I want to sail the world - where do I start?

[FlyingGoose]

Just to clarify my position on buying a larger yacht and set out around Scotland,
I was a dinghy instructor in my early 20.s and born into the sea and been on boats most of my memories , so when I got my forever ocean boat, I put a plan of 5 years to get to know her inside out and learn to sail her. Before we go to the big blue
This was our first large boat , but the principles of safety , sailing and understanding wind, weather , sea are there.
So I praise you for your dream and go for it , but gain experience in what ever form you choose .
If it was me starting out now I would skip the dinghies and go through the RYA courses starting with competent crew and working upwards, and getting as much experience as you can get,
This does not have to be done over years , we all learn tasks differently and you can be off sooner than you think but with the knowledge which makes it a better experience

 

[Bajansailor]

If it was me starting out now I would skip the dinghies and go through the RYA courses starting with competent crew and working upwards

I would slightly disagree - if you start off by learning to sail in a dinghy then everything is decided by you - ie you do not have instruments like depth sounders or wind speed / direction meters to help to guide you.
And I think it is very useful to be able to gauge where the wind is coming from, and how strong it is - dinghy sailors learn to do this by feel, but so many cruising sailors do seem to rely implicitly on their instruments.
I sailed once on an overnight passage from here to the Grenadines with a couple who had crossed the Atlantic on their yacht - they had a blog about the trip across, during which they mentioned that the trade winds were very strong, Force 6 - 7 the whole way. I found out on our passage that their wind speed meter was over-reading by about 7 - 10 knots - but they had never been dinghy sailors, and they trusted it over their gut instincts.

 

[cherod]

I would slightly disagree - if you start off by learning to sail in a dinghy then everything is decided by you - ie you do not have instruments like depth sounders or wind speed / direction meters to help to guide you.
And I think it is very useful to be able to gauge where the wind is coming from, and how strong it is - dinghy sailors learn to do this by feel, but so many cruising sailors do seem to rely implicitly on their instruments.
I sailed once on an overnight passage from here to the Grenadines with a couple who had crossed the Atlantic on their yacht - they had a blog about the trip across, during which they mentioned that the trade winds were very strong, Force 6 - 7 the whole way. I found out on our passage that their wind speed meter was over-reading by about 7 - 10 knots - but they had never been dinghy sailors, and they trusted it over their gut instincts.

If you need to go on a course to learn which way the wind is blowing and how hard then you best staying at home !!

 

[Baggywrinkle]

Just one piece of final advice before you chase your dreams .... if you are a member of the flat earth society then I'd cancel your membership before you end up being very disappointed. ?

 

[newtothis]

If you're not working (i.e. time is not an issue) and you've got some cash, you could do worse than doing a zero to hero course. In three months time you'll have a Yachtmaster Offshore piece of paper. That will give you the confidence and experience to know whether the whole lark really is right for you, and if it is, you'll have learnt some good skills. If not, then a good experience and cheaper than a boat.
While doing that, read lots of books/magazines, watch lots of youtube and even ask questions here.
By early next year you'll have a much better idea of what you need in terms of a boat, and have enough knowledge to go out relatively safely and getting the experience to start your voyage: start cruising the South Coast, pop across the channel, Biscay, Med, Atlantic, Panama, Pacific...

 

[differentroads]

My advice?
Read Shrimpy by Shane Acton. Sailed round the world in a 19' plywood bilge keeler. He liked that so much he went round again.

Read Webb Chiles about sailing across the Pacific in a 18' Drascombe dinghy.

Read anything you can get your hands on by Lin and Larry Pardy. Their mantra was go small, go simple, go now.

I was never tough or self reliant enough to emulate the first two. But by the age of fifty I'd managed to buy a 34' yacht and start to get her ready to go anywhere while saving up to afford it. And now I'm living my dream. Key things I've learned:

£10k on the boat is enough if you can spend time searching for it. Last year I met a Swedish guy who'd just bought a 30' yacht in Sicily for €3500, spent another €2000 on it and was heading out for the Carribean. It can be done.

Finding a bargain boat isn't easy and it probably isn't in Britain. If I was doing this again I'd buy a camper van, drive it to the Med and search out the boat that would take me anywhere. Or Scandinavia - this fellow helps in hunting out bargain boats Log in to Facebook | Facebook

£20k won't last long to live on a boat. But if you are used to living cheap and can turn your skills into money, you can earn cash. It takes a bit of time to get known as someone who can fix things cheaply but in every harbour there's always people who need their boat rewiring, engine fixing, etc.

Places like the Med can be cheap to live in if you avoid marinas. There are people on YBW forums and the Med Sailing forum on Facebook that are out there doing it. It makes for a very complicated life, finding cheap and safe anchorages, the cheapest place to haul out, etc but, hey, you've got time to sort out the complicated stuff, right?

Training and learning to sail a dinghy is a good way to start. But don't let it slow you down or cost too much. Buying a good enough boat and setting off is another way to learn. People do it and sometimes it goes badly, mostly it doesn't.

Don't spend another miserable winter in Britain. I snapped in March 2018 and said ''eff it, I'm not spending another winter in this s**thole.'' By August I was in Spain. Two years later I'm still fixing up my boat as I sail around the Med but the temperature in winter rarely drops below 10° and the sun shines most days. Bliss.

EDITED to correct to Webb Chiles instead of Erskine Childers. My mistake, pointed out to me gently in a PM . Two very different sailors and writers.
I blame moreish cheap red wine and cheap but delicious steaks mixing headily with the sounds of a bunch of drunken lads singing andalucian folk songs (badly) ashore. This lifestyle can get to you if you don't resist it!

 

[differentroads]

Oh, and that Swedish guy was 70 years old doing his seventh Atlantic crossing. My wife asked him if he was looking for crew (I think she wanted rid of me for a month or two). ''No'' he said. ''I tried that once. I discovered that I don't like people''. The oceans are big and there's room for all of us, of every type and intention

 

[siwhi]

If I were you...

I'd get the Albin Vega in Martinique (Mikedefieslife in post 43) or something similar - sub £10k - and do the Caribbean for a couple of years (assuming Covid restrictions relax next year). Start in Martinique for a couple of months, then venture up and down, then maybe Central America or the US East Coast. A proper adventure - not too cheap in the islands but cheap as chips in Central America. Once I got bored I'd sail west...

 

[Chicchis435]

This is good advice. Start cheap and learn along the way within your comfort zone

 

[Seastoke]

Do you think we will here from crazy guy again.

 

[differentroads]

Do you think we will here from crazy guy again.

? Fair point. But I like to encourage people with crazy ideas. Maybe one in ten will make it. I did, after forty years of blathering on about it!

 

[cherod]

Do you think we will here from crazy guy again.

he is stuck up a muddy creek in a 14 ft dingy with no internet .

 

[Seastoke]

he is stuck up a muddy creek in a 14 ft dingy with no internet .

Not really interested in his sex life.

 

[Megs20Burt!]

Buy an under 30ft sailboat with a long keel and tiller steering, Albin or something similar. Should be able to pick one up for less than £10K easily. go through the boat with a fine toothed comb, check everything. Standing/running rigging, chainplates, windows, deck join and all fittings. Service winches, invest in strong ground tackle, install an additional running backstay. Make sure you have storm jibs or similar. Keep everything as simple as possible. You should be able to buy the boat and get it setup for less than £20k.

the big question would be, are you mentally, physically and emotionally able to do it?

The physical stress would be huge and non stop for days & weeks.

try sailing around Britain first and see how you get on...

 

[Seastoke]

Buy an under 30ft sailboat with a long keel and tiller steering, Albin or something similar. Should be able to pick one up for less than £10K easily. go through the boat with a fine toothed comb, check everything. Standing/running rigging, chainplates, windows, deck join and all fittings. Service winches, invest in strong ground tackle, install an additional running backstay. Make sure you have storm jibs or similar. Keep everything as simple as possible. You should be able to buy the boat and get it setup for less than £20k.

the big question would be, are you mentally, physically and emotionally able to do it?

The physical stress would be huge and non stop for days & weeks.

try sailing around Britain first and see how you get on...

He has already left , no the forum not to sail around the world.

 

[cherod]

Maybe both ?