Get Real, Get Gone: How to Become a Modern Sea Gypsy and Sail Away Forever

by Rick Page

Buy a boat somewhere nice, where it is cheap to live, that has lots of easy sailing and move aboard.

When I was in Kenya, I took an engine part to be fixed at a local workshop in Mombassa. I was told it would be ready “kesho”. When I looked up ‘kesho’ in my Swahili dictionary I discovered it means, ‘tomorrow’. So, feeling rather pleased with myself, I went back the following day and was told the same thing. The next day I was also told “kesho”. And the next. Finally, I erupted and shouted: "You can’t keep saying ‘kesho’ and not meaning it!” Whereupon, a very smiley face patiently explained to me, "I am truly sorry sir, but white people not understand, ‘kesho’. ‘Kesho’ does not mean ‘tomorrow’ – kesho mean, 'not today'”. That tickled me so much that it lead to further discussions about the language (which I was of course trying to learn) and it turns out that this guy (his name was ‘Jenga’, like the game with wooden blocks) was a fellow musician and we ended up playing together a bit and I became good friends with his whole family - who loved nothing better than to teach me Swahili and hear me mispronounce things.

I abandoned my ‘goal’ of leaving Mombassa in the quickest time possible and changed my goal to what was actually happening in my life – In effect, I made my goal, ‘meet great people, learn Swahili and wait for my part to be fixed’. I was able to achieve this goal very enjoyably - not because it was easier or less desirable than my previous one, but because it was what was actually happening in my life, rather than what I hoped was happening in my life.

So when faced with two choices of fairly equal merit, take the one that is actually happening, not the one that you have fixated upon for no other reason than that is what you have fixated upon. This is a good skill to develop because the sea is totally indifferent to your wishes and whether you like it or not, she will often have very different ideas of where she would like you to go. Change course, go there.

Do not fixate on your ‘goals’. Goals are inventions of the human mind and, unlike sea conditions or other geographical realities, can be changed in an instant. Wind not blowing from where you want it to? Why not change course and go somewhere else? (I discovered the wonderful Percy Islands this way) or go back the way you came and enjoy that place for a while longer? You can’t possibly know what the results of your actions will be, so stop fixating on your goals as if they were fuelled by anything more than the conceit that you know what the future holds. You don’t. But if you think you do, you will push your boat and yourself into dangerous situations just to get ‘there’, which in reality does not hold any more promise than anywhere else.

Sure, some things still suck - into every life a little rain must fall. I don’t think any attitude can totally eliminate that. But doesn’t the success of any lifestyle lie in the ability to tilt the suck/fun ratio heavily in your favour? This is made a whole bunch easier if you can abandon the desire to achieve your rather arbitrary goals when wind and weather are against you.

Put your agenda ahead of the sea, go up against it and see who wins. I know this goes against the macho image of, 'man alone against the mighty sea', but that is all it is - an image. Getting real is about seeing things as they really are, not how we would like them to be or how they are portrayed in the media. The best way to do that without constant disappointment is to learn to appreciate what is actually happening around us – rather than constantly attempt to manipulate reality to fit our desires, or satisfy our own image of ourselves.13

Sometimes you get pinned in an anchorage for two weeks due to bad weather. Enjoy it. Read a good book, make love with your partner, learn to speak Spanish. Wishing it were otherwise will do no good. Nor will convincing yourself that ìt will be ‘alright to leave’ when clearly it is not, in order to self-justify your wish to catch the Kentucky Derby on ESPN. Take off your shoes. Wish in one and pee in the other. Do you see which one fills up first? Good! Now you have your proper sea gypsy head on, let’s have a look at what kind of trouble we can get into picking the right boat.

You must learn to shut your eyes to fancy gadgets, large motors, huge aft cabins, water makers, freezers, bow thrusters, ice makers, microwaves, even generators, and develop a new set of eyes for the important things such as small, strong portholes, water-tightness, proper construction, supported rudders, good sized properly attached keels, reinforced bulkheads, good deck to hull joints, strong anchor points for the rigging, etc So what we all really need to do is stop letting marketeers decide for us what is attractive and learn to look at boats (or people, or anything for that matter) with a new set of eyes.

A Potential sea gypsy needs to think not “what size boat can I afford” but “how small a boat can I live on”. I cannot answer that question for you, but I can warn you that boats are getting bigger and bigger as more rich, weekend sailors and retired professionals drive the market. But to give you our own example: our current boat is 36 feet and that is possibly even a little large for a sea gypsy couple. Unless you intend doing a bit of illegal charter (see chapter 10), 36 feet is more than a couple really need (we have some friends who are bringing up two kids on a 36ft boat!).

There are a few exceptions to this rule. Jim Brown and James Wharram, amongst others, design seaworthy multihulls for the budget boat builder. However, even these seem to fetch super-high prices on the used market, so are probably only of interest to those who desperately want to build a boat - a topic which is somewhat outside the scope of this book and probably, the budget and experience of its readers).

My main objection to ferro cement is that they vary enormously in quality and are virtually impossible to survey accurately – meaning that you put your little nest egg at enormous risk when buying one. Don’t forget that you will need to invest time and money in your boat once it is bought and eventually try and recoup some of the cost when you sell it.

Very tall masts are great for racing, but impart far too much strain on the rigging, chain plates (and ultimately, the hull) to be practical for sea gypsies. Tall masts also impart a larger ‘turning moment’ (the force that will capsize you). Stick to single spreader masts or double spreader at a pinch.

Electric only water taps Either replace them with manual foot pumps and sell the electric pump on ebay (recommended) or put a manual foot pump in tandem. You must be able to access your fresh water easily in the case of complete electrical failure. Furthermore, if your precious fresh water is un-pressurized, nobody can leave the tap on.

Many galleys (kitchens) and heads (toilets) do not have a salt water supply. Change this. If the only available water is salt, then people will use it. On Calypso we have an electric pump to the salt water supply only and this is what we use most of the time for washing up, hand washing, etc. We have also added a little extension at the salt water intake, which allows us to turn this pump into an extra bilge pump at the flick of a valve (you never know!)

Electric heads use a large amount of electricity if used correctly. Have a couple of guests on board for a few days, feed them a good curry and they can flatten your batteries on their own without any help at all. Once you become aware of how much electricity they suck from your batteries, you start letting the button go as soon as the bowl is clear, rather than holding the button on for a good twenty seconds to clear the pipes as you should. This inevitably leads to calcifying of the pipes and blockages which will need to be removed by opening the pipes which are often under a good deal of pressure. This is not a fun job. In fact, it may be the opposite of fun. On Marutji we used to call this job “Pippy Longstocking”. (Drop us a line when you find out why).

Manual marine heads are one of the few surprisingly cheap items you will need for your boat, so go and get one. Buy the service kit while you are there and you will have many years of stress-free poo. We have a Jabsco which is by no means the high end of the market, but has worked fine for 10 years.

Not enough reef points on the sails. Many sailboats have only two reef points in the mainsail. You will need at least three. Four is great for heaving-to in the ultimate storm, but three is generally considered enough.

A small boat with a genset is simply not set up properly for life at sea. This boat either has too many electrical appliances or not enough solar panels (probably a mixture of both). A well set-up sea gypsy boat does not need a genset – they are noisy, expensive to run and maintain, heavy and environmentally undesirable. In a crowded anchorage they annoy the crap out of everyone and make the owners extremely unpopular. They also rely on having enough fuel around to use them. Sell it and set your boat up with solar power as described in chapter 14 – you may even make a small profit which you can put towards a wind turbine.

When you are next out in a stiff breeze, pay attention to what you are grabbing hold of and make a list of where it might be prudent to add more handholds.

Check your diesel engine. If it has one fuel filter only (normally attached to the engine itself) then you need to upgrade. There is a company called Racor who specialize in filtering. Google them and give them a call. You will need at least two more filters with water traps to ensure your precious diesel engine is protected.

I have occasionally seen engines that do not have any adjustment in the engine mountings and therefore cannot be aligned in any case. If the boat you are buying is set up like this, then include the cost of some stock shim material (thin metal sheets of predetermined thickness) or better still, some new, adjustable engine mounts in your calculations.

The junk rig can make an excellent cruising rig. It is easy to handle, easy to reef, easy to maintain and the sails can be built by anyone with the right sewing machine, as they do not rely on complicated camber in order to function. Furthermore, they are fantastic off the wind (which is where you are most likely to be going) and do not require any specialist poles or sails to go dead downwind either. The price you pay for all these advantages is a reduction in windward performance and even this is being addressed by sail designers and by the addition of small jibs. I am not an expert on the junk rig, but they seem to offer a lot for the budget-minded sea gypsy and everyone I know who has one is passionate about it. Google the Junk Rig Association for more info.

Just about everyone I have ever met who is living on a boat uses dacron sails. Dacron is tough, UV resistant and has proved itself again and again.

However, some fibreglass boats are made so thin and light (in the tiresomely endless quest for speed and profit) that they are more suitable for storing bleach than for long term voyaging. Fortunately for us, these boats nearly always have narrow fin keels and spade rudders, making them fairly easy to spot. Some lighter fiberglass hulls are made with an inner core of wood or a high tech substance like Nolex. On an older boat, these are best avoided as repairing them can be complicated and the designer obviously had speed at the top of his wish list rather than longevity. This type of boat notwithstanding, a strong argument could be made for thick, well laid-up, solid fibreglass being the best hull material for a budget voyager. Fibreglass is fairly strong, does not suffer from corrosion and can be moulded into some beautiful shapes. It can be ignored with fewer repercussions than other materials. There are certainly more fibreglass boats on the market than boats of any other material, making it the number one choice for most sea gypsies (including ourselves).

Now my fellow potential sea gypsy friends, there are a number of things working in your favour at this point. One is that people who want to sell a boat are disinclined to put any further money or time into it. The other is that boats cost money to keep, even when the owner isn’t using them and this being a buyers’ market, boats can easily rack up thousands of dollars being kept nice and pretty in the marina for prospective buyers to look at.

one must develop the self- awareness to know whether one is asking a question in order to truly find out the answer, or simply to give the seller the opportunity to sell your rational mind an idea that has already gripped your lizard brain. Go ahead and chase Hayley if you want to, but don’t sell yourself the idea that she is smart in order to justify your lust.

Blaming bad weather for boat losses is like blaming gravity for plane crashes. Me. Just now.

More people are killed every year by falling coconuts than by sharks. Yet when we are having a tropical beach holiday do we look upward for coconuts, or do we hear that ominous semitone from the unforgettable Jaws movie theme? Our perception of risk (like much of human intuition) is very skewed and not to be trusted.

I am surprised they still have puke bags at all - particularly on short holiday flights. Health and safety would probably be better served if they filled them with free condoms.

The best and most exhaustive description of how to heave-to can be found in Storm Tatics by Lin and Larry Pardey,

The biggest empire the world has ever seen was built on decisions delayed by tea and I am beginning to see why. Tea does not give you super powers (well, except a really good Darjeeling which makes you invincible) but it does slow you down and stop you doing anything stupid.

Perhaps the most amazing thing about heaving-to is how many sailors don’t know how to do it or don’t believe it works.

The first problem (and from which many others flow) is design motivation. Whether it comes from selective breeding in the case of the pit bull terrier, or the designer’s board in the case of a racing yacht, many of these so-called accidents can be traced back to a questionable decision at the concept level.

“To be truly challenging, a voyage, like a life, must rest on a firm foundation of financial unrest. Otherwise, you are doomed to a routine traverse, the kind known to yachtsmen who play with their boats at sea... "cruising" it is called. Voyaging belongs to seamen, and to the wanderers of the world who cannot, or will not, fit in. If you are contemplating a voyage and you have the means, abandon the venture until your fortunes change. Only then will you know what the sea is all about. "I've always wanted to sail to the south seas, but I can't afford it." What these men can't afford is not to go. They are enmeshed in the cancerous discipline of "security." And in the worship of security we fling our lives beneath the wheels of routine - and before we know it our lives are gone. Sterling Hayden

we bought our boat for $36,000 and spent $25,000 and a very leisurely 2 years sailing her around and preparing her while we earned money working. Our Norwegian friends Tina and Oyvan on SV Freya bought their lovely 32 foot Bayfield cutter for $17,000 and were off sailing in less than a month with only a couple of grand in further expenses. Several friends of ours bought their boat for less than $10,000 and had them sailing locally for another $5000, so do not be put off if you have less money than we did. There are plenty of cheap boats out there that require more sweat than money.

Number of nights - at anchor: 283 (77%) - on passage: 50 (14%) - in the boatyard: 17 (5%) - on a mooring: 15 (4%) - in a marina: 0 (0%) - on land: 0 (0%) Total sea miles: 4696 Longest passage: 32 days (Mexico – Marquesas) Total days sailing: 86 Motoring hours: 167 Litres of fuel: 270 (usually we use about half of this. This was an unrepresentative year for fuel and engine use) Money (in Euros) April: 0 May: 331 June: 290 July: 592 August: 205 September: 1018 October: 1000 November: 293 December: 1034 (incl. new autopilot control head) January: 411 February: 654 March: 666 Average 540 Euros per month for two people (270 each)6

What does a man need - really need? A few pounds of food each day, heat and shelter, six feet to lie down in - and some form of working activity that will yield a sense of accomplishment. That's all - in the material sense, and we know it. But we are brainwashed by our economic system until we end up in a tomb beneath a pyramid of time payments, mortgages, preposterous gadgetry, playthings that divert our attention from the sheer idiocy of the charade. The years thunder by, the dreams of youth grow dim where they lie caked in dust on the shelves of patience. Before we know it, the tomb is sealed. Good old Sterling Hayden again

The important thing is to have a plough-type anchor that buries itself quickly and efficiently and pretty much the worst performer in this category, both in my opinion and that of YACHTING magazine’s test department, is the CQR8. The CQR is a kind of plough anchor with a head that pivots. I mention this because these are what you find on many older boats and I don’t trust them further than I can spit a winch handle. There are fabulous anchors on the market now, the Delta (a very economical and effective anchor from Lewmar), the Rocna, the Spade, the Bruce (great once it is in, but difficult to set if there are any weeds). If you inherit a CQR with your boat, sell it at the next boat jumble and put the money towards some decent anchors. This is NOT an area in which you can be budget conscious. I know, I know…. good anchors are expensive and I feel your pain my gypsy brothers and sisters, but do not try and economize here and do not buy Chinese knock-off. Remember, a good Delta anchor costs less than a month in a marina and will last forever. When the wind pipes up and your oversized Delta is clutching you to the seabed like a nervous clam with abandonment issues, you will be very happy you bought decent ground tackle and took the time to learn to use it properly. When your expensive neighbours are dragging out to sea and you are feeling righteously smug, don’t forget to say to yourself, "I must buy those Calypso guys a beer when we cross watery paths". (Oh, go on then, just...

For more tips on solar look in Nigel Calder’s fantastic book (you are SO going to need a copy of this!) The Boat Owner’s Mechanical and Electrical Manual. This is the sea gypsy's bible and one of the few things I won’t sail without.

Instead of buying a $5000 autopilot strong enough to steer the boat directly, buy a cheap $400 self-contained tiller pilot (like the one listed here) and connect it to the vane of the wind vane self-steering. When there is no wind, you can flip it on and it will steer your boat. The wind vane steering gear is still providing the power to steer (which is why you can use the smallest, cheapest tiller pilot you can find) while the tiller pilot is simply providing the signal formerly provided by the wind. Now you can happily motor on autopilot or sail in very light airs that are not strong enough to activate the wind vane - for a fraction of the cost, liability and power drain of the dedicated electric autopilot.

If you have a little $250 RV fridge (of the type made by Waeco) then the worst bill you can ever get is $250 - and for this you get a new unit with a worldwide guarantee – not some antique unit patched up by

Learn the Beaufort Scale and you should be able to guess the wind speed to within five or six knots. If you simply have to put an exact number to the wind speed, buy a hand-held anemometer, as the ones on the top of the mast are expensive, too vulnerable to bird landings and complicated to fit.

tied a bit wool to the shrouds. This not only shows the wind direction more precisely than the electronic gizmo, it also provides a lot more information too: If it is drooping, there is no wind. If it is parallel to the boat, there is good wind. If it is whipping and cracking, there is a LOT of wind. If it is wet, it is raining. If it has blown away, it might be time to heave-to.

Despite its popularity, the inflatable dinghy/outboard combination is just about the worse choice a budget sailor can make as a tender for voyaging. They are expensive and delicate. They disintegrate in sunlight and rowing them is like trying to push a water bed through a vat of jam, hence the need for an outboard.

We got around the problem by buying an Advanced Elements double kayak and have not regretted it. These make extremely dry and stable tenders for yachts, are fun to paddle and good for fitness. They slip through the water like underfed sharks, are stable and can carry amazing amounts to stuff.

Many people think a thin, complicated PVC vessel will survive in conditions severe enough to sink their yacht because it has the word ‘life` in the title. In other words, because it says so on the packet. There are plenty of stories of sailors whose lives were saved by a life raft that confirm this view. We seldom hear reports from sailors whose life rafts failed to inflate or broke up instantly - probably for the very good reason that these lost souls are living with the mermaids. Unhappy customers seldom return, making an accurate survey of the benefits of life rafts almost impossibly one-sided.

Do not underestimate the value of the right attitude simply because nobody has found a way of making a fortune marketing it.

I cannot recommend highly enough the book Sailing the Farm by Ken Neumeyer, which is full of great ideas and recipes for sea gypsies living on a budget (see appendix). This book really helps me keep our budget on track. Amongst other things, this book shows how to make cheese and yoghurt, which seaweed is edible, how to preserve fish without a fridge and how to sprout different seeds.

Smiles on deck, not miles under the keel! This is the mantra of the happy sailing couple.