A weekend of sailboats

Saturday, Sunday, and Monday we hopped around the greater Seattle area viewing numerous sailboats for sale. By the end of the weekend we had seen eight boats, each taking about two hours of our time to talk with the broker and inspect. Add in all the driving too and from each marina, and we were pretty darn tired by Monday afternoon when we settled in at the Marina in Anacortes, WA for a few nights.

We checked out a 40 foot a Hans Christen in downtown Seattle, which was not only beautiful as all heck – as you might expect – but way too large for us. We were learning fast. The differences between a 37 foot and a 40 foot boat is not a simple 3 feet. As it turns out, it is about 10 feet in overall length difference. The costs to buy, park, maintain, and insure a boat increases exponentially with every single foot and a 40 foot boat was proving to be out of our league.

In Bellingham we saw numerous boats, one of which is now our top contender. Sure, we fell head over heals for the boat in Port Townsend but boats like this new one was exactly why we were spending the time looking around. Not only was it designed by the same guy who designed the one in Port Townsend, it was in the same basic condition (as far as our untrained eyes can see) and a huge $38,000 cheaper on the asking price. Also, our broker’s office is within a stone’s throw of this boat so it would be easy to get questions answered and even another look at it if need be.

After a boat viewing and a couple nights in Anacortes, we drove down to get on the ferry to return to Port Townsend for a proper viewing of the original boat. Now a full circle, we were finally going to be able to see this one with a true buyer’s eye. That happened mid week and while we do still love that boat, the price tag kept us looking back at the one we fell for in Bellingham.

I have been unable to focus for the past week and haven’t gotten any work done since we started researching and looking at boats. Brain power dedicated to working only trickled in for me, and so my output suffered. Not a total loss though, as we both have become much more educated in sailboats, boating vernacular (I don’t think I have every used that word in my life), and all things boat-buying. It’s been a bit of a blitz the past two weeks since walking the docks and stumbling onto our original love. Some folks I’ve ran into say they shopped around for a year or more before they found the boat for them. We are lucky to have found three really good matches, each with their own pros and cons, all in the general area. Now we just have to pick one, make an offer, and start the whole process of becoming it’s new owners.