RULES AGAINST LIVING ABOARD BOATS

(and how to do it anyway!)

One of the most pleasant lifestyles in Canada or anywhere with water, is living on board your own vessel. The West Coast is probably the best place for it. I did it for three years onboard our 40 foot ketch in Victoria BC and then another three years on various vessels in the Grey Funnel Line (Navy). What follows are some thoughts on what I experienced and where I think you could improve things. Feel free to hold your own opinions but these are mine! And like any sailor I think I am right!

Marine scenes from Vancouver Island BC Canada and the UK.

But first a warning. This webpage will connect you with tons of information about living on boats. The information is all free. First I give you an overview based on my own experience and then I offer you links to listings for boats, other sites with excellent information and yet another one from me on the Best Vessels For Liveaboard which is also free!. If you plan to live on board I suggest you begin to organize the information. Start a file folder or three ring binder and start transferring it to paper. Treat it as a research project because its going to be a big life style change for you and you should try to get it right. You can avoid a lot of problems at this stage. Ok -lets go!

From an environmental point of view, so important these days, the liveaboard has a miniscule carbon foot print with minimal use of such normal utilities such as water and power. We were happy to get 30 amps from shore power and often did with 15 except some winters when everyone had heaters running hogging as many amps as they could and we were lucky to get ten amps. Our land home now has 200 amp service or enough power for between 6 and 12 boats easily. Heating costs are a fraction of the cost of heating a land home. So, impact on the environment is very minimal and all one needs is a dock to tie up to (or an mooring buoy or good anchor and a dinghy.)

Costs can be either very high or very low depending on the type and size of the vessel and where she is docked. If you don't like your neighbour you can move! People live aboard all around the world in developed and undeveloped countries. It is a recognized and very attractive lifestyle and may of those who try it love it so much they stay aboard for life. Others will be horrified by the concept and have walk in closets bigger than the spaces people are living on board in.

With a seagoing vessel you can also explore the coastline or go blue water cruising and see the world. Its a lifestyle of adventure and happiness. You meet interesting vital people and live in absolutely beautiful surroundings that water front owners pay millions for. Unlike them, you are actually ON the water not just looking at.

You are directly connected with the environment and can feel changes in the wind and water conditions and there is no grass to cut or sidewalks to shovel in the winter.

One might think that this living style would be advantageous to citizens and society as a whole and that it would be promoted or at the least allowed.

Enter the bullshit.

In fact there are a raft of rules against the liveaboard that have made it increasingly difficult for people to live this lifestyle. In nearly all cases the rules or regulations have a degree of subtly to them. While you won't find a federal statute in Canada that prevents you from living on a vessel you are more likely to run into a rule or regulation usually at the Provincial or Municipal level that limits your ability to live onboard. I say subtle because they achieve the same effect as a law against liveaboards -that is they prevent it. Some examples?

1. Unlike a house in a subdivision -a marina or public wharf may require that your vessel is insured before you can live on board or even keep the vessel in the facility. At first this seems like a reasonable idea. Boats (like houses) are normally close together and obviously a fire on one could affect the vessels on either side. But often the vessels used for live aboard use are no longer suitable for cruising -their engines may not work or they may have been modified affecting their stability or they may not be carrying all the safety gear required for making passages. An insurance company will not issue a policy until the vessel is inspected by a marine surveyor and these boats won't pass so won't get insurance. No insurance and they aren't allowed into the marina. This is something that could be solved IF an insurance category for a liveaboard only vessel was developed as there are some that will never to go sea again but could be still safely used as liveaboards. However the way it works now is that in order to get comprehensive insurance on your vessel which is what is needed by the marinas you need hull insurance and in order to get hull insurance you need a survey.

2. There are rules against anchoring your vessel in a harbour area or some tidal areas. Again this seems at first, like an entirely reasonable rule but it has the effect of not allowing people to live aboard their vessels in such areas. In the housing market there are no similar rules and we regularly see foolish home owners build on a flood plain or on a steep slope subject to erosion and flooding. The rules to limit mooring buoys sound reasonable but again limit liveaboard use. An example of this was the Gorge waterway in Victoria BC. Locals were infuriated that liveaboards pushed out of the local government wharfs were dumping miniscule amounts of sewerage into the water (which regularly flushes out into the ocean). I can report to you what really happened is that at least one of the young fellows living on his boat was observed peeing into the gorge from his vessel and THIS is what enraged the locals who lived in high priced waterfront lots. I was driving along the Gorge one day and saw this. That never got into the paper as the reporting was "sanitized". The offended locals also participated in dumping over 100,000,000 litres of raw sewerage per day into the Straits of Juan de Fuca so go figure. You can learn more about that in our other page on VICTORIA BC SEWERS DUMPED INTO PACIFIC OCEAN

3. In certain areas, float homes need to meet house construction standards. Again this sounds perfectly reasonable. Perhaps it is. But it does prevent a person from building a reasonably well constructed and even attractive shed on floats and living in it. In fact, in the UK, often sheds are used as living spaces and study rooms etc and they are attractive but not built to house standards either. Often the type of person who wishes to live aboard is doing it as an lower price alternative to high house prices. At one time you could do this. And in fact you can do this and still have a visually pleasing structure that will not offend people walking up and down the dock. If you have ever been to Genoa Bay in BC or Maple Bay you will find examples of very pleasant looking structures that people have built which are not built to house standards but which still do the job and look great! I suspect its all about taxes. House standards require a building permit and that is linked to your tax roll and inspection fees. The cost of building to house standards is about $200 a square foot and to shed standards about $25 per square foot. Do the math. (costs vary with areas)

4. In many areas there is a limit on the number of liveaboards in a marina. Again this effectively prevents you from living in those marinas as usually their liveaboard spaces are full. In some marinas they ignore this and as long as you keep a low profile you can live aboard. This places the liveaboard in the position of breaking the local laws in order to live on their vessel. It is much easier for a marina to make money off a non liveaboard because fewer services need to be provided and so there is another tendency to limit the number of liveaboards.

5. In built up areas liveaboard spaces and foreshore facilities are extremely limited. The demand is there but the supply isn't. Because they put parking lots on foreshore land like this big one in the Victoria Waterfront. They could put the parking lot anywhere with a bit of planning but foreshore land is precious and some should be retained for marine use.

If you want to keep your boat ship shape you need a spot to work on it near your marina

Instead of boats and boatyards we have condo's and the boats get pushed out -you don't need foreshore for a condo but you do need it for a boat yard.

6. My experience is that there are no purpose built vessels in Canada for living aboard with the exception of float homes. Power and Sail vessels are converted by their owners to allow them to live on board. Harold Aune a BC designer built some very interesting houseboats before moving on to the successful Whitehall rowboat design in 1985 and I always felt that his designs were the nucleus of a potential purpose built liveaboard vessel industry. I watched one being built as I had a boat in the same yard at he time and saw others in local marinas over the years. It would have been interesting to follow the development had the market supported the concept at that time as I think the potential was there for a world class liveaboard design from Canada and Harold is a very talented designer who has applied his skills to the Whitehall project instead. The Whitehall's they produce are wonderful vessels and a joy to row. (two appear in the pictures below)

7. Fisherman's wharf in Victoria BC is one of the best examples on how rules and regulations were used to reduce and remove the number of liveaboards on the docks there. In the 1980's they had a vibrant little community of liveaboards there. People were living inexpensively and building up equity in their vessels. Part of that equity was related to the fact they had a space in a desirable area. This was the ONLY way a person of modest means could live on the waterfront in Victoria.

A well built float home at Fisherman's Wharf Victoria with a million dollar view.

Suddenly you needed a permit to live aboard and you could not transfer the permit so your equity in your liveaboard vessel was destroyed. I talked to one boater who felt that his investment lost $15,000 all the equity he had in it when the new liveaboard rules came in. The rates shot up and the reasonable winter layover rates suddenly replaced by higher and higher rates year round. Parking was suddenly turned to pay only. The net effect was that dozens of liveaboards were forced out. Some of these people had lived there for over ten or more years. Some were raising a family. There is quite a story there but it never made it into the media. I only know it because we kept our boat there for over 10 years and got to know several of the people and watched the process evolve. In fact I recall a lady who was quite a well loved character who lived on a vintage wood cruiser (called the White Iris as I recall) but unfortunately had a drinking problem. She apparently ran up the docks one evening naked brandishing a sword! She died on the dock some time later (drowned I believe) but she was always a happy person and was kind to me and my son who was a young lad at the time. She was a good example of the type of characters who lived there and made the place vibrant and interesting and a bit dangerous too. There were some really good parties there. In fact there was one lively finger of reprobates and another more sedate where families lived.

Private docks near fisherman's wharf Victoria BC with two Whitehall row boats

People still liveaboard in Fisherman's wharf but with the exception of a few vessel owners -most of them now live in expensive float homes and nearly all of those of modest means have been effectively been evicted thanks to the application of rules and regulations designed to get rid of them. And some will say "good riddance" I don't. I say its sad to see a person loose their home especially when they were happy to live there. It was certainly the end of an era.

Fisherman's wharf Victoria BC

There will be some that will argue that all of the above are perfectly reasonable regulations and they were needed to reflect rising land prices and accommodate development but the bottom line is that if you wish to live on your boat in Canada you will most likely run into rules or regulations that will limit your ability to do so despite the fact that the liveaboard lifestyle represents an environmentally friendly, often affordable alternative to spending all your money on an apartment or house.

My point of view is simply that we as a society should be reasonable about liveaboards. Yes there should be safety standards. And yes the sewage issue should and can be solved. Over the years I have seen some bad examples of people living in shacks on barely floating bits of logs and foam and derelict vessels on the verge of sinking etc. I remember the 110 foot heritage tug the QUEEN which had her bilge pumps full on all the time and despite the fact she obviously needed hull work she ended up sinking at the dock (Fisherman's Wharf Victoria) and causing thousands of dollars of damage. Clearly, reasonable rules demand that a vessel be seaworthy if used for liveaboard or other use but this has been an area of lax enforcement in Canada. If you wish to read about some of the woes about ship safety in Canada take a look at Sealegacy.com That will shock you!

In Victoria there was once an example of an older retired fellow from a retirement home who got tired of seeing his friends die and so bought himself a blow up cheap inflatable raft and proceeded to liveaboard it. He did that for about a while until they deflated his raft and forced him back to the home. (he is dead now) That's just silly. (He was a bit of a loon) But if people wish to live on their vessels they should be allowed to under reasonable conditions and they should have some rights. That may involve the right to purchase a slip or lease it for 25 years or some form of multi month or year tenants agreement. Building equity is what people do in normal housing so over a period of time they can own something of value When you build up equity you have more of an interest in your community and tend to take better care of your asset either a house or boat.

People who live aboard vessels and mariners in general tend to be very independent and as a result effectively have no voice in local politics. Some also seem to be very opinionated and are always the first ones to voice a negative opinion when a fellow boater expresses an opinion or attempts to improve their lot. So its a difficult group to lead or manage. I have seen good people try and then give up. You can't fight it -its just the way it is. A sailor tends to be an independent spirit because when they do go to sea they depend on themselves to successfully make the passage and for vessel and crew safety.

There seems to be a special interest group for every point of view and profession in Canada and the world -except liveaboards. We have groups for hunters, fishermen, native bands, cultural groups, doctors, teachers, taxpayers, veterans, disabled groups, automobile drivers, etc etc but no voice for the liveaboard. As a society we do not even maintain records of liveaboards so do not even know how many there are. (ask stats can for a breakdown by province and you will draw a blank). So in an unfortunate way the very strength of character and independence of the mariner has worked against him when it comes to protecting or even establishing liveaboard rights.

Cowichan Bay BC

Liveaboards are viewed by some as threats to waterfront land owners, developers and tax collectors. Every family that lives on a boat is one less family participating in the real estate ownership or rental market. Every liveaboard vessel is viewed as one less source of municipal taxes so represents a loss of $2000 or more to local municipalities. Although the marina pays taxes and the notion that the liveaboard lives "tax free" is totally incorrect. In fact liveaboards, unlike home owners, pay provincial tax and GST each time their vessel is sold. That money and the taxes on moorage goes into general revenue and is NOT put back into providing any services for them. Also the liveaboard uses a small fraction of the public services provided to a homeowner and any negative tax impact is a bogus issue.

The tax situation is really unfair. And the public attitude to liveaboards in Canada is often very negative resulting in many liveaboards maintaining a low profile and sometimes almost ashamed to admit where they live when in fact they should be proud of it! Part of this problem is due to the fact that some people living in the poverty sector of our society also live onboard and sometimes they are beaten down economically and psychologically. In other cases, a person is hiding the fact he is living aboard because his marina has used up all its liveaboard spaces and he is there undercover. Perhaps a unified voice representing this group could do something about this situation. We also have some very successful and financially healthy liveaboards that live in luxurious vessels that would put many land homes to shame. Most though life modestly.

Victoria Harbor note the Palm Tree! Thats the Empress Hotel in the background.

People have been living onboard vessels on the BC coast for over a hundred years. And yet they have absolutely no rights and are under regular harassment. I once lived onboard in Victoria, BC and saw a friendly, happy little family community of boaters at Fisherman's wharf completely destroyed when the authorities doubled and then tripled the rates, took parking away, initiated an anti-liveaboard policy and allowed a multi-million dollar condo to go up overlooking the wharf. Several of the residents were our rich (absentee) American cousins looking for a hidy hole just in case in safe friendly Canada. (I like Americans and am just stating the facts here-there is nothing wrong with buying real estate in Canada) Oh and the politically appointed Harbour Master apparently earned a commission of 35% of all the fees collected so they wanted the rates as high as possible. The Minister of Transport appoints Harbour Masters and they then hire their family members and I was always a bit suspect about that. It deserves some research but perhaps a reader knows much more than I do about it and is willing to share some insight. Perhaps its best left alone. My rule is that you follow the money and who is benefiting and you can normally figure out what is going on!

The federal government is getting out of the Harbour management business and I am guessing that local authorities who can set their own rules will be even better able to pursue anti-liveaboard activities in the future.

Because of the wide variation in liveaboard vessels this is a viable alternative housing and lifestyle for citizens. Because of the bullshit associated with it much of the freedom to live on one's vessel has been taken away. What Canada needs is Marine zoning, controls on the use of waterfront land as pubs and restaurants at the exclusion of vessels and some form of bill of rights for liveaboards including such things as the right to live on a vessel and have access to it via the foreshore for repairs and something about the responsibilities of living onboard including such things as electrical safety, hull integrity and safety equipment. Will anything like that ever happen? No.

What I do see happening -and there is no point in identifying the marinas in Sidney BC just north of Victoria - because they know who they are and what would be the point - are Canadian marinas being taken over by rich American yacht owners looking for a cheap, safe, low crime place to park their boats. When the exchange rate was good for the American dollar there was great incentive -up to a 40% premium for doing so. The demand was so great that there was a waiting list for boathouses and their selling prices were astronomical. I am not sure what the situation is with our near par loonie these days. There is absolutely nothing wrong with being rich or being American or parking your boat in Canada.

What I find frustrating is that when a limited resource -a marina for wet berthed vessels- is taken over by absentee boaters from another country requiring minimal services and the Canuck boater is out of luck and prices are pushed up for what is left. The absentee owner represents easy money and potentially more revenue by providing boat maintenance services while they are away. Many of the local owners have limited disposable income and as a result collecting moorage from them is sometimes a problem and management costs are higher so from a Marina Managers point of view they are not desirable customers when there is an easier more affluent alternative.

Although almost impossible to believe -there is great difficulty in finding a slip for even a 30 footer in the Victoria/ Sidney area. This is the West Coast for God's sakes and we have thousands of miles of coastline. There should be a range of facilities for the boater from the more exclusive and expensive space in built up areas to less expensive spots out in the sticks. There is no place to even moor a trailer boat in the Victoria Harbour and its against the law to put up a sail in the harbour. Putting in a new marina in is almost impossible due to the environmental, first nations and high real-estate values where all waterfront and foreshore space is sucked up by residential and non marine use. We have all seen little marine repair facilities disappear replaced by pubs and condos. Its a simple zoning problem and the lack of marine zoning has gone far in killing off the marine industry. You can place a pub or a condo anywhere but a marina needs waterfront and foreshore space to moor, build and maintain vessels.

As you can see here in Victoria the big condo developments take up the shoreline where there was once a place to haul and work on your boat. There is huge development pressure for foreshore land. Often though the owners of the condos are absentee owners who live else ware who use them as investments or getaways. Nothing wrong with being rich but we need a space on the waterfront for average hard working types too.

At one time it was possible for the average family to own a 30 foot sailboat. Now the most popular boat in BC is a 17 footer on a trailer. Soon it will be a plastic kayak on a car roof top. Or a subscription to a yachting magazine. At one time living on board your vessel be it an old travel trailer on floats or a million dollar yacht was an option. No more. The average and poor folks have been effectively eliminated from the waterfront.

We don't need to look too far for some possible solutions to managing the marine industry. In fact our cousins down in the USA seem to have a few of the problems solved or at least on the run. Down there they do have marine zoning. In certain areas you can actually purchase or lease a slip the same as a land lot. And in certain areas governments have stepped in to establish marinas so that slips remain affordable to citizens. Marina Del Ray is a prime example in California with over 5000 pleasure vessels including a percentage of vessels with liveaboard rights. Friday Harbour in Washington State is another example. In other areas the Americans have established laws which protect members of the boating community and the right to live aboard a vessel. In summary we don't need to look too far for some good solutions.

In Canada the government is getting out of the public dock business and you cannot purchase a vessel slip as the foreshore is considered to be public property. Unfortunately" the Crown" i.e. the Federal Government is neglecting its responsibility to manage this marine property in the best interests of the citizens that make use of it and as a result our marine industry is in a mess. In Canada dock space is extremely expensive, facilities are very primitive, there is inadequate marine zoned land adjacent to marinas to allow the maintenance of vessels and there is no infrastructure for business to operate in. In short Canadian Government does not understand the basics of business (or simple reality) when it comes to the marine environment. Here with have three levels of government all trying to figure out what to do so nobody takes charge and the situation gets worse every year.

As a past liveaboard in Canada this webpage is my effort to try and improve the situation. I am doing this partly out of guilt because it was my generation that I think screwed it up for liveaboards. It was easier to live on board before my generation and harder after so the finger points at us baby boomers. The six years I spent living on board were great and it really would be a shame for others not to be able to enjoy this life style. Its not for everyone and there is a period of adaptation but for those that like it -its the best lifestyle one can have. You are living on the water with interesting people in an exciting and beautiful environment and you will get lots of great memories for your old age. If you are lucky enough to have a vessel that is also capable of leaving the dock what great adventures you can have. And as far as your "carbon foot print" goes its pretty tiny on a liveaboard vessel. I have found in life that if you are positive and try and build things and improve them your situation improves. And as Stephen Leacock said -the harder I work the more good luck I have! If you just sit back and whine or bitch about somebody else then nothing changes. In both cases you use the same energy.

Can you imagine the fantastic life styles that our liveaboards could have in Canada if there were reasonable rules, facilities and opportunities. We have a magnificent coastline, a long marine heritage and people with an adventuresome spirit who are living aboard now. You meet the nicest people on boats! We also have had some of the best blue water sailors on the planet. There is an entire potential industry there with quality jobs and healthy lifestyles that is just waiting for the right infrastructure to blossom and grow. Marinas in Canada are chronically undercapitalized and attempting to operate out of cramped often substandard quarters with minimal foreshore space for repairs, maintenance and services. There could be communities for artists, writers, retired old farts like me, for world cruisers, families and for any mix of mariners who just wish for the good life on board. The industry needs some serious help and investment funds to get it on its feet. Once there it will run itself. Will it happen? Probably not. But it could! How would you like to live in an environment like in the photo below?

I suppose I should warn you that I may have been a bit overly dramatic in describing the plight of Canadian liveaboards when in fact thousands of them are very happily living aboard at this moment and dozens are offshore in warm tropical waters and some might be wondering what the heck I am talking about. In fact some marinas and facilities have been steadily improved since I last lived onboard 20 years ago. Mind you I seem to see fewer and fewer boaters of modest means living aboard these days -at least in the larger centers. I have picked stories out of the hat from a several year span for purposes of illustration. More or less everything else is accurate - I didn't get to where I am today by telling tall tails.

MAIN ADVANTAGES OF LIVING ONBOARD YOUR VESSEL

You can move and take your home with you

You meet very friendly people with like interests

You can live inexpensively compared to a house and unlike an apartment you are building equity

Its an exciting lifestyle with a little adventure included

You have a direct connection with nature

You are on the water and waterfront is normally too expensive for most

You can be very comfortable away from pollution and there is no grass to cut

You can adapt to the smaller space quicker than you think

Your surroundings are usually very attractive

There is always at least one really good looking woman in a bikini in your marina usually more

You can own your boat and boats are available at all price ranges

If you have the right boat its great for families too

Its environmentally correct as you have a very tiny carbon footprint and are not using up many of the Earth's resources or adding to the global warming so you can gloat a bit while you enjoy yourself too

DISADVANTAGES OF LIVING ON YOUR VESSEL

In cooler climates cold weather heating is a challenge

Smaller living spaces

Rules and Regulations are sometimes anti-liveaboard

You are usually on a month to month rental for your space

Boats especially new ones are getting expensive

Some people prefer bigger living spaces

Keeping enough clothes onboard to go to a desk job is sometimes a challenge

There are some dangers such as drowning -eventually we all fall in once- and your boat sinking -sometimes this happens too

low end cheap boats often are not very comfortable even when practically free -some old wooden boats can have a lot of rot and may leak during rains

Some boats are better liveaboard boats than others -if it has been used for this purpose before that's a good sign of suitability

Normally a boat will not appreciate over time like a house because a boat is constantly depreciating while a house is too but its lot is usually appreciating.

Constant maintenance is required to keep everything ship shape and working well -most enjoy this type of work but if you don't it could be a problem.

You need to do careful good quality work on your boat or the repairs will break and you need to be organized or it will quickly develop into a hovel instead of yacht.

There are some excellent links below which I hope you find as interesting as I did!

Fair Winds and Following Seas! -Capt Ron -ex liveaboard (looking for another one now!)

Cowichan Bay Vancouver Island BC Canada

LINKS

(click on image to visit site)

Build your own 16' GRAND BANKS DORY Here is a very seaworthy vessel that you can build out of wood in two to three weeks that will last 30 years and provide you with one of the most tested designs on the water. The Grand Banks Dory was used for over a hundred years by fishermen on the Grand Banks of Newfoundland and was able to take them safely into the very challenging Atlantic Ocean waters and return with a load of fish. Rows very easily and can also be powered. This is the best set of instructions available to build a Dory and even a novice can do it and end up with a great vessel that will take them anywhere.

Build your own trailered 20 foot Houseboat that can be also used as a trailer and have the best of both worlds a houseboat that can be used on the water and on land! Save thousands over a factory houseboat and have fun with the family building it in the back yard. Much easier to build than you might think and suddenly you have a ticket to explore some of the most attractive areas on the planet. Unlike a standard boat you can also use it as a land yacht too! How cool is that!

Southwinds Magazine -some interesting news on liveaboards in Florida

Washington Liveaboard Association -(1) to promote an environmental awareness among Washington liveaboards; (2) cooperate with other organizations both local and national for the betterment of the waters and shoreline of the State of Washington; and (3) work with liveaboards and other boaters to develop a better community image.

48 North Magazine Interesting letters about Liveaboard issues -going back a few years but still topical.

Living On Boats -UK site showing how they do it on the other side of the pond.

Austal Australian vessel manufacturer who specializes in the liveaboard vessel as a part of their product line.

Boats.com Interesting article on liveaboard life style

Pets on Board Here is a picture of our nice puppy Ruffus J. Dawg who we kept on board for security purposes and surprisingly never had a problem. I would like to say his bark was worse than his bite but to be truthful about this he had a horrible bite too.

Ferrocement boats. Our own webpage on this topic with good links to more info. Potential liveaboards should review ferrocement as a possible option.

Best Vessels For Liveaboard Good ole know it all Capt Ron blabs on and on about the best boat to liveaboard on. Includes some information which is actually useful!

Search Amazon for books on boating they have tons of them and at sale prices too! Lots of people know more about boats than I do -this website is just an introduction to some ideas on the topic for detailed info a book on the topic is a good investment.

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The most critical thing about living aboard

is finding the right first mate!

About your Author

At age 61 I have lived on boats for several years and have been around them for about 50 years. I am presently ashore near an inland lake in Northern Ontario and for the first time in my life boatless! I operate this website as a hobby and to have a bit of fun poking at the bullshit we see so much of in modern life. More info on the website is located here.

Hope you found the info, links and ideas useful. Everyone's situation is different and I don't pretend to have all the answers but I am passing this stuff on with the hope you can use some of it. It's taken me decades to learn it. I can speak from experience by saying that trying to tell an independent minded sailor anything is basically impossible but there you have it -hopefully you can use something!

Living on boats is not for everyone but those that enjoy it -really enjoy it. You will meet lots of great people including a few boat nuts. Don't wait until you are too old and decrepit before you give it a try. We are all dreamers but being an armchair sailor does have it's limits and it's much more fun to actually live on a boat and go to sea rather than just reading about it. After a few years that window of opportunity snaps shut and it's time to swallow the anchor. Fair winds and following seas! Your webmaster -ron Oh and in the off chance that somebody out there is looking for a reliable boat sitter please contact me!

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RULES AGAINST LIVING ABOARD BOATS

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