SAILING WITH BABY -advice please

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mixmaster

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We're not far from our due date and while "regular" dads think about prams, cots and what have you, sailing dad's are bound to be wondering about the sailing set up.

We keep the boat in the Solent and it's a 45ft racer/cruiser. I have met plenty of parents who have gone on little fair weather voyages when the baby is weeks old and we would love to do that weather permitting. Somewhere like Newtown Creek or Beaulieu sounds perfect.

What set up does everyone recommend? A carry cot strapped down inside? I plan to buy a lifejacket as a matter of principle but when will the little one actually wear it? Any other time except the dinghy ride to shore?
In terms of lifejackets, I've seen these ones:
http://www.lifejackets.co.uk/categories/17/baby-lifejackets-from-newborn-to-around-14-months
The Baltic seems to get good mention on the forums.
There's also the Crewsaver Crib:
http://marinestore.co.uk/CS10142.html

I was hoping for a 2 week west country cruise around Devon with perhaps mom and baby missing the delivery trips when he's around 3 months old? Realistic?

Appreciate the advice.
 
Take it easy and don't set your sights too high? A 2 week cruise with a 3 month old may be pushing it - for starters, you won't believe how much laundry someone so small can generate! Not to mention interrupted sleep patterns (which will be just establishing around that time), change of scene, losing your support network of family & friends, a knackkered mum unable to do anything but console the little one...

On the other hand, you may get an angel who sleeps through the whole experience. Only you will be able to tell what's right and when. I was wedged in between the berths on the cabin floor at 6 weeks old for my first time, but it ain't for everyone, or every baby.

And the golden rule - WHAT SHE SAYS GOES. Don't rock the boat, or you'll regret it: a new mum is a dangerous animal! :-D

Best of luck.
 
Do pass congratulations onto A.

Unfortunately can't help as nearly 3 years down the line still haven't managed to get ours on the water.
 
I will pass it on. I believe you had more than one to contend with!

When I said west country cruise, I meant more like a week in Dartmouth followed by a week in salcombe. Anyways, one step at a time. Let's focus on just going down to the boat and going somewhere local in nice weather.
 
I assume single handing isn't a problem?

RB knows more than most about juggling aspirations with a family... Respect there - my 2 are separated by 4 years and that's fine, thankyou very much. Like him, we've not sailed as a family at all (not helped by not having a boat!) but aim to.

Sounds like you have the right idea - little by little. But expect to do everythign yourself.
 
I took our daughter out when she was that sort of age, we used to strap down a rocker which had a 5 point harness in the cabin. She was quite happy, she slept in her mosses basket if I remember correctly.

I think it was easier for us once sorted to stay on the boat with baby than at home. Yet we did not go far a couple of hours a day plus the odd day off, within the Solent only.

Basically we only used the life-jacket for dinghy runs.

My biggest tip is once you have your child onboard you are sailing FOR THEM not for you.

There have been many days where I have sailed with the extra reef in shortened the trip etc. My daughter still wants to go sailing and has no fear of it, when she started sailing that's what I wanted to achieve.

I see hear to many people who have been put off by overambitious sailing family, where the child just lost interest...
 
Our little girl started around 6 months, and the front v-birth on our boat was a great place for her. We also used the car seat, we made sure it was secure before setting off, then if we were both needed for whatever reason we had a safe place to put her quickly.

Shes now 15months and walking so this season is going to be interesting! Just dont try and do too much in one go, and enjoy yourselves :)

Best wishes
 
Buy a car seat from a charity shop and bolt it on to a plank that will fit in the washboard slot so baby can sit and see you and be totally secure. A carry cot secured below for sleeping.

I didn't have a boat when my kids were little and really wish we had grown up as a sailing family.

Hope the big day goes well.
 
Sailing with a baby is much easier than sailing with a toddler - ours was on board within about 3 weeks of being born and sailed regularly throughout his first 2 seasons. At that age they will spend a lot of time asleep.

Provided that you are happy to handle the "passage-making" single handed there is no reason to curtail your sailing significantly - except being more cautious about the weather. I would have no concerns about taking baby on the "delivery" legs provided the forecast was good.

The key piece of equipment for us was a carry cot that included fixings that could be used as a lay-flat car seat. With that secured in the cabin, and baby strapped in, you could have total confidence that he is safe whatever happens. It is also useful to have a car seat that can be secured in the cockpit.

We had the crewsaver crib - reassuring to have on board but not something you would use unless you had an emergency - ours only came out of the bag once and that was to try putting baby into it when it was new. I think they are more appropriate for new borns than the mini lifejackets - you can put baby into it still wrapped up in blankets/shawls and then strap him back into his cot and as they are fully enclosed they would keep the baby safer and warmer than the other sort. In fact we still have ours packed away somewhere - I'll probably add it to the For Sale section later.

Good luck - and I hope you enjoy a great season sailing.
 
Both of our children were on board straight from maternity wing. First one was on a 30 footer in UK, second one on 40 footer in Med - as liveaboards there was no alternative.

Laundry was a stress (disposable nappies a Godsend despite environmental black mark on our green cred). Not too bad when weather pleasant and you can wash baby suits by hand and dry outside.

For our daughter we constructed a cot surround on a saloon berth - our son was in a berth with a decent lee board so he was fine.

It did mean that one person was on baby watch (or asleep recovering from baby watch) at all times and the other person was effectively single handing.

Speaking as the Mum, I really appreciated having my husband around with me on the boat rather than being stuck in a house alone with an infant while he was out at work all day.

My advice......it's perfectly "do-able" to cruise with kids but let your instincts guide you.... no point in getting exhausted. Agree that it gets more demanding when they are up and around and into everything as toddlers!
 
I think armchairsailor hit the nail on the head, completey depends on the baby and how knackered you guys are. Having just had a little one, we went down to the boat for a few hours first, just chilling out. Then try an overnighter but not sailing. A 2 week trip without finding out is baby will sleep with the noise of being on a boat would not be fun. Plan on doing everything single handed, and then if your wife gets some time to crew while baby sleeps then its a bonus.

As for life jackets, we struggled to find one small enough. I would only use it for the walk down the pontoon or dinghy ashore until they are big enough to crawl.

As for securing, I know it may be being abit 'health and safety', but travel seats are not designed to be used for long periods. If not heeling over too much, I would secure the crib./moses basket in a safe place in a berth rather than leave them strapped in the car seat. Maybe roll up some towels and place either side to stop him/her from rolling about.
 
We had both of ours on board from 3 weeks and 3 month respectivly now 5 and 9. We have always managed a 2 week summer cruise, + lots of long weekends in the solent, and it used to be on a 25 ft boat untill last year. Babies are pretty easy on the boat, Standard bucket car seat can genrally be placed or tied in a wide range of positions and they just love bunks with lee cloths/ boards. Take toys etc. so that they can amuse them selves if they get bored with bits of rope, drift wood etc. Go to places where they can play on a beach etc. when they get bigger. Get a baby / kids harness from Crewsaver and add a crutch strap, so you can limit thier roaming when they become mobile. Assume on the whole one person in charge of boat and one in charge of baby. We have very fond memories of those times and are still enjoying it, decisions on how far to let them take the tender now!
 
Car seat is great - ours in mounted under the spray hood, but can be moved to a quarter berth if the weather is very rough.

Our son is 18 months now and has already covered over one thousand miles - some of which has been asleep in the car seat.

Other very useful things have been.

Cushi-Tush a seat with a built in table very good for meal times.

Snoozy wrap. This allows one to velcro baby to bunk - behind lee cloth. We have found sleep to be blissful even when rather rough.
 
sjdtuk said:
Cushi-Tush a seat with a built in table very good for meal times.
Click to expand...

Group 0 car seats are ok early on but unless you adjust the angle the poor nipper can spend quite a lot of time looking at the sky. I fully endorse the plastic folding chair with removable table (as normally put on a full size dining chair) - you can tie the chair securely in the cockpit, clip the nipper in and they immediately regard it as their space with a grandstand view of proceedings.

Take plenty of sunscreen and hats (they will throw a couple overboard!) and, as others have said, keep it simple and easy if you want mother and child to come back for more.
 
andyjcox1 said:
.......As for securing, I know it may be being abit 'health and safety', but travel seats are not designed to be used for long periods. If not heeling over too much, I would secure the crib./moses basket in a safe place in a berth rather than leave them strapped in the car seat. Maybe roll up some towels and place either side to stop him/her from rolling about.
Click to expand...


http://www.babythings4u.co.uk/item/...ium=google-base&utm_campaign=Google+Base+Feed

Was our solution to that problem. folds up surprisingly small...
 
We've got three separated by only 22 months, i.e. there are twins lurking in there somewhere. We managed the odd day out only until the youngest were about 14 months old, when we embarked on a 10 day cruise. We gave up washable nappies for the time sailing and you need somewhere really good to stow the disposable ones on board where you can't smell them (although the Solent probably has better disposal facilities than the west coast of Scotland).

Our best devices were guard rail netting all round although I guess you don't need to worry about that until next year, plus a berth that was totally secured by netting so they could stand up and jump around without any danger of falling out.

Ours are now 9, 7 and 7. Our daughter could hold a course age 6, and they all managed an 8 hour passage to the Outer Hebrides last year. Our 9 year old, aged 8 at the time, was beside himself with excitement during our first race last year. He was yelling at us to get the spinner up quicker, so it is all worth it eventually!

Definitely build up slowly. We started with no more than a 2 hour passage in the first year, and would not go out in windy conditions. We now have 3 happy boat children.

Good luck and well done!
 
Wow. Thanks for all the advice and encouragement. Will definitely take it one step at a time. Single handing is not a problem except for perhaps mooring/anchoring in certain situations. Idea is exactly as most suggest. First a night in harbour or maybe a short 2 hour trip and then we'll see.

The mum to be has a good attitude and has two-handed with me on passages lasting up to a week.

What's a Snoozy wrap?

Thanks!
 
mixmaster said:
We're not far from our due date and while "regular" dads think about prams, cots and what have you, sailing dad's are bound to be wondering about the sailing set up.
Click to expand...

Congrats - the first two years are easy.

We didn't bother with lifejackets until they were about 2 yo - then LJ is required as soon as they can climb the companionway unaided.

A pop-up cot inside lee-cloths worked for the first season (from 3 months old), then I replaced a lee-cloth with a full bunkboard that stayed until his younger sister was 4 (then he moved to the forepeak) - *After* he gave the game away by demonstrating how he could climb *into* his bunk on his own one night...

You *will* be single-handing a fair amount of time, and *must* persuade SWMBO that, providing there is no danger, she *is* required on deck for 2 mins for mooring, despite the crying from down below.

Similarly, "sitting on Mummy's lap" meant we didn't bother with deck-mounted seats - YourBoatMayVary - I didn't start using chutes & kites until after the children could look after themselves ;->

Our children used to fall asleep whenever we started the engine, and we once made Cowes from Newport, early one morning, before either of them had woken up.

We've never had to put it into practice, but I agreed with SWMBO that for toddlers, the MOB plan would involve me jumping in (with non-auto LJ) while she got the boat back to us.

Oh yes, rule of thumb: "No voyage longer in hours that the youngest crew is in years." applies from age 3 onwards. ('tho I added them together for an ~9 hour run last year ;-)
 
We raised our daughter starting out on a 27 footer for almost 10 years. We started out clueless and constantly thinking about everything that could go wrong. That was a very long list. I won't even get into what my mother was constantly telling us. You think we were hanging the kid upside down over a feeding frenzy of hungry sharks. We ended up just making the cabin one big play pen / nursery. The same pretty much for the cockpit. blankets and pillows here and there. I also put up fish net on all the stanchions as a Just in Case somehow some way she got up and out of the cockpit without one of us seeing her. That all worked out great. Life jackets were a challenge when she was little....after a year or two it became much easier. The best thing about being on a boat with a kid is the motion just puts them right to sleep (at least that was the effect with ours). As they grow a few years make sure they don't climb out the forward cabin hatch and onto the bow without your knowledge. I was shocked at how quickly kids learn a boat is just a big jungle jim playset. They will hang and swing and find all sorts of things to play with (and get in trouble with). When they are old enough to understand make sure to establish rules early on with kids and continually re-enforce. Did I mention establish basic rules early and continually re-enforce? (hint hint)

Raising a kid on a sailboat has been extreemly rewarding for my whole family. Many times I sit there watching my own kid at the helm and realize how lucky I am to be there at that moment in time. To me the purpose of life is to feel alive and to enjoy life. When you can enjoy it with family it is all the better. Of course we added a couple dogs to the mix too. But that is a whole different story.

Good luck and congratulations.
 
Ours was born last March so have just got through our first season.

We had the car seat strapped to saloon berth for when all hands were needed on deck (attached 2x eyes below the seat cushion to aid this but a luggage strap is also very useful)

We had a Samsonite Pop-Up Travel Cot for overnight, this conveniently had toggles on the underside so we fashioned a couple of velcro straps to attach it to a saloon cushion. Now useless to us so pm me if you wanna buy it.

Finally we used a baby bjorn for all other times.

btw, all the above gear is *really* useful on land also so we had no extra expenditure for being on the boat.

With this a lifejacket was pointless (swmbo insisted on buying one but it never came out of its packing). If you do have to buy one, note the weight limits: he'll be 10kg in a year but prob only 15kg aged 2.

We found that he slept better on the boat than at home. Engine noise, gentle rocking and both parents always in close proximity all contribute.

We are now making preparations for year 2: including the previously mentioned guard rail netting, baby lifejacket/harness, 2nd hand car seat on washboards and forepeak play area.

btw, does anybody have any photos of toddlers on board? would be nice to see what others have done as i'm expecting this year to be much harder than last.
 
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