Some Suggestions for Boat Search

[guitarjesus]

I know there's a 101 sticky, and I'm reading through it as we speak. That being said, some advice in my general search beginning would help.

The Admiral and I are looking to make a transition from fresh water open bow to something we can cruise the family with. We're on the West Coast, our home port would be San Diego.

We want to start off doing local cruises, not too far away, to get our feet wet. I have a friend who is very experienced on the water to help me learn what I need to know so that we can start going to say, Catalina from home port, and at some point, further up the California coast.

The standard cruisers would be myself, the Admiral, and 3 of our kids, sometimes my older daughter.

I'm not looking to go from Southern California to Washington, obviously not making the Loop or anything that intense.

That being said, can anyone point me in a direction of what possible size to start looking at to comfortably get a family our size and stay overnights in harbors on the boat.

My wants:
Diesel, decent fuel economy, Standing room at 6'2" (in important spots, of course not the engine bay/room), enough room for kids to get around a little and not feel cramped (one child is autistic and he's a roamer, but he's used to being on a boat), a decent sized deck out back.

Not a huge wishlist. Any advice is amazing. Thanks all!

 

[DavidM]

You are going to need a two cabin 40+ ft trawler to fit your family. Even so, one is going to have to sleep on the couch.

Lots of choices in age and pricing. Check out the Mainsip 400 in the low $200s.

David

 

[guitarjesus]

You are going to need a two cabin 40+ ft trawler to fit your family. Even so, one is going to have to sleep on the couch.

Lots of choices in age and pricing. Check out the Mainsip 400 in the low $200s.

David

Thanks! Unfortunately we want to keep it under 100k, I should have put that in. Otherwise we'd have to unload our mountain cabin. That's not a deal breaker, but I'd prefer not to.

 

[READY]

I know there's a 101 sticky, and I'm reading through it as we speak. That being said, some advice in my general search beginning would help.

The Admiral and I are looking to make a transition from fresh water open bow to something we can cruise the family with. We're on the West Coast, our home port would be San Diego.

We want to start off doing local cruises, not too far away, to get our feet wet. I have a friend who is very experienced on the water to help me learn what I need to know so that we can start going to say, Catalina from home port, and at some point, further up the California coast.

The standard cruisers would be myself, the Admiral, and 3 of our kids, sometimes my older daughter.

I'm not looking to go from Southern California to Washington, obviously not making the Loop or anything that intense.

That being said, can anyone point me in a direction of what possible size to start looking at to comfortably get a family our size and stay overnights in harbors on the boat.

My wants:
Diesel, decent fuel economy, Standing room at 6'2" (in important spots, of course not the engine bay/room), enough room for kids to get around a little and not feel cramped (one child is autistic and he's a roamer, but he's used to being on a boat), a decent sized deck out back.

Not a huge wishlist. Any advice is amazing. Thanks all!

Interesting choice of forum names! Welcome GuitarJesus.

As a father of 3 now adult kids I would suggest that cruising SoCal ports might not make you all that popular as a Dad. I am based in San Diego. Getting anywhere outside of the SD Bay at trawler speeds is a 10 hour trip with the exception of Mission Bay which is still a couple of hours by water and not all that exciting. Few kids will really enjoy the monotony of these types of trips. Not to mention some spouses (mine included) don't want to be out in the ocean.

You may find it difficult to get much more than an old 32-38 ft Taiwan Trawler for $100k or less. Tight for 4-6 people but maybe you could do it. Also do keep in mind the slip will be $800-$1000/month. I would budget at least $1500/month for expenses NOT including the cost of the boat purchase. Can be more as you will likely be looking at boats with deferred maintenance. As you probably have or will read find, just getting insurance may be tough, especially on an older boat or without experience in boats of that size

Have you looked into joining a boating club such as Freedom Boat Clubs? I think you would be able to get more experience and find out whether you want to make a bigger commit.
San Diego Bay is a great place but there is not a lot to explore by boat. You may decide next step would be a trailerable boat (searay 270 for example). You can tow it up and down the coast and avoid the need for ocean cruising. Still large enough to launch in Long Beach and get to Catalina in only a few hours. Of course only during calm conditions. Camp or rent a hotel with the money you save.

I am not trying to discourage you if you want to pursue the idea but I do want to provide information of the reality of san diego boating. In contrast a marina up in the Sacramento Delta will be 50% less. In LA area it might be 25-50% higher than SD. If you send me a PM I will be happy to connect by phone if I you have any questions.

 

[guitarjesus]

Interesting choice of forum names! Welcome GuitarJesus.

As a father of 3 now adult kids I would suggest that cruising SoCal ports might not make you all that popular as a Dad. I am based in San Diego. Getting anywhere outside of the SD Bay at trawler speeds is a 10 hour trip with the exception of Mission Bay which is still a couple of hours by water and not all that exciting. Few kids will really enjoy the monotony of these types of trips. Not to mention some spouses (mine included) don't want to be out in the ocean.

You may find it difficult to get much more than an old 32-38 ft Taiwan Trawler for $100k or less. Tight for 4-6 people but maybe you could do it. Also do keep in mind the slip will be $800-$1000/month. I would budget at least $1500/month for expenses NOT including the cost of the boat purchase. Can be more as you will likely be looking at boats with deferred maintenance. As you probably have or will read find, just getting insurance may be tough, especially on an older boat or without experience in boats of that size

Have you looked into joining a boating club such as Freedom Boat Clubs? I think you would be able to get more experience and find out whether you want to make a bigger commit.
San Diego Bay is a great place but there is not a lot to explore by boat. You may decide next step would be a trailerable boat (searay 270 for example). You can tow it up and down the coast and avoid the need for ocean cruising. Still large enough to launch in Long Beach and get to Catalina in only a few hours. Of course only during calm conditions. Camp or rent a hotel with the money you save.

I am not trying to discourage you if you want to pursue the idea but I do want to provide information of the reality of san diego boating. In contrast a marina up in the Sacramento Delta will be 50% less. In LA area it might be 25-50% higher than SD. If you send me a PM I will be happy to connect by phone if I you have any questions.

I just might do that, thank you my friend!

 

[Mainship Pilot]

Guitar, You are basically due east of my, in South OC, not really San Diego. Is that just the port of choice, or are there other reasons? Reason I ask, is your access to Catalina, San Clemente, Island, channel islands, and all ports in between are much greater from Long Beach to Dana Point, and as previously mentioned San Diego is a long way from everything at 8 knots! I live in South OC, but my boat is up in Alamitos (Long Beach) as the costs are dramatically lower for slips there vs. Dana and Newport, and the same distance to Catalina. Might re-think other ports unless there is a compelling reason to do so. It will also open a lot more choices for boats.

 

[guitarjesus]

Guitar, You are basically due east of my, in South OC, not really San Diego. Is that just the port of choice, or are there other reasons? Reason I ask, is your access to Catalina, San Clemente, Island, channel islands, and all ports in between are much greater from Long Beach to Dana Point, and as previously mentioned San Diego is a long way from everything at 8 knots! I live in South OC, but my boat is up in Alamitos (Long Beach) as the costs are dramatically lower for slips there vs. Dana and Newport, and the same distance to Catalina. Might re-think other ports unless there is a compelling reason to do so. It will also open a lot more choices for boats.

I'm open to almost anything. San Diego is just where we are familiar with, doesn't meant I'm not willing to do elsewhere. And cost is somewhat a factor, so yeah, marinas up north from SD would help.

I'd be more willing to do Long Beach, I hate driving the damn Ortega, especially if my family is with me. And if I ended up getting a trailerable cruiser, I sure as hell ain't making that tow through that stretch of road. But I'm familiar with Long Beach, and all advice is taken with extreme gratitude, so keep all the hits coming!

 

[RedRascal]

Bayliner 3587 or 4087 would fit the budget and the family in 3 staterooms. These guys covered a lot of ground with theirs before moving onto a Nordhavn 52. Bayliner 4087

 

[mvweebles]

READY's message above is excellent, especially suggestion about joining a boat club as a start.

San Diego may be the most frustrating location in the US for powerboats. Glorious weather with shimmering water views from all over the bay but no place to go once you're on the water. Fine for sailors, but just frustrating to trek the same path every weekend. So tantalizing.

Peter

 

[lwarden]

Ready's post is spot on. Native San Diegan here and been boating all my life in SoCal. As Peter said, it can be a frustrating place to powerboat. Catalina is a long way usually into the swell so not something you would do for a short trip, you need to plan for a very long weekend or better yet, a full week. We chose our particular boat (not a trawler) since it can get up to speed and get over to Cat in 4-5 hours. Very tolerable for the family and more comfortable on-plane. Previous to this boat we had a 27' Shamrock express which we would trailer to Dana Point, then make the hop over to Avalon in a couple hours. That was fine, but a tailorable boat is going to get cramped, especially with your family size. There is dry storage in Dana Point so you don't have to trailer it back and forth the Menifee, which would not be fun, but then you have to maintain it away from home which comes with a host of other issues.

Suggestions for the Bayliner models above are a good choice, and there a few around, but likely a decent one will be well north of your budget. An old Taiwan trawler in your price range is a possibility, but would likely require some costly maintenance.