to live aboard will depend upon your life style but I think you need to be looking for a 30' boat. The size of the boat is more about you than it is the boat.


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## FiftycalJake (Oct 17, 2012)

well said bob--i think a 30+footer is what i'll be in the market for as it seems they have more to offer then something smaller. i have been doing some research and to me they offer more headroom and more options to do what i intend to use it for. i do have a dog so theres more questions as to how to deal with that aswell. i'll be reading these forums for answers to questions im sure have been asked already.


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## tomperanteau (Jun 4, 2009)

We have a dog and she is great to have aboard. That said, you can always start smaller and cheaper to learn on, then upgrade to what you want once you have learned how to sail and how the systems on a sailboat are put together. The more you know about sailboats in general, the better your decisions will be when you find that boat of your dreams. Less emotion and more logic can keep you out of trouble.


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## Hawaiigirl (Jan 3, 2012)

We are a family of three on a 26 foot with a dog and pet squirrel...we are at a marina so it is actually not bad...been on the boat for almost 4 months now


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## tomperanteau (Jun 4, 2009)

Hawaiigirl said:


> We are a family of three on a 26 foot with a dog and pet squirrel...we are at a marina so it is actually not bad...been on the boat for almost 4 months now


I respect anyone that could fit all that into a 26 footer.


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## FiftycalJake (Oct 17, 2012)

yeah i have to agree with tom!! thats alot not to mention your clothes and food are also in the boat. do you have much room left? do you guys have to spend the time on the boat sitting? do you spend most of your time outside the boat? i guess its only 4 feet less then what i was thinking of getting so maybe i could look at something a bit smaller then 30 seeing it would only be for myself.


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