How much time do you spend at sea?

[ffiill]

When I bought my 34 footer 10 years ago and being based on the west coast of Scotland I had visions of being off here there and everywhere.
Because my little business keeps me on the road seven days a week from April until September the reality is I will be lucky if I even manage a week during the season.
So I have to admit that my boat is one of those that never goes anywhere..
I know I am not alone.
Every day I pass Dochgarroch on the Caley Canal and see boats that never go anywhere.
So which catagory are you in?

 

[jac]

Ours does not go out as much as I would like. Since launch at the end of ,March we've done 2 weekends as a family, 1 weekend with my cousin, 5 days and the RTI weekend with mates and 1'weekend as a caravan. However not used her for a month. We have a 2 week cruise coming up and maybe 1 weekend with mates and 1 or 2 as family before she comes out in December.

 

[Sgeir]

Normally about 60 days a year. This year will be less owing to family and work and commitments, as well as some pretty dismal weather.

 

[Wiesmier]

Every week -weather permitting - which means i often don't get out up here. Still, with a superyacht like our Leisure17 one can just enjoy whatever harbour she happens to be in - Cromor, Isle of Lewis at the moment

 

[Daydream believer]

Before I officially retired the longest the wife & i had was 28 weeks.
Now I am retired most of my sailing is single handed & I have just had 7 week cruise to camaret. following a 1 week shake down with a friend. End of this week I am off for another 4 weeks to Oostende because the family want to have holidays there plus I want to go to the Paulusfestein
Most years I do a long trip. In last 3 years I have done 2 single handed UK circumnavigations which take about 12 weeks. rarely do local hops as having done it so much it gets boring
Do lots of cross channel hops so I rarely use the boat less than 12 weeks a year. Several years I have taken boat to St Peter Port so family can use as a caravan for a week then I have cruised the area for a week or so. Coupled with the trip there & back taking 10-12 days each way

Does not leave much time to sail my Phantom but I do weekend racing in that if I am at home
Also have a 1 metere model yacht & am member of a local club but do not seem to get the time to do a lot

 

[johnalison]

Three months "at sea" each year for the last fifteen years, plus short trips either end. Cruising range from Ireland (once) to Poland. O dear, that's about £100 per day if I write off the cost of the boat and ignore other expenses.

 

[AngusMcDoon]

I work only winters. I go sailing once a year in Scotland for a period of about four months and cover about 2500 miles, although the weather has reduced the miles this year.

 

[Kelpie]

If you count the day job, I'm at sea about 120 days a year...

 

[snowleopard]

I built the boat for long-distance cruising and we spent 14 months continuously on board covering over 10,000 miles. Now we're living ashore again I find there is a constant demand on my time and it's a real fight to defend a week or two here and there from one commitment or another. And I'm retired!

This year we're not even launching

 

[Topcat47]

Nowhere near enough. SWMBO has ways of keeping me ashore that the commandant of Chateau d'Iff could learn from.

 

[Colvic Watson]

We keep saying we're going to do winter sailing but never really do, maybe three days out of the marina from November to March. Spring is two weeks cruise, a week at summer half term and eight weeks in the summer. The price is almost no weekends ever other than a Saturday 'caravan' night.

 

[harry potter]

Frustrated sailor. If only. Tempus fugit.

 

[LadyInBed]

After being made redundant in 95 I went sailing for 5 months. I learned that you earn to live, not live to earn, so as soon as I had enough money to last for six months, I stopped work and went sailing.
I suggest you look at your work / life balance!

 

[capnsensible]

More than I spend on land!

 

[maby]

Ours doesn't move much, but we spend close to 50% of our time aboard. When we ordered it, I did speculate about the possibility of asking them to quote us a price with the engine, mast, rigging and sails deleted.

 

[snooks]

Not as much as I should go out.

I can only use her every other weekend, and invariably there has been some grim weather, when the weather hasn't been grim, my work load has got in the way. I have a week booked out at the end of August and a few days before that too. But I'm below the £1,000/day mark :0)

So far I've been to Cherbourg and Cowes and the odd day sail for work. Other times I've just been down to the boat and worked on her – as in paid work, not paying work :0) – or with my daughter and we don't go anywhere, but I convert the saloon into a soft play area and she enjoys bouncing around and playing with her bricks and toys.

Now I'm more comfortable single handing her I can see myself getting more use out of her....once I fix the things that need fixing...

 

[Vegable]

I generally do about 1500 miles a year. This year about 750 of that was a 3 week trip to the Faroes. The real answer to the question is.... not enough! To do the sailing I want means having the boat in Scotland (Arisaig) but living in N.W. Wales means long periods of absence which makes the heart grow a lot fonder and a lot of pine-ing! Every year there's always something which gets in the way. It used to be work and children now it's grandchildren and grandparent duties, or a new kitchen, bathroom, house needs painting, wife wants to go bird watching in Bulgaria, and so on and on and on and on........ All I want to do is sail! Oh to be a young single man again. Then I could go off and do what I wanted when I wanted.........only then I didn't appreciate it and wanted someone to share it with!!!
Oh would some power the gift gives us to see ourseleves in the future! (Sorry Mr Burns! I think Homer has got it about right!)
Mike

 

[Dave-Shafa]

I was on my boat today. First time for a month. Showing her to a prospective buyer.
This year thought I would do 6 months on west coast as I did in 2009 but health put paid to that idea.
Now just out every two weeks.

 

[wazza]

A couple of weekends in May then a week and a weekend in June after that a 3 week summer cruise then a few weekends after..

 

[30boat]

Work gets in the way a lot I'm afraid.