Introducing the Cruising Lifestyle

Sunset among the moored boats in Boot Key Harbor

Welcome to “Thoughts Along the Waterway.” To introduce this blog, I'll begin by sharing that my wife and I live aboard a sailboat on the East coast of the US. We own no other home on land. We travel a bit on the boat, and sometimes off the boat, in order to see our beautiful country, and when possible, to avoid winter. As I write this, we are located in Boot Key Harbor in Marathon, Florida. Marathon is roughly halfway between Key Largo and Key West in the Florida Keys. We traveled down the coast from Virginia last fall using the Intracoastal Waterway much of the time. Gloucester, Virginia might be considered our home port, but I'll take up the topic of “home port” and discuss that more thoroughly at some point.

The topic of “home port” and many others will provide grist for this blog. It is my intention to share a different perspective on life. I hope that those who follow this blog will gain new perspectives of our culture and the norms we live by. Of course I'll also be sharing a bit of what the cruising lifestyle is like and how it differs from that which most people imagine.
We're not the only ones following this cruising lifestyle, by the way. There is a sizable group. I'll begin with a bit of info about this group. While it makes up a tiny portion of our country's population, there are quite a few involved. For instance, when we left the Chesapeake Bay last October, we crossed paths with hundreds of other boaters heading south as we were. Some were on sailboats while others were on power boats. We met a number of these other boaters and learned that the vast majority were heading to the Bahamas for the winter. Few mentioned going to the Florida Keys. And yet here in Marathon, we are surrounded by other boaters spending the winter months here. The harbor has 225 moorings – each one with a boat attached and somebody living on that boat, the vast majority from somewhere north of here. There are numbers of boaters enjoying the winter months at one of the eight marinas in Marathon, as well. Add to this the many who go to Key West or stopped in Key Largo or Miami, and you begin to grasp how many are in the Florida this winter. Then add to that number the many who have gone to the Bahamas for the winter, and you'll begin to comprehend the numbers of people who are included in this tiny portion of Americans.

Of those we see here, most are retired like us, but many appear to be too young for that scenario and must be doing this temporarily. We met one couple who lost their jobs in 2008 up in New Jersey. They decided to get out of the rat race and head south. They bought a boat and now live here in Marathon, working from time to time, but also enjoying a more casual lifestyle. Still others have young children with them. Again, I don't know how long they plan to follow this path, but they appear to be set to do so for many months at least.

I must add that the majority of those who comprise this group also have a home of some sort to return to up north. They aren't all full-time 'liveaboards” as we are. But for several months each year, they too experience life on the water. For those who have never tried this lifestyle for more than a weekend or perhaps a week's charter, let me say that it is a very different experience from living in the normal manner – in a house, condo or an apartment. If you choose to stay in one place at a marina as we did for most of our first several years living aboard (We were still in need of an income then.), you will find that there is a community of liveaboards who live as we believe people did in the past. Each looks out for his neighbor; there are frequent social gatherings; and if in need of help, one would find several willing hands nearby. In other words, boaters, when in groups, tend to create an old fashioned community.

In Marathon, given the numbers living in this harbor, we have found a somewhat more complex community. Activities and support are organized. For instance, each morning we turn on our marine radio and listen in to the “Cruiser's Net.” This is a two-way conversation with all who tune in. New arrivals are welcomed as departing cruisers say good-by. Those who want to get rid of some useful item can offer it for sale. Events planned for the day are announced as well. You can participate in yoga, softball, tennis, attend a social gathering or listen to a speaker share information on a particular topic of interest to boaters.

Those who need help can ask. For instance, yesterday, one boater needed to work on his refrigeration system, and that required emptying all the food out. He needed a large cooler to hold it until the project was completed. He used the Net to make the request and immediately received a cooler from another boater who just happened to have one unused sitting in her car. The net is run by a group of volunteers, and it seems that most boaters listen in on a regular basis, thus keeping this community strong.

We've met more people since we arrived in December than we would in the first couple of years living in a house in a suburban neighborhood. And the advantage of living on a boat is that we can leave all these nice people and move our “house” out into an empty spot by an island and have only birds for neighbors...until we want the friendly neighbors again.

Living along the waterway is much more than tropical breezes, beautiful sunsets and friendly boaters, however. In the coming additions to this blog, I hope to share with you more about this experience.

Until then,

Capt. Bob
on Carpe Diem