Travel by boat

First, I will admit that while this boat trip is in my future, I have not made that trip from Florida to the USVI myself, but have personally met and spoken to several who have. It is dificult to say how long the trip will be. Weather and sea conditions dictate whether you can continue your journey each day or be stuck in port along the way for days or weeks at a time waiting for acceptable sea conditions to make the next crossing. The time of year you make the trip is a factor, too, due to the gulfstream and from where the winds are blowing - crossing the gulstream is one of those things where you have to wait on it to let you cross. And you can't be on a schedule - if you're a month behind when you thought you'd arrive, so be it.

I was told by a couple who took their 55' stabilized yacht back to the states that often the trip was so rough that they had confine their cats in carriers and tie the carriers down to the floor. And they had a lot of cat puke to clean up for days at a time. The message there is that your pets may resent you for making them take that trip. 🙂

Another couple who took their 58' Hatteras from Miami to Jamaica and back, and then from Miami to Trinidad and back, had similar things to say. At times, they encountered 6 to 10 foot seas, though that is not common, but it happens. When they were in following seas, it caused the boat to do 360 degree turns that they could not control. When they were in a broaching position, the stabilizers kicked in to keep the boat from going over - it was a violent correction - but that's what stabilizers are for. Reading their logs after knowing what their adventure was like was pretty interesting - at least they kept a sense of humor during the trip. At the end of the day after they were safely in port somewhere along the way, they would write things in their logs like "sofa sliding back and forth across the salon...with me in it, again" or "here we go spinning, again..." and describe all the stuff that got broken on a particularly bad day when everything was tossed about the boat and into the floor, even the PC.

It's not always like this, but on some days, it will be. Once in the islands, you won't encounter conditions like that, but getting there is another story.

A good friend of mine took his 48' Ocean yacht to the BVI. He spent months getting there because he took his time and traveled only on nearly perfect days.

If you are not hard-core boaters, this may not be the best way for you to "move to the islands." And if you are thinking of moving all of your possessions to the islands on a chartered yacht - I doubt you'll find any charteryacht owner signing up for that!

As much of an avid boater as I am myself, I'm reserving judgment on making the trip from Miami to St. Thomas on my 58' Hatteras. I have definitely decided that my cat will NOT make that trip (he'll fly down), and I am considering just sending the boat down with a captain and meet her there, instead - jury is still out on that one though.

I hope this helps. I'm not trying to discourage you - you have to make your own decisions based upon your experiences, but I just wanted to point out that it's not always a fun day at sea like on a cruiseliner and you need to fully understand the ugly side of that trip before biting off on it. It will be a journey of a lifetime, if you do it. Oh, and one other thing...it's not cheap, either. At full throttle, my boat will burn more than 40 gallons of diesel an hour (yes, an HOUR). We would not normally run wide open, but in rough seas you sometimes have to do that just to maintain control.

Ang

Thanks so much for the information. Looks like we'll be flying down - not much of a fan of cat puke! 🙂

Geez, Ang - do I hear clucking? Honestly, girl, are you coming down in May for the show. Sorry to be so out of touch - hard to explain but since Carter left life is hectic!

Clucking only to the point of installing stabilizers for the trip down. The jury is still out on that too - cost to add them is $43,000. I'm trying to justify spending that kind of cash for the trip down - I think I could load her on a yacht transporter cheaper than that. Once in the islands, I don't think I really need them. But, still toying with the notion....

For May???....everything is up in the air right now. I am due to close on my 58' Hatteras motoryacht next week and everything is in place. Ed and I are headed to Miami (where she is) this Thursday to do a mechanical survey with the Detroit Diesel mechanic. We've already sea trialed her and she runs fine. After that, I'm having her hauled out for bottom paint, cutlass bearing replacement and stuffing box repacking. Then, after having her splashed around the end of April, I need to get her moved to somewhere and I don't know where that is yet. I could very well be in the midst of moving the boat and myself in May. I'm playing it by ear at this point since there are so many variables coming up.

I've started a website for her: www.sanctuarycharteryacht.com and once the closing is finalized, I'll open that site to the public. Her refit will consist primarily of cosmetics inside - new curtains, beddings, flooring, etc.

More to come....

Ang