I lost my job... so I'm off sailing

[muss]

As I am about to be unemployed, (recent victim of the economic downturn!) I've decided to bring forward my long term plan to get away from the rat race and go cruising.

I've enjoyed sailing my little gaff rigged cutter around Europe over the past few years... see: http://ifno.info/blog" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
but now I'll have to manage with virtually nothing in the kitty...

Any suggestions for my new life as an ultra-frugal sailor?

Cheers!

[Windfinder]

As I am about to be unemployed, (recent victim of the economic downturn!) I've decided to bring forward my long term plan to get away from the rat race and go cruising.

Respect, I think you've got the right idea. If I get the chop in early '09 I hope I'll have the nerve to splash out on a 4 week singlehanded charter. 'If not now, then when' as Tracy Chapman so wisely said.

Any suggestions for my new life as an ultra-frugal sailor?

Somewhere you can anchor every night?



Best of luck and keep blogging!

[Telo]

Hi Muss, I'm sorry that you've had the chop, but so pleased for you that you're in a position to make the really critical choices about life style.

Don't think we here can really help - it's really down to you (personal relationships, lifestyle, savings, pension entitlement, children grandchildren etc), but if you do decide to do it, then brilliant, you have real guts.

We've gone for the compromise, neither of us are in full time gainful employment, and although we enjoy what we do, we cannot claim to be masters of our destiny.

Yet.......... Hey! Boat's in the water next week...

[Nick]

Hi Muss,

Here's a few suggestions:

Check out what is expensive elsewhere and renew now before you go . . . as an example, we found batteries both hard to get and expensive when we had to renew them in Portugal and the Canaries.

Invest in things that will make life easier at anchor - eg a bigger anchor - so the temptation to go into marinas is lessened or removed

Consider electronic charts on a wee low-power netbook as you can usually pick up worldwide charts (eg C-MAP) for nothing from a mate. (Technically piracy but if you can live with it many others do).

Get a wifi booster and look for free internet access from unsecured wireless networks if you need/want it.

Otherwise it's mostly common sense, and as anyone on here will tell you I haven,t got any, so I will leave it up to you - you sound as though you have plenty of cruising experience, so go for it and don't look back (especially in huge following seas )

[spuddy]

Saw your post on netbooks, Nick, and considered splashing out. trouble is not much use without this CMap stuff. Where might one aquire such "friends" ?