By Lin Pardey
This is the second of a four-part Caribbean Compass series by Lin Pardey, adapting and updating material from her 1998 book, Cost Conscious Cruiser. Part One ran in our August-September 2023 issue.
Sail Your Boat in Light Winds
Not only will you save money on fuel and reduce wear and tear on the engine, but life on board will be more pleasant without the machine noise. If you can use this light-air sailing time to do some routine maintenance jobs, you could arrive in port with a lot shorter work list. Then you can use your valuable shore time to join in the local harvest festival or beach barbecue.
Conduct Repairs at Haulout Time
Because you need to schedule your haulout stop in advance, you can save shipping costs by ordering specialized parts ahead of time. Allow a few weeks to do this yearly pit stop, so that you will not be frustrated should there be a holdup due to customs or shipping delays. But you may find that, as is often the case in the most popular cruising haulout ports, boatyards already stock the parts you need. Furthermore, skilled repair people seem to gravitate toward these areas, and careful discussions with other sailors and local craftsmen might help you find “the right one” to save you the emotional and financial costs of having to redo makeshift developing-world repairs. A final bonus is that you only have to put up with the boat being disarranged and invaded by the mess of dockside repairs once during the year.
Make Life at Anchor Pleasurable
This is essential; if you don’t feel comfortable and secure at anchor, you and your crew will need to spend more time in costly marinas, or tied alongside quays, which in turn generates other costs. Life alongside is noisier, affords less privacy, and attracts shore dirt and pests – from cockroaches and rats to unwanted salesmen who can make their pitch more easily. It takes time to get your boat securely tied alongside or in a berth, so once you are there, you are less likely to set sail serendipitously. If you’re at anchor, you can easily take newfound local friends out for an afternoon’s sail or fishing or move to a more pleasant anchorage on the other side of the island for a few days.
Your boat is more prone to scuffs and paint damage as you maneuver in the close confines of a quay or marina, and as other yachts come alongside. So work toward making your ground tackle convenient to use. To gain peace of mind, rig up your stern anchor and a second bow anchor so it is easy to put out extra ground tackle. Have a good rowing boat and a long set of oars and experience “the joy of rowing.” Work at making your onboard bathing facilities easy and convenient so your crew does not feel the need to be in a marina just to have a shower.
Ration Cruising in Company
Although rallies provide enjoyable camaraderie, this is definitely not a cost-conscious way to cruise. First there are the entry fees, then the cost of rushing to buy, install, or repair various types of rally gear to meet the organizer’s liability-insurance requirements.
If this final outfitting is done at a rally starting port, local service and supply people will charge more because they have a captive audience. Since you‘ll be urged to keep pace with the rest of the group, you‘ll be rushed into fixing gear “right now,” no matter what the cost, rather than sail to another port with more competitive prices. From outfitting and provisioning to the clothes you wear, to entertaining on board and restaurants on shore, “keeping up” is a hard part of rally life that could drain your cruising kitty as well as your feeling of self-esteem.
Then there are the other costs. Rally implies lots of boats moving at the same time, which usually translates into boats racing. This leads to wear and tear on sails and gear far in excess of normal laid-back cruising. This rush mentality may add unexpected tensions among crew who pictured cruising as an antidote to shore life. And of course as part of a rally, you’ll gain a lot of sailing friends in the fleet, but you’ll lose the time to involve yourself in the local culture. Because you arrive as part of a readymade floating community, you often will be cut off timewise and socially from local people, the very people who could show you the most fascinating sights and advise you where to shop inexpensively for everything from services to entertainment.
Cost Conscious Cruiser is available from Amazon (amzn.to/3o7CuGn), or ask for it at your local bookstore. Lin will continue with cost-conscious tips in coming issues. Check out her blog at pardeytime.blogspot.com.
