Can a fat kangaroo cha cha? Is a pigs butt pork? Silly questions, just as the title of this entry is silly. Well of course we would go cruising again, but not like we did in the 2016-2020 time. We would love to find a reasonably priced, solid small vessel say from 30 to 46 feet in length. And have a reasonable location for a slip rental. Then of course we would happily go aboard again and cruise the waters of our eastern United States waterways.
It would most likely be a weekender type of boating experience. No more full time live aboard. Physically, I am not capable of that sort of life anymore. Too many things wrong with this old man’s body and internal systems now to even contemplate a live aboard lifestyle anymore. But I could certainly entertain the potential of weekenders and vacation type cruises.
I would still prefer a motor yacht with diesel engines, but would also consider a gasoline powered boat as well. I consider the diesel powered vessel as more safe than the gasoline, primarily based on the flashpoint of diesel fuel versus gasoline fuel. The reliability of the diesel engine for marine purposes is greater than the gasoline fueled engine. Our two Cat 3208T diesels had approximately 1200 hours on the clock and all of the marine engineers indicated that they were nowhere near their lifespan. Although we did blow the starboard engine when we first took possession of the Misty Lady, that failure was due to catastrophic failure of the water hoses supplying cooling water to the starboard engine, rather than a problem with the engine itself.
But, for a weekend or vacation cruise, either engine power would suffice for us. Having owned a gasoline powered motor yacht in the past, I still recall how to preflight the boat prior to engine start. Granted the prestart checklist for a gasoline powered boat is longer and more critical than that for a diesel powered boat, but either would make this old man happy as long as they were capable of taking our boat into the waters, cruise along the eastern waterways and have the ability to sleep overnight or for several days. Having a refrigerator, a stove top, microwave, coffee maker and a toaster would be all that one would need for a two day weekend, or for a four or five day vacation cruise. I still have my nautical software for my computer, tablet and phone to provide clear and concise navigational capability and especially the depth of the waters beneath us.
As for the boat’s age, well, I would look more at the boat’s condition rather than when it was built. Sure I would love a 2000+ year build for my next boat, but have also seen some 67 year boats that were clearly winners in the well put together status. For instance I viewed a 68 Hatteras the other day on the Boat Trader listings that was pristine as the day she was first launched. Her owners had maintained this yacht as it should always have been. Both of her engines had been completely overhauled just two years previously. Her woodwork, brightwork and bulkheads were all solid, no moisture leakage and her decks were pristine and obviously had been well cared for. So in short, she was a new old boat. The quality of workmanship for this manufacturer was excellent during the buildout of all her Hatteras product lines, and was even more so in the 60s and 70s. As for her engines, they were viable for several more decades or so of cruising these waters. Her electronics were a bit dated, but not by much. When we bought the Misty Lady, she still had several LORAN equipment units installed. We then replaced all of her bridge equipment with a multifunction single point control system. Augmented by our iPad with the navigation software we were capable of traveling all up and down the east coast from Maine to the Florida Keys. This Hatteras was better equipped than our old Blue Water by far.
So this 60’s Hatteras was a great value, and her size was near to perfect for what we had envisioned our future boating activity might entail. Sure having a 50+ length would be super, but far too much for what we would be using. This Hatteras was in the mid 40s length and that would be almost perfect for a viable weekender or vacation motor yacht. But alas, as with much of one’s searching online for things like boats, houses and even cars, by the time one makes a decision to visit or purchase, the odds are the item will already been purchased by someone else as was this Hatteras.
But never mind, we aren’t ready to seriously consider a motor yacht or even a slip rental at this point anyway. Far too many other considerations, from finishing the dress out of our new condo home, to the solution for our health considerations (especially the COVID attack we just had), to the potential of other financial requirements. So, for now, a motor yacht is simply a wish list item for down the road.
Misty Lady Thought and Comment 