It's the END .. Sold Up ..

[[70521]]

I feel "The End" by The Doors should be playing.

Enjoy your new venture.

 

[Davegriff]

Seem to recall Richard Hammond had a camper van he also went boating in. Saves on the tow-bar......

 

[gerry99]

and......

just owning one makes me happy

the thought of not having one would be awful

I get value from mine even when I am not on it

Dylan

+1

 

[E39mad]

We do not own a boat.

I vowed when I worked selling yachts (both new and brokerage) over an 8 year period that I would only own one once I was semi or fully retired and could chose when I wanted to sail rather than being dictated to by work/children etc. You are then at liberty to look at the weather and tides and decide if it's worth going!

In the meantime I try and get some sailing in either by charter or the occasional regatta.

 

[oldbilbo]

We have owned a yacht for the past 5 years but the weather has really got to us. A 3 hour trip each way has not helped. Ok. We have enjoyed ourselves but I can think of better things to spend £3000 a year on keeping a boat in a marina. When you think how much you actually use the boat is it worth it, I have booked 4 weeks ( 2 x 2 weeks ) sailing in the sun for less than it costs to keep a boat in the Uk. With the sale of the boat we have bought a Motor Home which has far more comfort than the boat. It sits on our drive way and costs next to nothing to keep. It really does make you wonder why we ever bothered to own a boat in the Uk.

I believe I've found part of the answer....

My boat 'sits on our driveway, so costs next to nothing to keep'. No long and expensive drives in jam-packed weekend traffic, no chafed-through mooring lines, no phone calls from harbourmasters in the middle of the night, no hassle from insurers....

I can see the thing from our lounge window, pop down into her cockpit in a trice, and sit there with a G&T in hand, surveying the sunset. There are several berths below, a hob and cooker, books to read, lamps to light and trim..... and should I want a shower, the walk 'ashore' is far shorter than it ever was in any marina I know.... and I don't need 'jetons'! Car parking is right alongside - and free, I have no concerns about 'eedjits' manoeuvring too close or dropping an anchor right on top of mine, and if the weather forecast turns bad, I can be 'tucked up snug as a bug in a rug' in my own bed at home, in less than a minute.

I have most of the pleasures of boat ownership and few of the problems - and, with what I save in marina fees, I can afford to charter somewhere 'interesting' twice a year and simply hand the thing back at the end.

Could it be I've got something about right at last....?

 

[Spyro]

If I were in your position I wouldn't consider a 6 hour round trip to the boat. I can drive to mine in 10-15 mins cycle in 25. I regularly nip down to do a few odd jobs done. That's part of the "hobby".
Saying you have got a camper van sitting in the drive doesn't really compare for me. You have still got the same weather to put up with, jam packed roads, fuel at over £6 a gallon and only getting 20 mpg doesn't appeal to me.

 

[sighmoon]

I have booked 4 weeks ( 2 x 2 weeks ) sailing in the sun for less than it costs to keep a boat in the Uk.

It looks like you got a cracking deal there.

Best price I got, for a boat big enough for the family, for a week in the school summer holidays would be about £1700, so after 3 weeks sailing, owning would work out cheaper.

 

[Koeketiene]

You're not getting much value from your house, are you?

Just consider all that wasted council tax

 

[Lakesailor]

and the insurance, water rates, phone line, mortgage (if applicable), Sky, TV licence, fuel standing-charges, etc.

Makes me feel ill just to think about it.

 

[blueglass]

My ultimate aim is to buy something much larger, keeping her i the Ionian and living on-board 4-5 months of the year when retired. At least the savings from not paying for marina fees etc will go towards my dream.

I ve done lots of things on boats but the best thing I ever did was what you describe above.
As you get older the appeal of braving the cold wet English weather grows very thin.

 

[laika]

I get value from mine even when I am not on it

Agreed. Try getting to the Azores by camper van if there's a zombie outbreak in the UK. I've seen "28 Days Later". My boat is mainly an insurance policy. Now if only the NMEA would reply to my letters about adding PGNs for background radiation I could get on with hooking up the boat's geiger counters...

 

[Champagne Murphy]

I feel "The End" by The Doors should be playing.

Enjoy your new venture.

Or 'Tragedy' by the BeeGees.
I'm lucky, I enjoy winter maintenance so if I were daft enough to do an audit each year of how much my fun costs per hour the deal would look a lot sweeter!

 

[Ru88ell]

The thought of not having a boat would destroy me. The thought of having a camper van would destroy me. I live in the Midlands and take my boat with me like Erbster. I tend to pick a nice week of weather and go to different places. Just being afloat, or preparing for it, makes life worth living.

 

[Rivers & creeks]

I think the key lies in the original post - three hour trip each way. That's a six hour round trip - no wonder they never used it! I didn't know any part of the UK was that far from the coast.

 

[sailorman]

I think the key lies in the original post - three hour trip each way. That's a six hour round trip - no wonder they never used it! I didn't know any part of the UK was that far from the coast.

There is a couple based in SYH who live in Blackpool

 

[Lakesailor]

I believe the furthest you can be from the coast is about 90 miles.
However that assumes that the boat is moored in the nearest bit of sea.

 

[Ru88ell]

I believe the furthest you can be from the coast is about 90 miles.

That's where I am; nearest sea is the Severn Estuary somewhere. Aberdovey is about 100 miles. The benefit of being here is that I can, and do, head off in any direction chasing the best weather for the week I have to play with.

 

[seanfoster]

Agreed. Try getting to the Azores by camper van if there's a zombie outbreak in the UK. I've seen "28 Days Later". My boat is mainly an insurance policy

Wasn't the Isle of Wight the safe haven?

 

[Rivers & creeks]

There is a couple based in SYH who live in Blackpool

That's just mad - The Irish Sea is an outstanding place to cruise - and they swap that for the Orwell?

 

[seanfoster]

I think the key lies in the original post - three hour trip each way. That's a six hour round trip - no wonder they never used it! I didn't know any part of the UK was that far from the coast.

I live in Derbyshire, and the nearest coast is Skegness about 2 hours away, but do you really want to go there?!