Outfitting for Cruise to Mexico

[waterdog]

I have secretly hatched a plan whereby I sell all of our household assets including the cars, the boat, and in fact the house, and go and acquire a nice large 40 ft boat in a cruising destination to go sailing for an indefinite period of time.  The thinking behind selling the boat was that it is actually a bit undersized / not suited to offshore work and it's worth more money here in BC than it would be if we decided to upgrade after sailing down to southern California or Mexico.   So why not buy a boat in the Caribbean or Mexico and do any necessary upgrades or refit in a nice climate? 

Anyway, the problem with hatching a plan is that it becomes vulnerable to scrutiny the moment you reveal it to those impacted by it.   Tracey buys into the notion of going away sailing for a year or two, unfortunately she also thinks we should not sell the house.   This kind of puts a crimp in the $150,000 budget I had for boat acquisition/refit. So that leaves me putting a little more flesh on the bones of the "Why don't we take our boat down to Mexico?" alternative plan.   

BlackDragon is a essentially a stock '88 factory boat with about 750  hours on the engine.   Upgrades that we have completed in the past year include new dodger, forced air diesel heat (really important for Mexico!),  upgrade to 15kg claw type anchor with windlass, rigid vang, and bunch of little projects.   The "Mexico Upgrade" list runs to 20K plus ( a really dumb idea from a return on investment standpoint, but might be a low cost price tag for some exotic cruising).  Big ticket items include the following:

New shaft, cutlass bearing and propeller (old prop becomes spare)
New rudder (don't have any reason to believe there is a problem with the old rudder, but don't want to deal with failure off the coast of Oregon)
Standing rigging
Alternator upgrade (old becomes spare)
Water pump (old becomes spare)
New batteries (old ones are two years old, but not enough house capacity)
New sails including addition of A sail
Inverter
Life raft
EPIRB
Charts
Bimini
SSB / modem
Jacklines/tethers/harness/strobes
Lifelines
Various spares
New propane locker
Storage space overhaul
Icebox insulation
Fabrication of a real emergency tiller
New autopilot (what kind?)

Major items not on my list include radar, AIS, and a watermaker – should they be?   Major questions still open are what to do about generating power, and what else for ground tackle.  Any items on this list that are not necessary?   Any items that should be on the list that are not?

I'm not a huge fan of starting a cruise out of Vancouver for Mexico as this isn't the most forgiving coast in the world, but hey we have C34s at all points in between.  Why not?  Anybody care to join me for Vancouver / San Francisco?   Stu, can we do laundry at your place?

The big problem with this plan is what to with the boat in tropical storm season.   I'm not sure turning right and heading for the Marquesas would be wise in a C34.   Have to think this through.  Maybe just keep on heading south coastal cruising and re-emerge the next winter in the Caribbean...   

Thoughts, suggestions, advice??

[Stu Jackson]

Steve,

I'm in Cowichan Bay right now.  When do we leave?  Send me a PM and we'll chat.  I have a friend in hull #258 who took his C34 to Mexico this past year, and you have a very good outline.  His username is CIAO and his most recent post mentioned a watermaker.  Let's talk tonight if you can.

[Jon Schneider]

Wow, dream big!  That's great, and I'm envious.  It pains me to look at your list and think it adds up to $20k, because I've done most of that (not the SSB, life raft, or EPRIB).  OMG, have I really spent $20k.  Don't tell my wife.  Not sure why you need the new shaft and prop.  Prop, perhaps because you're upgrading to a folding or feathering one?  The new elliptical is a great upgrade.  Definitely go with a below-decks autopilot... one of the best investments I've made.  I went with Raymarine, but there's nothing wrong with Simrad, and Garmin's got one now as well.  You should think about the network you're building and probably go with one manufacturer so you only have to blame one company.  Do you already have a dinghy?  How about a real mattress if you're going to be living aboard a lot of the time.  BTW, the C36IA site has a great project-article on making your own v-berth mattress out of two relatively inexpensive twin mattresses.  Get a Spot Tracker, so we can follow you and Stu ;)

[Jon Schneider]

Stu, I was planning on hitching across country to meet up with you guys.  I'm leaving tonight.  Might take me a while to get out of New York; people here have lost the art of picking up strangers unless they've gone through metal scanners first ;)

[Rick Johnson]

Steve,

You might want to chat with Chris Burns (http://sailblogs.com/member/winddancer/).  He has a Catalina 36 Mk1 that he has sailed down the west coast from Alaska to Mexico and is now at Raiatea Island in the South Pacific.  He took his wife and two children along and has done a first class job of outfitting his C36.  Maybe not the best choice of boats but it's working for him and it has for others.  If you want, I can try to find my scan of a Good Old Boat article about another family who beefed up their C36 and was also in the South Pacific.  I think the C36 and the C34 are a fairly close match...

Cheers,

Rick

[waterdog]

OK.  Seems like we've blown right by the conceptual stage.   I'll swing by West Marine and grab the bits.   Stu, if you wouldn't mind throwing on a rudder and doing the standing rigging.   Jon you cover the autopilot.   We should be good to go by Friday.   Let's do the sails in San Francisco - we'll probably blow them out on the Oregon coast anyway.   We'll bring a few bits of plywood and some glass and resin and fabricate the propane box underway.   

Anybody else along for the ride?   Anybody with feedback on the to do list?   Anybody care to tell my wife or do we just call her when we are in Cabo and have her fly down?

This could be a lot of fun.   And I was thinking of a 4 year old Beneteau in BVI - where's the adventure in that?     

[Jon Schneider]

Hey, we've got to do something about the lack of sea berths.  I suppose we could do hammocks off the boom along with eye patches to keep the light out during the day.  Also, we need to check liquor compatibility amongst us.  No sense in having to maintain different stocks of rum, bourbon, scotch, vodka, etc.  Maybe we all just need to switch to tequila now in preparation for south of the border living.  Regarding your wife, I've always found it's better to plead ignorance and ask forgiveness later.  Perhaps an excuse as simple and lame as "jeez, honey, we were just headed to Point Roberts for the day, but we left this guy Stu in charge of the navigation, and the next thing we knew we were sipping mojitos in Cabo.  Go figure."  Or something like that.

[Joe Kern]

If I bring my Spot Trak can I come too?   It sounds like a good opportunity to test the 911 feature I never got to use in the Abacos.

[Jon Schneider]

If I bring my Spot Trak can I come too?   It sounds like a good opportunity to test the 911 feature....

LOL. 

[waterdog]

Also, we need to check liquor compatibility amongst us.  No sense in having to maintain different stocks of rum, bourbon, scotch, vodka, etc. 

Just so you know.  BlackDragon is not entirely stock.   I have a deck fill marked "Rum" and a 4 gallon gravity feed tank that dispenses 1 ounce shots. 

And lest we go too far into the whimsical side of things - I'm still looking for serious feedback on the list items.  Stuff like "Don't bother replacing your rudder - the one you have is bullet proof."   "Don't even think about spending a season in Mexico without a watermaker".   Stuff like that...

[Ted Pounds]

Steve,

I think your list is spot on.  And replacing the rudder is a great idea.  The old one is far from "bullet proof" (I think yours has mild steel webbing which is very prone to corrosion), and the new shape makes a HUGE difference in heavy weather handling.

If I had any spare time I'd love to fly out and join you for a leg or two.

Ted

[Craig Illman]

Steve - Mind you I have no experience, but wouldn't a Windvane satisfy the last two bullet items and not contribute to electrical load?

e.g. Fabrication of a real emergency tiller, New autopilot (what kind?)

Craig

[Ken Heyman]

After due consideration, I have decided to rendezvous with you on the good ship "wholesailor". I will head down the Illinois river ultimately getting to the Mississippi and then head for the Gulf of Mexico where I should be "spit out" in New Orleans. I'll then turn right and head west. I haven't quite figured the remainder of the route out but----no matter. Whoops maybe I'm better off sailing to Panama to get to the Pacific I'll then meet you all in Cabo. My c34 is basically ready absent the 5000 feet of anchor rode that I feel is required. I do have an elliptical rudder. Count on me being there by  June 2010.(If not call the Mexican and US authorities.---It's nice to dream.PS. After no discussion with my wife, I am sure that she will remain in the midwest ND attend to all matters domestic.
I've promised to bring her back a Pinata.

[Kyle Ewing]

Your rum dispenser is clearly undersized.  Who drinks shots that small?  Seriously, if your plans involve the possibility of selling your C34, you might think about potential resale value (see http://c34.org/bbs/index.php/topic,4027.0.html) before you make upgrades.  You won't get your full investment but some might make it more marketable than others.  A survey might help prioritize projects.  My thoughts:

New shaft, cutlass bearing and propeller (old prop becomes spare)--Do you have problems with your current shaft/prop?  Are you going for folding/feathering instead of fixed?  Fixed is more reliable.  I replaced mine because it was out of balance and wanted a feathering prop (Kiwi).
New rudder (don't have any reason to believe there is a problem with the old rudder, but don't want to deal with failure off the coast of Oregon)--A survey will tell you condition of the current.  After 20 years there's probably some water in it.  The new elliptical will improve responsiveness.  I replaced mine because of delamination and rust streaks when hauled.  
Standing rigging--After 20 years its near time for replacement, especially in salt water.
Alternator upgrade (old becomes spare)--If you anchor every night a Honda generator might be a better option.  For crossings where you can't deploy the Honda the alternator becomes important.  
New batteries (old ones are two years old, but not enough house capacity)--See alternator above.  
New sails including addition of A sail--Depending on age and condition of current sails she'll sail like a new boat.
Inverter--See Honda suggestions above.
EPIRB--Always a good idea and can follow to a new boat.
Charts--You'll need these anyway.
Bimini--You'll need to keep the sun off of you.  If you add side curtans it'll make cruising in cold weather more comfortable, especially with your diesel heater.
SSB / modem--Ocean Navigator had an article on this a few issues ago comparing it to satellite phone and other communication methods.
Jacklines/tethers/harness/strobes--Necessary for any night sailing in my book.
Lifelines--Based on condition, although in salt water it wouldn't hurt to replace.

Do you currently do extended cruising?

[Jon Schneider]

Regarding generators, a diesel gen-set might be a better choice just to be able to limit the amount of gasoline aboard (of course, would probably need some for the dinghy). 

Regarding water, even with a water-maker, I wonder if you wouldn't need some extra water storage above the 77 gallons.  Hopefully not, but it's a consideration.